Dev Ally, part of Enterprise Ireland’s delegation to Slush 2024, made it to the final 3 of the Slush 100 – the world’s premier start-up event for venture capital – amongst thousands of applicant start-ups.
Irish-founded accessibility software platform Dev Ally has made it to the final three start-ups at Slush 2024 after pitching live on the coveted international summit’s Start-up Stage.
Dev Ally is attending Slush as part of Enterprise Ireland’s delegation of 24 innovative start-ups (14 of which are raising), with collective hopes of securing €250m in funding, with the event acting as a vital catalyst for this.
“Dev Ally empowers businesses to make their digital products accessible, enabling start-ups and scaleups to fully own their accessibility journey while remaining agile and competitive”
Selected from over 1,000 applicants at the Helsinki event, Dev Ally has proven the effectiveness of its technology in enabling developers to create more inclusive digital experiences, and cemented their position as a global leader in accessibility innovation.
Innovation powerhouse
Dev Ally creates AI-driven compliance management platforms that help businesses build accessible products, ensuring compliance with accessibility regulations and improving user experience. It had been shortlisted among the top 20 start-ups at Slush.
The news of its success at Slush comes following the launch of Dev Ally’s self-serve platform that transforms how businesses achieve digital accessibility compliance ahead of the European Accessibility Act (EAA).
This breakthrough innovation earned the business a spot in the top three.
With the European Accessibility Act (EAA) deadline fast approaching on June 28, 2025, businesses face steep fines if their digital products fail to comply with new regulations. The Irish company, founded by Cormac Chisholm, Darren Britton, and Patrick Guiney-Fox, is at the forefront of solving this challenge. By combining advanced AI automation with seamless product development integration, Dev Ally enables businesses to audit and fix accessibility issues within minutes, with no outsourcing or specialised expertise required.
“Being named a top-three company in the Slush 100 start-up competition validates our vision and the need for innovative solutions to address inclusivity,” said Dev Ally co-founder and CEO Cormac Chisholm.
“Dev Ally empowers businesses to make their digital products accessible, enabling start-ups and scaleups to fully own their accessibility journey while remaining agile and competitive. Having this potential acknowledged at such a high level at Slush 2024 empowers us to continue transforming how businesses approach inclusivity,” he said.
Oasys Now, the winner of the Slush 100 competition, will go on to secure an equity investment of €1m from two of Europe’s most prominent early-stage venture funds: General Catalyst and Cherry Ventures. Last year’s winner, Faircado, has since gone on to raise €3m – exemplifying the transformative potential of this award.
As the world’s largest gathering of venture capital, Slush has become a key event in Enterprise Ireland’s strategy to help Irish businesses expand globally, and the fruits of this can be seen in Dev Ally’s achievement today.
“Slush has been transformative for Irish companies, offering unparalleled opportunities to connect with the global VC community – being selected from over 1000 companies and speaking on stage, in front of such an audience, in itself is a massive achievement for an innovative company like Dev Ally,” said Viktor Heide, Senior Market Adviser at Enterprise Ireland.
“These events are vital as we reinforce Ireland’s reputation as a hub for cutting-edge, born-global businesses,” Heide added.
The Enterprise Ireland clients attending Slush 2024 included Konree Innovation, Sonalake, Numra, Cytidel, Vaultree, Tracworx, Dev Ally, Lua Health , Spanish Point Technologies, Galvia, Manna Drone Delivery, EVERYANGLE, Ardanis Technologies, Provizio, Chirp, Coroflo, VRAI, W4 Games, RDI Hub Company, Equal1, Binarii Labs, Oblivious, CitySwift and Outmin.
The Nordic region has proven itself to be a powerhouse for Irish businesses, with exports nearly doubling over the past five years to reach €1.7bn in 2023.
More than 560 Irish companies are exporting to the region, with Irish companies working with major players in the region including Nokia, Volvo, EQT, Lyko, Danske Bank, IKEA, Vattenfall, Ericsson and Sandvik.
Main image at top: Dev Ally co-founder and CEO Cormac Chisholm
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