27-07-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
New generation of ambitious Wicklow innovators gather for entrepreneur forum
The Baltyboys Entrepreneur Forum is part of Patch, Ireland's flagship summer accelerator programme for young entrepreneurs, engineers and scientists. Patch's summer programme brings together 30 of Ireland's brightest 16–21 year-old entrepreneurial minds for seven weeks of intensive mentoring, project-building and networking.
The Baltyboys Entrepreneurs Forum was added to the Patch schedule two years ago to offer talented Irish youth access to insights and inspiration from top-tier innovators.
This year's Baltyboys Entrepreneur Forum was hosted by entrepreneur and Baltyboys House owner Brian Kingham. The line-up of founders and community experts who spoke at the event included Prof O'Neill who has been a professor of biochemistry in the School of Biochemistry and Immunology at Trinity College Dublin since 2009.
The forum also heard from Eoin Hinchy, founder of cybersecurity automation unicorn Tines, a no-code automation platform for security teams that raised over $270 million in funding and is valued at over $1.125bn, and Niamh Donnelly, CTO of Akara Robotics, a pioneering autonomous hospital robot manufacturer. Niamh is also a Forbes 30 Under 30 honouree and an EU Women Innovators prize winner.
Special guests also included David Shackleton, serial entrepreneur and founder of and OpenBack - two large tech companies that were both acquired, and Mark Cummins, founder of Pointy - a retail tech startup acquired by Google, and a repeat founder with multiple exits and long-time supporter of Patch.
Baltyboys House owner and longtime supporter of Patch, Mr Kingham, said: 'Ireland's entrepreneurial spirit is deeply rooted in its culture and history. The structure of landholding over centuries fostered a culture of independence, adaptability, and enterprise.
"Today, that legacy is reflected in a new generation of innovators - ambitious, globally minded, and determined to shape the future. The Baltyboys Entrepreneur Forum is designed to nurture that spirit, connecting Ireland's most promising young founders with those who have already walked the path.'
