Heidi Davis, CEO of Peri, has been awarded the Enterprise Ireland High-Potential Start-Up (HPSU) Founder of the Year for 2024.

The company uses AI enabled technology to personalise the management of menopausal symptoms.

The Peri, a wearable device, helps users regularly update how they are affected by their symptoms and provides insights to guide women towards a personalised management plan. 

The Founder of the Year Awards acknowledges and celebrates the commitment that entrepreneurs and startups have made to build world-class companies of the future.

Voted for by their peers

There were nine finalists for the 2024 award, all of whom were voted for by their peers and have taken part in Enterprise Ireland’s High Potential Start-Up (HPSU) Founders Forum over the last year. 

Barry McCann, Nua Surgical, Mark Kirwan, Positive Carbon and Alison Liddy, Relevium Medical were also acknowledged for their companies’ achievements to date and voted as runners-up on the night. Other finalists include: Darren O’Reilly, Whole Supp; Criona Turley, Capella; Aidan Finn, Binarii Labs; Raj Lyons Chohan, Affinity EV2 and Mike McGrath, Kwayga.

Now in its sixth year the HPSUFounders Forum, continues to grow with more than 450 founders having participated to date from a variety of sectors including digital technologies, medical devices, fintech, food, engineering and construction.

The Founder of the Year 2024 was decided by a judging panel which included representatives from Enterprise Ireland, VentureWave Capital, Endeavour Ireland and Credit Logic. 

Mark Barrett, Group CEO of APC and VLE Therapeutics, which specialises in the research, digitalisation and manufacture of medicines also joined the event to share his perspective on leadership and scaling a global business. 

Heidi Davis, winner of the HPSU Founder of the Year Award for 2024, said: “I am deeply honoured to receive this award, particularly as the nominees are selected by Founder peers. Enterprise Ireland has been with us all along on our startup journey and we look forward to working them as we launch the peri to market in 2025. Our ultimate aim is to grow the business globally, bringing the peri to the women of the world, allowing them to live healthier and more productive lives.”

Michael Carey, chairman, Enterprise Ireland said: “The Founder of the Year Awards promotes Ireland’s ecosystem of entrepreneurs who have displayed the potential and commitment to building their businesses and set their sights on global markets.

"We are delighted to build on the success of the Awards which is now in its sixth year, and the Founders Forum which acknowledges and celebrates high-performance, innovative Irish startups. I wish to congratulate Heidi on winning this year’s Award and also pay tribute to the other finalists, all of whom were shortlisted by their peers, which is a real testament to their potential and future success.”