Irish technology companies raised a record €1.48 billion in investment in 2024, new data shows, but there was a decline in the number of deals valued below €5 million.
The final quarter of the year showed good activity across small and medium sized enterprises in the technology sector, the Irish Venture Capital Association (IVCA) VenturePulse report said, reaching a high of €535 million.
That was a rise of 162 per cent on the prior year, the report said, with larger deals from sea drone developer XOcean of €115 million and the €116 million raised by medical device company Fire1 during the quarter buoying figures.
Other top deals in the final months of 2024 were travel software company Nuitée, which raised €46 million, biotech Nuritas, which raised €42 million, and fintech Nomupay, which raised €35.9 million.
Total funding raised during the year was 9 per cent higher than 2023 figure, with life sciences accounting for 37 per cent of the total, and software following behind at 13 per cent. Envirotech, fintech and data start-ups rounded out the top five.
But deals at the lower end of the scale remained choppy, with those under €5 million falling off during the final quarter of the year and performing under par for all of 2024. The IVCA report shows deals in the €3 million to €5 million range were down 37 per cent over the year and 56 per cent in the quarter. For those deal in the €1 million to €3 million category, funding was down 24 per cent over the year and 63 per cent for the quarter.
Smaller rounds, including seed funding, were also lower, with funding falling 4 per cent over the year to €127 million, and 55 per cent in the quarter to €17.9 million.
IVCA director Sarah-Jane Larkin said there was good potential for the Government to support investment in early-stage companies, with the €250 million Seed & Venture Capital scheme coming at an opportune time.
“This is very welcome as funding for deals below €5 million fell sharply across the quarter and the year,” she said.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) was a significant point of interest for investors, making up more than €100 million of the total invested by venture capital firms last year.
“The arrival of players such as DeepSeek has the potential to boost margins and decrease development costs for AI start-ups,” said Gerry Maguire, chairman of the Irish Venture Capital Association. “There is massive potential in AI applications across healthcare, climate, education and other sectors, and this will be boosted by lower costs of development which represents a major opportunity for Ireland.”
