InvestmentManchester Angels, recognised as the leading angel syndicate in the North, disclosed two recent backings. By joining the financing of the fledgling tech firms Doris Labs and the cyber-security venture Ghost Shift, the group now totals 22 investments. Concentrating on cyber and intelligence fields, the consortium has completed 22 transactions, supported by 45 participating angels whose typical commitment averages £220,000.
AI-driven sales tool Doris Labs raises funds
Based in London, Doris Labs secured $600,000 (equivalent to £450,000) during a pre-seed financing spearheaded by Fuel Ventures, alongside contributions from Manchester Angels and several other angels active in the B2B software arena. The startup consolidates data gathered by sales personnel, from phone calls and emails to documents and CRM entries, into a unified, structured business graph. Leveraging this platform, Doris plans to introduce Sidekicks, continuous-operation AI assistants assigned to each transaction, each equipped with its own memory and procedural habits.
Initial trials indicate that Doris reduces administrative workload for sales staff by roughly six hours each week and accelerates transaction speed by about 72%. According to Patently, a patent-search AI utilized by over 1,000 teams across 40 nations, companies that incorporated Doris saw a 165% rise in deals finalized within their projected schedules.
Investors see direct application for AI tool
Hayden Munt, co-founder and chief executive of Doris Labs, remarked: “We’ve seen it so many times that each deal is treated as if it is siloed from the rest of the GTM; this doesn’t and shouldn’t have to be the case. The answer to any deal is there, just no one knows how to find it, Doris does.”
David Levine, a principal with Manchester Angels, stated: “Doris caught our attention with a unique approach and credible plan for a huge market. What sealed it was that each angel in our group could point to a moment at their own company where Doris would have made a real difference. That made the investment an easy decision.”
Cyber security startup Ghost Shift secures backing
The collective also joined the pre-seed financing of Ghost Shift, a cyber-security startup based in Manchester, which concluded with £250,000 raised. The round was spearheaded by Fallon, together with Cambridge Angels, Ante-Bellum Angels and Halceon.
The financing also triggered an additional £215,000 of matching support from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), raising the aggregate capital available to Ghost Shift to £465,000. This transaction shows Manchester Angels’ pronounced concentration on cyber and intelligence, informed by the expertise of its members, notably Fallon, who sold his former venture, Manchester data-intelligence company Naimuri, to QinetiQ in 2020.
