Though Fexco, based in Kerry, is well-known for its currency exchange business, the company has diversified significantly over the past 40 years, innovating across multiple sectors.

The Pace platform Is designed for businesses financing the aviation industry, as well as companies with substantial overseas corporate travel. The airline sector faces the challenge of achieving net-zero carbon emissions, but according to Pace’s CEO, Cathal Foley, there has been a lack of “standardized, reliable, robust data analytics” to help the industry measure and progress toward this goal.

“Pace addresses this gap by delivering real-time emissions data, aiding the aviation sector in meeting its 2050 net-zero target,” Foley explains. The Platform for Analyzing Carbon Emissions (Pace) leverages public data combined with AI and machine learning to track aircraft emissions, informing future decisions. The system allows users to analyze data down to specific airlines, aircraft, flights, or even individual seats.

Before Pace, accessing such data required operators to provide it directly, which was often slow and inconsistent. “With Pace, investors can quickly identify which assets are excelling in terms of emissions and which are not,” adds Foley.



Pace has launched two products, Pace BlueSkies and Pace Airports, to target different markets. Pace BlueSkies is aimed at corporate customers, like investment firms, seeking to reduce their aviation carbon footprint, while Pace Airports focuses on analyzing flight movements, allowing airports to monitor growth and emissions data separately for greater accuracy.

Pace also received the top award in the Sustainability category, sponsored by Skillnet Ireland.

Other award recipients included CergenX, a Cork-based company recognized in the Lifescience and Healthcare category, sponsored by Research Ireland. CergenX developed Wave, a brain-monitoring technology designed to detect brain injury in newborns. Complications at birth can sometimes result in brain injuries, seizures, and potential long-term issues. Wave is a non-intrusive device that places sensors on a newborn’s head to monitor EEG signals, sending data to the cloud where it is quickly analyzed by AI. Medical teams can then act on the results within seconds, making critical decisions more swiftly. The technology stems from research conducted at University College Cork’s Infant Centre.

In the New Frontiers category, sponsored by the UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School, Mayo-based Eco Powered Cabinets (EPC) won top honors for its solar-powered medicine storage cabinets, ideal for remote locations. Created by Darren Forde, the cabinets are made from durable, weather-resistant steel, and feature compartments for temperature-sensitive medications. Partnering with the HSE, EPC’s cabinets are positioned in coastal and river locations in Ireland, equipped with medical and water safety gear. Some cabinets have also been installed in remote locations in Australia.

Skippio, the winner of the IT and Fintech category sponsored by Mason Hayes and Curran, has developed an app to help event-goers avoid queues for food and drinks. The fan experience app allows users to order and pay for refreshments from anywhere within the venue. CEO Daniel Coen notes that partnering with venues reduces the need for multiple apps, improving convenience for users. Skippio is already active at venues like Leopardstown Racecourse, Páirc Uí Chaoimh, and the Galway International Arts Festival, with expansion plans in the UK and beyond.

Finally, the Manufacturing and Design category award, sponsored by Sisk Group, went to Better Futures for its AI tool designed to streamline engineers’ administrative tasks. The company’s Engineering Verification Assistant (EVA) is a generative AI tool that automates paperwork, freeing up engineers for more creative work. “Engineers spend only about 20 percent of their time on actual engineering and innovation,” says Better Futures founder and CEO Anthony McLoughlin. With just 4 percent of U.S. engineers using AI, McLoughlin believes that tools like EVA can greatly increase efficiency and productivity.