California-based edtech giant IXL Learning has acquired MyTutor, the UK’s most prominent online tutoring platform. The acquisition, announced today, gives IXL a significant foothold in the UK market.

The financial details of the acquisition were not disclosed. MyTutor has raised a total of £34.4 million across several funding rounds to date, and its integration into IXL is expected to drive further innovation in AI-driven lesson planning, adaptive exam practice, and real-time progress tracking.

IXL Learning, which boasts a global user base across North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific, has been steadily expanding its portfolio of edtech brands. The company owns major names such as Wyzant (the largest tutoring network in the US), Rosetta Stone, Dictionary.com, and TPT (Teachers Pay Teachers). The addition of MyTutor not only diversifies IXL’s offerings but also accelerates its expansion into the European education market.

The deal comes at a time of major change in the UK education landscape. With private school VAT reforms looming and ongoing teacher shortages in the public sector, demand for accessible and affordable tutoring services has soared. 

Since its founding in 2013, MyTutor has become a trusted platform for over 200,000 families and 40 percent of UK secondary schools. Its model - pairing students with trained university-level tutors via a live, interactive online platform - has proven especially effective. According to the company, students using MyTutor typically make a full grade of progress in a single term, more than 2.5 times the rate of their peers.

“Effective tutoring isn’t just about getting extra help. It’s about who gives it. When a tutor understands your struggle, you get ahead,” said Paul Mishkin, CEO of IXL Learning. “MyTutor’s refreshingly different approach creates a natural connection between students and tutors—one that helps learners feel seen, supported and engaged. We’re excited to work together to bring this kind of meaningful support to even more people.

“At MyTutor, our mission is to transform the lives of 1,000,000 learners,” said Bertie Hubbard, Co-founder and CEO of MyTutor. “As the education landscape evolves, we’ve been looking for the right partner to help us take the next step—that brings experience of operating at scale, shares our commitment to impact and enables us to build for the long term. With millions of learners on their platforms and nearly three decades of founder-led growth, IXL Learning brings both the values and the track record to help us achieve that.”

The acquisition reflects a wider trend of consolidation and internationalisation in the edtech sector, as providers seek scale and geographic diversification to respond to rising global demand for supplementary education. Online tutoring, in particular, has emerged as a key tool to address learning gaps exacerbated by the pandemic, economic pressures, and structural issues in state education systems.

UK-based digital transformation firm TXP has acquired Newcastle-headquartered Metatech Solutions as part of its ongoing scaleup strategy.

The acquisition strengthens TXP’s position in the area of Gen application migration, which remains critical for large-scale legacy systems in banking, insurance, and public sector organisations worldwide.

The deal, backed by private equity firm Aliter Capital, brings Metatech's proprietary automation platform ‘MigrationWorks’ into TXP’s growing portfolio. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Metatech’s software automates key stages in the modernisation of legacy Gen-based systems, an old but enduring model-based CASE (Computer-Aided Software Engineering) tool still running critical infrastructure across multiple industries. MigrationWorks supports transitions to more modern architectures such as Cobol, Java, and C# .NET, and also includes consultancy services around IT strategy, Gen model re-architecture, and tooling integration.

“This acquisition comes at an ideal time for both businesses. We know the team at Metatech very well and so we know how much this deal will broaden TXP’s existing credentials, adding unique automated solutions, scarce technical skillsets, knowledge and experience,” said John Antunes, CEO of TXP. “Moving forward, this specialist know-how will be a vital element in delivering significant pipeline projects, as well as generating a wealth of new business opportunities.”

The deal marks the third acquisition under Aliter Capital’s growing digital transformation group, following previous buys of Concept Resourcing in 2022 and Jumar in 2023. Aliter has signalled continued ambition to consolidate UK-based digital and ICT services firms to serve a diversified blue-chip client base.

“We have seen rapidly increasing demand for modernising legacy IT systems and we believe there is a very positive outlook for the Gen conversion market,” said Andy Scott, Director at Metatech, who will remain with the business. “Metatech’s proven track record and unique technology solutions will place the group in a strong position to benefit from this growing demand and the business opportunities it will create. We look forward to working with John and the TXP team in the next phase of the business’s development.”

Financial data company FE fundinfo has announced the acquisition of Fundipedia, a UK-based SaaS platform that helps asset managers capture, validate, and distribute product data.

The deal marks FE fundinfo’s fifth acquisition in the past year.

The acquisition, announced on 29 May, extends FE fundinfo’s Nexus ecosystem with Fundipedia’s platform, which automates key operational functions such as data validation, regulatory compliance, and reporting. These capabilities are increasingly pertinent as asset managers face mounting pressures from regulatory complexity and cost inflation.

“Data is at the core of everything we do for our clients. The digital transformation of the investment management industry demands data integrity and efficiency at scale. Fundipedia helps address this foundational challenge for our clients," said Liam Healy, CEO of FE fundinfo. “I'm incredibly excited about the combination... to amplify our existing data strategy, regulatory and client reporting and dissemination across our network.”

Founded in 2007, Fundipedia supports workflow automation and centralised admin,all features that will now integrate into FE fundinfo’s broader ecosystem.

“Fundipedia was designed to empower asset managers with the comprehensive data insight needed to navigate data governance and regulatory demands,” said Simon Swords, Managing Director at Fundipedia. “Joining FE fundinfo allows us to bring that mission to a broader audience, with the support and scale needed to invest further in our platform to strengthen our data curation and validation capabilities."

The deal also broadens FE fundinfo’s geographical reach, particularly across Europe and Asia Pacific, and sets the stage for deeper investments in automation and AI. 

Denmark’s tech ecosystem is thriving, particularly in green tech, healthtech, fintech, robotics, and AI. These sectors are supported by robust digital infrastructure, a skilled workforce, and forward-thinking government policies.

Copenhagen remains the national startup hub, while Odense has rapidly emerged as a key European tech centre, especially in robotics, automation, and drone technology. This growth is fueled by strong collaborations between the University of Southern Denmark (SDU), industry leaders, and government initiatives. Odense Robotics, one of Europe's largest robotics clusters, brings together over 130 companies and research institutions, offering vital support such as funding and mentorship to startups. Public and private investments, including EU and Danish government backing, further strengthen the city's tech ecosystem.

Government initiatives like Innovation Fund Denmark and the "Startup Denmark" visa scheme are crucial in supporting early-stage companies, offering funding, mentorship, and opportunities for international scaling.

Denmark’s commitment to sustainability, research, and collaboration has driven international expansion. With continued investment in digital infrastructure and strong public-private partnerships, Denmark is solidifying its position as a European leader in technology, innovation, and sustainable entrepreneurship.

Here are 10 Danish tech companies to watch in 2025.

Amount raised in 2024: €82M Ageras is a fintech company with the mission of simplifying financial management for small businesses and freelancers. Initially launched as a platform connecting businesses with accountants, Ageras has evolved into an all-in-one solution that includes invoicing, accounting, tax services, payroll, banking, and financing. The company operates in several European countries and the US, serving over 300,000 clients. In 2024, Ageras raised €82 million to accelerate its growth and continue acquiring companies in the fintech sector.

Amount raised in 2024: €80M Antag Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing innovative peptide-based therapies to address obesity and related cardiometabolic disorders. The company specialises in targeting the glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide receptor (GIPR), a novel approach in the treatment of metabolic diseases. With a mission to provide differentiated and effective treatments for obesity, Antag Therapeutics aims to address unmet medical needs and improve patient outcomes in the growing field of metabolic health. In December 2024, Antag secured €80 million in Series A financing. The funding is intended to advance AT-7687 through clinical development and expand the company's therapeutic portfolio.

Amount raised in 2024: €80M Monta is a software company specialising in electric vehicle (EV) charging solutions. Its platform offers a comprehensive suite of tools for managing, optimising, and scaling EV charging infrastructure, serving stakeholders such as hardware manufacturers, installers, operators, fleet managers, and energy providers. The company's flagship product, Monta Hub, is a Charge Point Management System (CPMS) designed for high performance and scalability. It includes features like roaming, subscriptions, real-time monitoring, and premium customer service, aiming to maximise efficiency and revenue for businesses and provide an exceptional experience for customers. In 2024, the company closed a Series B round at €80 million, which intends to invest further in R&D alongside expanding its partner network.

Amount raised in 2024: €45M Flatpay is a fintech company dedicated to simplifying payment solutions for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). The company offers transparent, flat-rate pricing with no hidden fees, setup costs, or monthly subscriptions, making it easier for merchants to manage card payments. Flatpay provides various products, including payment terminals, all-in-one point-of-sale (POS) systems, and online payment solutions. These tools are designed to streamline payment processing, offer daily settlements, and provide real-time analytics through user-friendly dashboards. The company secured €45 million in Series B funding in 2024 to further develop its products and expand into new markets.

Amount raised in 2024: €40M Pleo is a fintech company that offers an all-in-one spend management platform designed to simplify business expenses. The platform combines smart company cards, both physical and virtual, with automated tools for expense tracking, invoice payments, reimbursements, and real-time analytics, providing finance teams with control and employees with autonomy. Pleo’s mission is to make spend management surprisingly effective and empowering by eliminating manual processes and offering seamless integration with accounting tools like Xero, QuickBooks, and NetSuite. In 2024, the company secured a €40 million debt financing facility from HSBC Innovation Banking as part of a partnership that will enable the two companies to offer integrated services.

Amount raised in 2024: $43M Again is a climate tech company specialising in transforming industrial CO₂ emissions into carbon-negative chemicals through advanced biomanufacturing. By combining millennia-old bacteria with modern biotechnology and AI, Again ferments captured CO₂ and hydrogen to produce essential chemicals like acetic acid, acetone, and ethyl acetate, offering sustainable alternatives to fossil-based products. In 2024, Again secured $43 million in Series A funding to support its mission to decarbonise heavy industry and enhance supply chain resilience. Again’s goal is to become the foremost company in carbon transformation and utilisation by using microbiology to convert emissions into eco-friendly chemicals.

Amount raised in 2024: €31.7M GetWhy is a consumer research technology company specialising in AI-powered qualitative insights. Its platform, Bloom, leverages advanced artificial intelligence to transform video-based consumer interviews into actionable insights within hours, significantly reducing the time and cost associated with traditional research methods. Designed for marketing and insights professionals, GetWhy's end-to-end solution automates the entire research process, from study creation and participant recruitment to moderation and analysis. In 2024, GetWhy raised €31.7 million in a Series A funding round. With a commitment to empathy and consumer-centricity, GetWhy aims to revolutionise the market research industry by delivering high-quality insights at unprecedented speed.

Amount raised in 2024: €24.1M Lunar is a neobank offering a mobile-first banking platform designed to simplify personal and business finance across the Nordics. Through its app, users can access a range of services, including free digital accounts, savings with up to 1 per cent interest, budgeting tools, loans, and investment options in stocks and cryptocurrencies. Lunar also provides exclusive offerings such as metal cards, travel benefits, and AI-powered financial assistants to enhance the user experience. In 2024, Lunar raised €24.1 million to support its ambition of becoming a full-service bank.

Amount raised in 2024: €20M Matr Foods is a food-tech startup specialising in crafting clean-label, plant-based meat alternatives through traditional fungal fermentation. By combining Nordic-sourced organic ingredients like oats, split peas, lupins, beetroots, and potatoes, with natural fungi, Matr creates products like patties, mince, and blocks that deliver a juicy texture and deep umami flavour without additives or heavy processing. The company’s mission is to revolutionise the food system by offering sustainable, flavorful alternatives that reduce environmental impact, minimise food waste, and promote biodiversity. In 2024, Matr secured €20 million in funding to construct its first large-scale production facility, aiming to produce over 3,000 tonnes of fermented meat alternatives annually.

Amount raised in 2024: $20M Reshape Biotech is a company that specialises in automating microbiology experiments through AI-driven robotics. Their platform integrates high-resolution imaging, built-in incubation, and real-time data analysis to streamline laboratory workflows. This technology enables researchers to monitor experiments remotely, analyse data instantly, and scale operations efficiently. Serving industries such as food, agriculture, and biotechnology, Reshape Biotech's solutions are designed to enhance reproducibility and accelerate research processes. In 2024, the company secured $20 million in Series A funding to expand its capabilities and global reach.

When venture funding tightens, founders get scrappy. In 2025, agility no longer just means lean teams and fast pivots; it means being AI-native. 

Control over your own software, and increasingly your AI infrastructure, is fast becoming the core competency of resilient startups.

Walking the walk

Startups today aren’t just pitching ideas, they’re deploying them. At the heart of this new wave of product-led founders is the rise of agentic AI: active, autonomous agents capable of decision-making, learning, and executing tasks without constant human oversight.

More than a buzzword, agentic AI is quickly becoming an operational advantage. It enables startups to scale common business processes, from customer support to research automation, more efficiently and with fewer resources.

This is where Google for Startups’ Startup School: Agentic AI comes in. The program gives early-stage founders and technical teams the tools to build generative AI applications on Google Cloud, with a curriculum that turns theory into production-ready systems. 

Anchored in world-class software

The 2025 edition of Startup School arrives on the heels of major announcements at Google I/O, where the Gemini model family showed significant improvements in reasoning, context retention and developer tools integration. With Gemini now a leading contender across LLM benchmarks, startups joining the program get access to some of the most advanced AI capabilities available.

And this isn’t new territory for Google; Startup School has already trained thousands of founders in leveraging the latest AI and cloud tech. Previous editions have covered everything from early cloud architecture to deploying ML models, and Agentic AI is the next evolution.

A curriculum for builders

Startup School: Agentic AI's curriculum is designed for builders ready to get hands-on. The series progresses from fundamental concepts to increasingly advanced technical terrain. Participants start by architecting intelligent agents and move towards nuanced tasks like model selection. The program culminates in hands-on training with the Agent Development Kit, a set of tools designed to accelerate their AI application building.

By the program’s end, founders aren’t just integrating AI, they’re leading with it.

A Network, Not Just a Course

What separates the startups that succeed from those that stall isn’t just capital; it’s access to infrastructure, mentorship and community.

What sets Google’s Startup School apart is the peer network and mentorship it fosters. Founders aren’t building in isolation, they’re learning alongside a global cohort of teams solving similar challenges, all while getting expert guidance from Google engineers and product leads.

2025 is shaping up to be the year of agentic scaling, where startups grow not by adding headcount but by deploying AI agents. In this new paradigm, capital helps but capability wins.

Save your seat today!

Today, the European Commission adopted the EU Startup and Scaleup Strategy.

The strategy aligns with the broader ‘Choose Europe' initiative, launched by President von der Leyen.

It drives forward calls for reforms by Mario Draghi, Enrico Letta, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, EU Inc, and Not Optional to address innovation and competitiveness in Europe.

The strategy aims to resolve why many startups still struggle to take ideas from lab to market or grow at scale within the EU by supporting startups through their lifecycle. 

I spoke to Bart Becks, serial innovator, entrepreneur, investor, and Board Member at the European Innovation Council (EIC) to get an inside take on the strategy.

According to Becks, some areas still need national adoption, like the 28th regime,  which will need collaboration with all member states. 

“But many of the measures can be implemented directly by the Commission and should roll out over the next 12–18 months.”

As with any documentation of this nature, there’s a lot to digest, so I’ve aimed to pull out some of the most critical activities launched under the strategy.

Fostering an innovation-friendly environment 

• European 28th regime (Q1 2026) – a shout out to the tireless lobbying of EU Inc and all of the EU startup ecosystem for driving this through. 

•  The European Business Wallet will enable seamless digital interactions with public administrations across the Union through a unified digital identity for all economic operators.  (Q4 2025)

• The European Innovation Act will further support innovation by promoting regulatory sandboxes.

Driving better financing

• The Savings and Investments Union initiative will be key to unlocking more financing and investment opportunities in the EU.

• Expanding and simplifying the European Innovation Council.

According to Becks, the strategy acknowledges that the EIC functions quite well. It supports the whole journey: from research to transition to scaling. 

“Especially in scaling, we’ve done over 200 direct investments in the last three years. Extending the EIC’s role, and the fact it’s governed by entrepreneurs and investors rather than politicians, is a good thing. It brings real-world relevance.”

• A voluntary European Innovation Investment Pact to mobilise large institutional investors to invest in EU funds, venture capital funds, and unlisted scaleups.

Becks notes the importance of patients in deeptech investment and funding: 

“Many funds run for 8 to 10 years, which is too short. Deep tech needs patient capital — we’re talking 15 to 17 years sometimes. So it’s about long-term investment."

• Deployment of a Scaleup Europe Fund to help bridge the financing gap of deep tech scale-up companies.
• Supporting market uptake and expansion
• A Lab to Unicorn initiative (2026), which includes the European Startup and Scaleup Hubs to help connect university ecosystems across the EU. This includes a blueprint for licensing, royalty, revenue-sharing and equity participation for academic institutions and their inventors when commercialising IP and creating spinoffs.

Becks contends: 

“Europe has strong research, comparable to the US and China. But we don’t create enough startups from that research. We’re rich in patents and publications, but low in company creation. 

That’s why I’m hopeful about the “Lab to Unicorn” initiative. The name says it: take things out of the lab and turn them into startups.”

• The Blue Carpet initiative (2025-2026) focuses on entrepreneurial education, tax-related aspects of employee stock options, and cross-border employment. The Commission will also encourage Member States to implement fast-track schemes for non-EU founders.

• A Charter of Access for industrial users to simplify and harmonise diverging access and contractual conditions for startups and scaleups to technology and research infrastructures.

From paper to progress

Moving forward, Becks concedes that the next challenge is implementation and feedback. 

The European Commission will monitor the strategy's progress through key performance indicators, measuring the increase in the number of startups, scaleups, centaurs (valuation over €100 million) and unicorns in the EU, and how these compare with the EU’s global competitors. 

Reporting on its implementation will be done by the end of 2027.

“Not all of the initiatives will work. Like in a startup, you need to test, iterate, and adapt. We need product-market fit for regulation too.”

Upon my questioning of the European Commission’s agility, he asserts that “mixing policymakers with people from the field helps spot problems early. 

“I’ve seen a real shift. In Brussels, this Strategy is on everyone’s radar now. Everyone agrees Draghi was right. We have a Commissioner focused on startups — many countries don’t even have a minister for startups.”

Becks believes that the strategy also creates an opportunity to activate underrepresented regions in Europe. 

“Right now, ecosystems are concentrated in France, Germany, the UK, and Scandinavia. Others can learn from them. 

Estonia is a great example: 1.5 million people, 10 unicorns — and more coming. They had to innovate. Poland is another one expanding quickly.”

The EIC also supports increasing the number of women-led startups, its latest data shows 30% per cent of EIC-supported startups are women-led. It’s a great start."

Ekaterina Zaharieva, Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation, asserts that with the five concrete actions, “we are removing the barriers that hold our entrepreneurs back. Europe is ready to scale up.”

The strategy also comes at a critical time as Europe seeks to divest itself from US big tech. 

Becks shared that he attended a conference last month, where  the CEOs of the largest Belgian banks said 70% of their operations run on American software. 

“Their goal is to drop that to 40 per cent.”

 It shows how seriously people are taking the sovereignty issue. While stressing the importance of not severing trade relations with the US — the US is still the number one place to scale for most startups — Becks asserts that “it doesn’t have to be the only place true innovation happens across socially critical tech.”

As part of the news release, Stéphane Séjourné, Executive Vice-President for Prosperity and Industrial Strategy, shared: 

“We cut red tape, we facilitate their access to financing, we improve their ability to do business across our Single Market.

In other words, we want to put Europe right in the middle of the global innovation map, for companies and investors. Europe can lead on its own terms and be the place where innovation thrives.”

London-based startup Ankar has raised a £3 million seed round led by Index Ventures to scale its AI-driven platform that allows customers to discover, protect, and monetise Intellectual Property.

The round also attracted participation from Daphni, Motier Ventures, Booom, and Puzzle Ventures, along with notable angel investors such as Olivier Pomel (CEO of Datadog) and Julien Chaumond (CTO of Hugging Face).

Founded in 2024 by Tamar Gomez and Wiem Gharbi, both alumni of Palantir, Ankar leverages a suite of AI agents trained on legal and scientific data to streamline the lifecycle of innovation.

According to data from WIPO, up to 90 percent of enterprise value now lies in intangible assets, including IP. This shift has raised the stakes for companies to better manage and commercialise their innovation portfolios — particularly in high-stakes sectors like pharmaceuticals, aerospace, and software.

Ankar addresses the inefficiencies that often plague R&D and IP processes, such as laborious invention memos, translation issues, and the high cost of legal review. The founders, who faced these obstacles first-hand at Palantir, built Ankar to automate and enhance those processes using AI.

“Recent developments in artificial intelligence signal a seismic shift in how humanity invents," said Tamar Gomez, co-founder of Ankar. "As AI becomes more deeply integrated with the invention process, we're about to witness an explosion in the rate of discovery. Ankar is positioning itself at the center of this transformation by building the operating system of innovation.”

“Our platform dramatically streamlines this process and mountains of documents which slow down research today,” said Wiem Gharbi, co-founder of Ankar. “But improving efficiency is only the beginning — building AI into the invention process, along with the inventors, allows inventors to fundamentally expand the horizons of what we can imagine creating. We believe Ankar is creating the foundation for the next generation of breakthrough technologies."

One early customer is Valeo, a global automotive supplier that co-developed with Ankar to streamline and enhance their patent processes.

“Innovation and protection of IP are at the heart of Valeo’s strategy,” said Murielle Khairallah, Valeo’s Vice President of Intellectual Property. “Our co-development with Ankar and the use of their generative AI solutions strengthen our capacity to protect our innovations and optimise our process for patent filings. This modern approach is fully aligned with our operational excellence and our position of technological leader in the automotive industry."

With IP strategy increasingly central to business success, and global patent filings rising year-on-year, Ankar is tapping into a large and growing market. In Europe, recent regulatory and competitive pressures have only amplified the demand for tools that help enterprises innovate efficiently and defensibly.

“Tamar and Wiem are redefining how innovation is captured, protected, and commercialised — turning IP from a defensive legal asset into a strategic growth lever,” said Hannah Seal, Partner at Index Ventures. “As innovation and R&D lie at the heart of economic growth and progress more broadly, we’re excited to back Ankar on their mission to empower more teams to turn bold ideas into lasting outcomes."

Starling Bank has reported a 26 per cent fall in profits to £223m in the year ending March 2025, after its finances were hit by two legacy regulatory issues. 

Starling, one of the UK’s most prominent challenger banks which has around 4.6m customers and is backed by Goldman Sachs and Chrysalis, reported revenues were up from £682m to £714m in the period.

Its profit figure marked Starling’s fourth consecutive year of profitability. 

However, pre-tax profits fell year-on-year 26 per cent to £223m, after its finances were hit by two legacy regulatory issues.

Last year, Starling, a digital-only bank, was fined £29m by the UK financial regulator, the FCA, for “shockingly lax” financial screening controls.

Today, Starling also said it had made a £28.2m provision relating to the removal of a government guarantee on a limited number of loans issued via the government’s Bounce Back Loan Scheme during the Covid pandemic.

Starling said the loans “may not comply with the guarantee requirement”.

Loans issued through the scheme helped propel Starling’s business in the period, but Starling faced scrutiny over its Covid-period lending.

Lord Agnew, previously an anti-fraud minister, accused Starling of acting “against the government and taxpayers’ interests” alleging that its fraud prevention controls were not up to scratch. Starling denied the accusation.

Commenting on its financial results, Raman Bhatia, Starling group chief executive, said: “These results represent an important milestone, marking the group’s fourth consecutive year of profitability and revenue growth.

“This performance derives from our commitment to providing customers with innovative banking solutions and exceptional service. 

“We are particularly pleased with Starling Bank’s success in attracting new customers, as evidenced by the continued growth in our deposit base and open accounts.

“In the last year we demonstrated our commitment to addressing legacy matters, investing in our people and capabilities so we now move forward from a position of strength.

“We will leverage our robust capital position to continue to scale our growth in the UK by helping our customers become better with money. We will also make great strides in turning Engine by Starling into a global success.”

Starling said its revenue uplift indicated a “robust performance” across all its businesses while customer deposits were up year-on-year from £11bn to £12.1bn.

The number of Starling account holders grew to 4.6m from 4.2m in 2024.

On Starling’s SaaS business Engine, Starling said Engine was building a “strong pipeline” that could see it achieve recurring revenues in excess of £100 million in the short to medium term.

Aside from the pain of stepping on a Lego barefoot in the middle of the night, few things are worse in Legoland than nearly finishing a build only to realise a piece is missing.

Fortunately, Lithuanian startup Sort A Brick has you covered. It offers a service that cleans, sorts, and repackages customers’ LEGO bricks into original or custom sets, giving second lives to already-owned toys. 

I spoke to co-founder  Ilya Malkin to learn more. 

Malkin has a background in economics and started his first company, a consulting firm focused on grant funding for R&D and attracting foreign investment. He ran it for a few years before selling it to my colleagues in a management buyout.

In early 2020, the idea for Sort A Brick came while spending time with his kids and their mountain of Lego. 

“After realising how much money we’d spent—and how quickly the sets ended up as a jumbled box of bricks, I wondered: can we sort this?”

Manual sorting was out of the question as it was too tedious at scale, so he started exploring technical solutions. That’s where Sort A Brick began.

How does Sort A Brick work? 

Sort A Brick aims to turn mixed boxes of bricks into ready-to-build sets.

Customers send the company their loose Lego, which often arrives partially assembled. 

Malkin explained:

“We begin by disassembling everything, so we’re working with individual bricks. Then we use proprietary machines with computer vision to scan and identify each brick by its shape and colour codes.

Once we have a full inventory, we compare it against the part lists of every Lego set ever produced. We determine which sets can be rebuilt from the customer’s bricks and rank them by completion level. 

Full matches are rare, so we quote a price for missing bricks.”

The customer selects the sets they want, the company orders any missing pieces, sorts everything into individual bags, and returns them ready to build. 

“Think of it as a “refurbished” Lego set — complete with instructions, which customers can access online.”

Inside the AI-powered LEGO sorting engine 

Sort A Brick’s use of AI and computer vision is interesting and intricate. Each brick passes through a camera chamber, where the company takes multiple images from different angles. 

Malkin detailed:

“Our neural network then identifies the part. If it’s unrecognised, it goes into a separate bin for manual inspection.

Once the customer chooses sets, we sort recognised bricks into specific piles using part codes — not just by colour or shape but by set assignment. That level of precision is critical because one wrong piece can ruin the experience."

He admits that training the model was extremely difficult. Sort A Brick deals with over 10,000 unique shapes and around 170 colours — that’s nearly 20,000 unique pieces.

“Our accuracy has to be extremely high. You can get away with some margin of error in trash sorting, but not with a Lego set meant to be rebuilt. We’ve invested a lot in developing the optimal imaging system to improve recognition.”

Currently, its machines are mostly automated but require some human intervention. Sort A Brick is actively developing robotic arms to handle more of the work. 

“Fully robotic systems might not be feasible, but minimising human input is the goal.”

The opportunity for Sort A Brick is huge. Most LEGO parts are made of difficult-to-recycle ABS plastic. While the manufacturer does not disclose official numbers, Malkin estimates that LEGO has produced 1.5 trillion of these bricks since its first series in 1958.

However, unsorted bricks are hard to use unless you are a freestyling Pollack-style creator. 

Malik contends that playing with restored toy brick sets cuts the cost of play by up to 70 per cent compared to buying new ones. Restoring sets from used bricks can boost their resale value by 6–10x over bulk prices.

Sort a Brick currently operates only in the German market, shipping bricks to its base in Vilnius, which he admits isn’t efficient, “but it’s helped us refine the technology. The long-term plan is to build local sorting centres near major metropolitan areas in Europe, the US, and beyond.”

It's also exploring greener logistics like collecting bricks from schools once a week and delivering finished sets back. 

Sort A Brick is doing what LEGO won’t

Sort A Brick seems like such a win for sustainability that my first thought was why The Lego Group doesn’t deploy such a service themselves. After all, Lego has a strong stance on sustainability and aims to achieve carbon-neutral operations by 2032.

The company invested over $400 million into sustainability initiatives, including a long-term plan to replace ABS (the oil-based plastic used in most bricks) with more sustainable materials by 2032. 

However, as Malik notes, The Lego Group’s core business is selling new sets, so there's a conflict of interest in promoting reuse. 

“They’ve publicly tested buy-back and recycling programs in the US and Germany, but nothing at scale.

They also acquired BrickLink, the largest second-hand Lego marketplace, but development has been limited, probably so it doesn’t cannibalise their main business.”

Sort A Brick’s customer response has been positive. 

According to Malik, most people are amazed that it’s even possible. 

“While our service isn’t cheap — it’s a premium offering right now — it’s still about one-third the price of buying a new set.

Some of the most touching feedback comes from parents and grandparents who want to restore sets they played with as children, to pass on to their own kids or grandkids. That nostalgia factor is powerful.”

Sort A Brick recently secured €1,150,000 to scale, with support from the Baltic-focused VC fund Firstpick, nine business angels, and the founders’ initial investment of €200,000.