As we enter 2026, the global tech landscape is shifting fast. AI is becoming more human, industries are colliding, and innovation is increasingly defined by purpose rather than hype.
From AI-powered healthcare and sustainable manufacturing to creative design platforms and next-generation marketplaces, these 17 companies are setting the tone for what progress looks like: thoughtful, inclusive, and impactful.
Here’s The Technational’s list of Companies to Watch in 2026.
Our Criteria
- Innovation with Impact: Each company delivers meaningful, scalable solutions that solve real-world problems.
- Sustainable Growth: They prioritise responsible, people-first progress over short-term gains.
- Proven Momentum: Strong traction, leadership, and market readiness position them for major growth in 2026.
Judges
- Daniel Tannenbaum - One of the TechNational founders, with more than 15 years of journalism and startup experience.
- Iwa Adio - TechNational Editor, with a keen eye for detail, particularly in the sustainability, fashion and AI industry.
- Dean Benzaken - TechNational Journalist with a passion for tech, startups and entrepreneurship
Health & Wellness Innovation
Healthwords.ai
Developed by Clinova, Healthwords.ai is making self-care smarter and more accessible. Its AI-driven digital health platform helps users understand symptoms, find reliable medical guidance, and connect directly with pharmacists, all through natural-language chat.
Designed for non-urgent issues, it empowers individuals to manage their health confidently while easing the burden on overstretched healthcare systems.
SheSpot
SheSpot is a fast-scaling FemTech company transforming the $60 billion global women’s sexual wellness industry, one of the most underserved categories in health and technology.
Founded by Holly Jackson (ex-management consultant) and Kalila Bolton (former City lawyer), SheSpot is building a next-generation tech platform designed to become increasingly personalised and AI-driven. Its mission is to help women better understand and manage their intimate health across every life stage, from first intimacy and postpartum recovery to menopause and beyond.
SheSpot addresses the lack of accessible, body-safe, evidence-backed solutions for women’s sexual health. The platform curates trusted sexual wellness products alongside expert-led education, empowering women to make informed choices about their bodies and laying the groundwork for a data-driven, tailored experience as the company scales.
With 300% year-on-year growth, SheSpot has earned recognition as a TechRound Top 10 SexTech Business, Top 44 FemTech Business, and Top 50 Women in Tech. It has also been highlighted by Sifted as a Top FemTech for VC investors to watch and is a finalist in the 2025 Enterprise Vision Awards (Scale-Up) and the Great British Entrepreneur Awards (Impact).
SeparateSpace
SeparateSpace, co-founded by family law expert Amanda Bell, was created to make separation and divorce less stressful, fairer, and more affordable. The platform offers early, child-centred guidance to families who can’t easily access legal help due to high costs and overburdened courts.
Launched in Spring 2024, SeparateSpace combines legal expertise with AI to deliver plain-English advice, practical templates, and 1:1 support. It has already reached over 17,000 users, earning an NPS of +79 and glowing feedback for its calming, supportive approach.
Female-founded and backed by Innovate UK and Daring Capital, SeparateSpace aims to become the go-to digital companion for separation in England and Wales — helping families avoid court, resolve conflict earlier, and achieve better outcomes.
Business Tech & SaaS Transformation
Throxy
Founded in 2023 by Pablo Jiménez de Parga Ramos, Bergen Merey and Arnau Ayerbe, Throxy is spearheading the next wave of sales technology, combining human judgment with AI efficiency to connect buyers and sellers. The team built Throxy to remove the sales bottlenecks and burnout that prevent companies from sustaining growth.
Throxy is an outbound growth partner for businesses selling into traditional industries such as manufacturing, logistics and medical. These sectors are defined by hard-to-reach buyers who rarely appear on LinkedIn or public databases. Existing automation tools, including those powered by AI, fail to surface strong prospects in these spaces, leaving sales teams to spend up to 70% of their time on repetitive prospecting rather than closing deals.
Throxy solves this through proprietary data, custom technology and human expertise to identify and reach the right people. Its fully managed, outcome-based service identifies target accounts, crafts tailored outreach that avoids the junk folder, manages replies and delivers qualified meetings directly to clients’ calendars. Instead of charging for seats or licenses, clients using Throxy pay for results. If no meetings get booked, they don’t pay.
Throxy’s model is already resonating and the business is expanding rapidly across the UK and US. Clients including Imnoo, Santillana and Pycad report up to 84% positive reply rates and 15 hours saved per week – proving that with the right blend of technology and expertise, outbound can finally work.
Precoro
Precoro is transforming how businesses manage billions in spending. Founded in 2015, this bootstrapped procurement automation platform has become a major player—earning recognition as a “Major Player” in IDC’s 2025 MarketScape—without venture capital.
Key Figures:
- $40+ billion in purchase orders managed annually
- 1,000+ customers across 80+ countries
- 50%+ year-over-year revenue growth
- B Corp certified for social and environmental responsibility
Precoro centralises procurement across multiple locations and business units with AI-powered automation. Its Google-backed OCR technology extracts invoice data, matches purchase orders, and prevents duplicate payments—cutting month-end close times by 7x and reducing document errors from 30% to 0%.
With mounting pressure on companies to control costs and improve efficiency, Precoro is well-positioned for growth. Its mobile app and strategic partnerships with Google, Staples, and Amazon enable it to compete with complex, expensive legacy ERP systems.
GeeksProgramming
GeeksProgramming is an education-based tech firm redefining personalised learning through advanced programme solutions.
Founded in 2014, GeeksProgramming evolved from an educational coding assistance community established in 2010 into a comprehensive digital learning environment. Today, it supports students and professionals across more than 30 countries. The company’s model combines AI-assisted code review, customised debugging, and one-on-one mentorship — enabling learners not only to complete assignments but also to understand the underlying logic of programming in languages such as Python, Java, C++, and MATLAB.
GeeksProgramming stands out as a company to watch in 2026 due to its transition toward AI-powered tutoring systems — technologies capable of identifying learning gaps and dynamically adapting courses in real time. This innovation places the firm at the intersection of learning and automation, helping to close the global skills gap through data-driven education.
The company’s vision is to democratise coding instruction by providing scalable, cost-effective, and context-aware learning experiences tailored to each learner’s pace and proficiency. GeeksProgramming is developing technology that teaches individuals how to think in code, rather than simply how to write it — a defining step toward the next generation of digital education.
MD Digital
Founded by Wesley Dowding, MD Digital is a productivity transformation consultancy helping large organisations modernise their workflows through cutting-edge SaaS solutions, AI-driven optimisation, and human-centred design. With over 20 years of expertise in marketing communications and productivity systems, the team bridges the gap between technology and culture.
2025 has been a pivotal year for MD Digital. The company has led transformational projects for global brands, including Google, where they streamlined complex partner ecosystems and delivered measurable efficiency gains. Their approach goes beyond implementation: they embed sustainable systems, upskill teams, and drive lasting behavioural change.
Looking to 2026, MD Digital is poised for rapid growth with the rollout of new AI-led frameworks designed to help enterprise clients reduce friction, increase collaboration, and unlock new layers of productivity. With a growing international client base and a reputation for marrying strategic clarity with technical innovation, MD Digital is quickly becoming a quiet force in the transformation space.
OneSila
"The Sales-First Platform Powering Global eCommerce Expansion". In 2026, global commerce will belong to brands that can scale fast, sell across borders, and adapt instantly to change. OneSila is built for that future. Founded by Sascha Dobbelaere, OneSila is a next-generation SaaS platform helping eCommerce brands simplify how they expand internationally. Instead of focusing on traditional back-office product management, OneSila takes a sales-first approach giving companies the tools to centralize, localize, and synchronize their product data across marketplaces and countries in real time.
With OneSila, brands can roll out to new regions in hours instead of months, maintaining accuracy and consistency across every channel. The system connects to leading platforms like Amazon, Shopify, and Magento, ensuring that pricing, translations, and content stay correct everywhere customers shop.
As global retail becomes faster and more fragmented, OneSila’s mission is clear: to remove the technical barriers that limit growth. By turning complexity into clarity, the company gives businesses the power to reach new markets quickly, confidently, and profitably.
Lenkie
Nnaemeka Obodoewke is the Co-Founder and CTO of Lenkie, a payables financing platform transforming the next generation of UK SMEs. Since 2020, Lenkie has deployed over £100 million to hundreds of businesses across multiple industries, helping them strengthen cash flow, scale faster, and build more resilient supplier relationships.
Nnaemeka leads Lenkie’s technology and product strategy, designing the platform that powers underwriting, onboarding, and lending operations. His focus is on creating scalable, data-driven tools that deliver a faster, smarter, and more impactful financing experience, unlocking growth opportunities for small businesses often overlooked by traditional finance.
Design, Creativity & Lifestyle
House Designer
Founded in 2020 by Samantha-Jane Agbontaen, House Designer has redefined the design industry by being among the first in the UK to integrate 3D renders and virtual design tools from the very start of the design process.
Today, we’re advancing the way people experience design through AI-assisted visualisation and interactive tools that make the process more engaging and intuitive. Our platform combines creativity with technology, offering a seamless online experience that includes layout plans, photorealistic visuals, curated furniture selections, and expert designer support.
What began as a disruptive idea has evolved into one of the UK’s leading online design platforms, trusted by homeowners, architects, and developers alike. As we move forward, we’re expanding our 3D architectural visualisation and walk-through animation services to bring even more immersive design experiences to clients across the country.
With thousands of projects completed and a growing multidisciplinary team, House Designer continues to push boundaries, shaping the future of home and garden design through technology, creativity, and innovation.
Chapter 2 Dating Ltd
Following the loss of her husband in 2020, Nicky turned grief into impact, launching Chapter2Dating.app, a platform to help widows and widowers find companionship after loss.
It now boasts over 15,000 members across the UK, USA, Canada, and Australia. The success of Chapter 2 sparked the creation of WidowsFire.dating, for those looking to reawaken intimacy, and SoberLove.app, designed to help the sober and sober-curious communities connect authentically and safely.
In line with her purpose, she’s now launching complimentary CIC community platforms, beginning with SoberAF.club in June. It's a space for sober individuals to connect and thrive. A similar platform supporting the widowed community is also in development.
A proud female founder, Nicky has already completed three successful fundraising rounds and is currently raising her fourth, a rare feat in the UK tech ecosystem, particularly among women. As she scales her suite of niche dating and community platforms, Nicky is building safe spaces, reshaping narratives around widowhood and sobriety, and showing the tech world what purpose-driven innovation truly looks like.
Manufacturing, Product & Material Innovation
Apex Manufacturing
Under Managing Director Leyland Clowsley, Apex Manufacturing is proving that the UK can still make things. Combining robotics, precision moulding, and sustainable materials, the company builds the tech that other innovators rely on. As production reshoring accelerates in 2026, Apex stands out as the physical backbone of Britain’s next manufacturing wave.
At Apex Manufacturing, we believe that not all tech companies write code. Some build the technology that others rely on. We are one of the few British firms combining precision injection moulding, vacuum forming, and robotics with sustainable, high-performance materials. These are not theoretical technologies or prototypes; they are tangible products used daily by industry leaders and innovators alike.
Our mission is to modernise British manufacturing by bringing automation and environmentally conscious materials into real-world production. 2026 will be a defining year for us as we scale operations, expand our robotics capacity, and deepen collaborations with companies reshoring production back to the UK.
Apexis where modern manufacturing meets modern thinking a tech company built not on software, but on substance.
Deltah Innovations
Deltah Innovations, a pioneering drinks packaging company, has launched the Cool>Can, a self-cooling beverage can that chills instantly at the click of a button.
Developed by Welsh entrepreneur James Vyse, the Cool>Can is designed to cool drinks on demand without refrigeration or ice. It has the potential to transform how people enjoy refreshments at festivals, during travel, and across retail and hospitality.
“The idea came from a simple frustration,” says Vyse. “I was tired of warm drinks at festivals and on the go. Cooling should be instant. That thought turned into years of engineering, testing, and refining until we achieved a reliable, sustainable, self-chilling system.”
The patented mechanism uses a compact endothermic process that rapidly draws heat from the liquid, cooling it in seconds. It works without external power and with minimal environmental impact.
Beyond convenience, the Cool>Can could reduce energy use and carbon emissions by cutting reliance on refrigeration throughout the drinks supply chain. Deltah Innovations is now in talks with global beverage and packaging partners, with major announcements expected soon.
Emerging Platforms & Marketplaces
Truck Parking Club
TruckParkingClub is a fast-growing technology company transforming how the trucking industry tackles one of its biggest challenges: the nationwide shortage of safe, legal truckparking.
Across the United States, there are 2.4 million truckdrivers but only about 697,000 available parking spaces. This imbalance costs drivers nearly an hour a day searching for parking and contributes to more than $100 billion annually in lost productivity.
Founded by Evan Shelley, TruckParkingClub provides an online marketplace and mobile app that connects truck drivers with property owners who have available space - everything from unused lots to warehouses, industrial sites, and small businesses. Drivers can instantly find, book, and pay for parkingthrough the app, while landowners earn passive income from otherwise idle property.
What started as a small network has now expanded to 3,000+ parking locations nationwide, making it one of the most impactful logistics tech companies in North America. The platform’s technology streamlines transactions, integrates real-time availability, and uses location data to match drivers with nearby spots, all within seconds.
The implications go far beyond the U.S. trucking industry. As global supply chains continue to strain under driver shortages and urban congestion, TruckParkingClub’s scalable model could inspire similar solutions in Canada, Europe, and Asia. By turning underused land into essential infrastructure, the company is redefining how technology, transportation, and real estate intersect.
iimpro
Founded by Davis and Steve, iimpro helps creators and brands turn social video into sales. The platform lets vendors collaborate with “ambassadors” — creators who produce shoppable short videos that showcase products authentically. After early traction with jewellery brands, iimpro is expanding in 2026, helping small businesses monetise creativity without ad budgets.
Iimpro is a new video-based marketplace that helps creators and brands turn content into commerce.
After decades of working in TV home shopping co-founders Davis and Steve saw how social video was driving attention but not conversion. They built iimpro to change that. Vendors can connect their stores and work with ambassadors (our term for creators) who produce short, authentic videos that show products in use and make them instantly shoppable.
iimpro sits at the intersection of storytelling and sales. It gives creators a way to monetise their influence while helping independent brands stand out without massive ad budgets.
Since launching in 2025, we’ve built an engaged community of jewellery businesses and video creators, and in 2026 we’re focused on expanding verticals and releasing creator tools that make shoppable content effortless.
Heatly
Heatly is an exciting new digital platform set to revolutionise the heat pump sector by making heat pump installation easier and more accurate, improving consumer confidence and stimulating demand. It’s an all-encompassing heating platform which is being developed to streamline the heat pump installation process for installers and their customers.
Part funded by the Department for Energy, Security & Net Zero under the Heat Pump Ready Programme (Stream 2), Heatly will simplify the process of selecting, installing and operating a heat pump.
Heatly is a one-stop solution for the survey, design (automated, with the option of manual amendments), installation and commissioning of heat pump systems. It utilises the latest technologies, such as 2D/3D modelling and AR to create a fully interactive and intuitive system design, providing diagrams and annotated component locations for ease of installation.
For consumers, Heatly will enhance their experience of the process; from choosing an installer and visualising what the system may look like, to ongoing operational satisfaction.
Overall, Heatly will improve the quality of heat pump installations and support a wide range of businesses, organisations and associations across the heat pump sector.
Education & Future Learning
Wisdom Circuits
Wisdom Circuits is an education-focused AI company built on one clear belief that technology should help students learn, not just find answers. Founded by veteran EdTech entrepreneur Peter Kraft, who has worked with more than 10,000 schools and districts across the United States, the company is redefining how artificial intelligence fits into real classrooms.
Its patent-pending Interest Integration™ technology connects academic subjects to each student’s passions — from music to engineering — turning lessons into something personally meaningful. The platform’s built-in guardrails ensure that every AI response ties back to curriculum standards while protecting privacy and academic integrity. That means teachers stay at the center of learning, and families gain trust that technology is being used responsibly.
As AI moves deeper into schools, Wisdom Circuits is emerging as one of the few platforms prioritising equity, multilingual access, and teacher empowerment over automation. It’s already being adopted by districts looking for safe, FERPA-compliant ways to introduce AI into their classrooms.
With policymakers, educators, and families all asking the same question — “How do we make AI a true partner in learning?” — Wisdom Circuits represents the responsible future of educational technology.
