Éanna Kelly

Éanna Kelly is a contributing editor at Sifted, and writes Startup Life , a weekly newsletter on what it takes to build a startup. Follow him on X and LinkedIn

‘If you don’t have defaults, you’re not taking enough risks’: William Jalloul, CEO of Flowpay
Pro
News
September 16, 2026
‘If you don’t have defaults, you’re not taking enough risks’: William Jalloul, CEO of Flowpay
The Czech fintech — which topped the recent Sifted DACH & CEE ranking — is filling the small-business lending gap
Éanna Kelly
ETH Zurich students build ‘first Swiss humanoid’, eye fundraising
News
September 14, 2026
ETH Zurich students build ‘first Swiss humanoid’, eye fundraising
ETH Robotics Club president Declan Shine wants his human-like bot to be a ‘lighter, friendlier and squishier’ home robot than rivals
Éanna Kelly
The dos and don’ts of a team offsite: Candle making, line dancing, no hard booze
Interview
September 9, 2026
The dos and don’ts of a team offsite: Candle making, line dancing, no hard booze
German AI company Voize shares what worked well on its recent away day for 140 employees
Éanna Kelly
Ex-Google DeepMind duo raise €3.2m to build software for fusion startups
News
September 9, 2026
Ex-Google DeepMind duo raise €3.2m to build software for fusion startups
Lausanne-based founders of Fusionality targeting sector of massive investment
Éanna Kelly
Prague-based SME lender Flowpay tops latest Sifted ranking
News
September 9, 2026
Prague-based SME lender Flowpay tops latest Sifted ranking
The platform is the fastest-growing startup across DACH and CEE
Éanna Kelly
‘I want to build a decacorn’: The former Legora and Revolut employee betting big on legaltech
Interview
September 2, 2026
‘I want to build a decacorn’: The former Legora and Revolut employee betting big on legaltech
Michelle Cotter is closing a €1m pre-seed round for Juritas, inspired by the ‘oozing ambition’ she saw at both companies
Éanna Kelly
The companies that shot up Sifted’s Nordics leaderboard
Pro
Leaderboard
September 2, 2026
The companies that shot up Sifted’s Nordics leaderboard
A flying ferry, a data platform, an AI aid for public tenders and a countertop garden all make gains on last year
Éanna Kelly
Daniel Ek-founded Neko Health tops latest Sifted's Nordic ranking
Leaderboard
September 1, 2026
Daniel Ek-founded Neko Health tops latest Sifted's Nordic ranking
The diagnostics clinic is the Nordics’ fastest-growing startup of 2026
Éanna Kelly
Should tech events ban Meta’s smart glasses?
Analysis
August 26, 2026
Should tech events ban Meta’s smart glasses?
The popular specs — which critics call "pervert glasses" — have divided a normally pro-tech crowd
Éanna Kelly
Who are Europe’s ‘top’ VCs? Claude and ChatGPT have some left-field picks
Pro
Analysis
August 21, 2026
Who are Europe’s ‘top’ VCs? Claude and ChatGPT have some left-field picks
New research reveals which investors are out-competing the world's biggest players on AI recommendations
Éanna Kelly
OpenAI clarifies ‘acquisition’ offer for Irish teen's startup idea was a joke
News
August 19, 2026
OpenAI clarifies ‘acquisition’ offer for Irish teen's startup idea was a joke
AI giant tells Irish Independent it will not pursue decentralised internet idea
Éanna Kelly
Lessons from Ukraine on keeping up morale
Analysis
August 12, 2026
Lessons from Ukraine on keeping up morale
The country's tech workers face extraordinary challenges every day. Seven tell Sifted how they keep going
Éanna Kelly
Sweaty, insane, cracked: Decoding the language of founder praise
Analysis
August 5, 2026
Sweaty, insane, cracked: Decoding the language of founder praise
A field guide to the increasingly absurd language founders and investors use to praise one another
Éanna Kelly and Martin Coulter
Exclusive: Zurich-based Exclaim Robotics comes out of stealth, raises $4.95m
Pro
Exclusive
August 4, 2026
Exclusive: Zurich-based Exclaim Robotics comes out of stealth, raises $4.95m
Veteran roboticist Helen Oleynikova will lead startup, which will develop repair robots for hyperscale data centres
Éanna Kelly
What the CEO of Irish unicorn Tines learned from its AI overhaul
Pro
Analysis
July 31, 2026
What the CEO of Irish unicorn Tines learned from its AI overhaul
Eoin Hinchy says his software company was “destined for the scrapheap” unless it made its platform "AI-native"
Éanna Kelly
How to give your elevator pitch to a king
How to
July 29, 2026
How to give your elevator pitch to a king
Founder Varun Bhanot found himself at St James's Palace recently with mere seconds to explain his AI product to King Charles
Éanna Kelly
'I'd do things differently than Elon Musk': The free founder crash course teaching teenagers to break into tech
Interview
July 29, 2026
'I'd do things differently than Elon Musk': The free founder crash course teaching teenagers to break into tech
Fed up with the lack of opportunities for young people, two angel investors are running a week-long programme to introduce 16-18 year olds to startups
Éanna Kelly
Munich robotics startup Microagi raises $55m, Germany’s largest ever seed round
News
July 16, 2026
Munich robotics startup Microagi raises $55m, Germany’s largest ever seed round
The startup teaches robots how to work in factories and homes
Éanna Kelly
Europe’s ‘real’ founder factories: Klarna and Improbable
Analysis
July 15, 2026
Europe’s ‘real’ founder factories: Klarna and Improbable
Working at a growth-stage startup — rather than a unicorn or Big Tech firm — is the strongest predictor of a founder's future success, according to a new study of over 50k startups
Éanna Kelly
Exclusive: Peec rival Promptwatch raises €6m seed round
News
July 14, 2026
Exclusive: Peec rival Promptwatch raises €6m seed round
The Amsterdam startup, which helps companies get noticed by AI chatbots, is expanding to the US
Éanna Kelly
‘Physical AI is Europe’s last chance to be useful to the world’
Pro
Analysis
July 10, 2026
‘Physical AI is Europe’s last chance to be useful to the world’
At Paris's Machina conference, European robot makers jostle for attention — and for an answer to the question: can the continent keep up?
Éanna Kelly
‘I want to be the MrBeast of tech’: Why Max Tkacz left n8n to become a Youtube gameshow host
Interview
July 8, 2026
‘I want to be the MrBeast of tech’: Why Max Tkacz left n8n to become a Youtube gameshow host
Frustrated that even the biggest startups struggle to break through online, this former product designer thinks the answer is "token-maxxing ice bath challenge"
Éanna Kelly
Anthropic release puts science startups on the defensive
Pro
Analysis
July 2, 2026
Anthropic release puts science startups on the defensive
The US AI giant has unveiled a new set of tools designed to automate scientific research
Freya Pratty, Éanna Kelly, Martin Coulter and Tom Nugent
An AI agent was named after this 57-year-old Belgian credit analyst. Is he philosophical about it?
Interview
July 1, 2026
An AI agent was named after this 57-year-old Belgian credit analyst. Is he philosophical about it?
One analyst reflects on what it means to share his identity with a machine built to do his job
Éanna Kelly

Éanna Kelly

‘If you don’t have defaults, you’re not taking enough risks’: William Jalloul, CEO of Flowpay

ETH Zurich students build ‘first Swiss humanoid’, eye fundraising

The dos and don’ts of a team offsite: Candle making, line dancing, no hard booze

Ex-Google DeepMind duo raise €3.2m to build software for fusion startups

Prague-based SME lender Flowpay tops latest Sifted ranking

‘I want to build a decacorn’: The former Legora and Revolut employee betting big on legaltech

The companies that shot up Sifted’s Nordics leaderboard

Daniel Ek-founded Neko Health tops latest Sifted's Nordic ranking

Should tech events ban Meta’s smart glasses?

Who are Europe’s ‘top’ VCs? Claude and ChatGPT have some left-field picks

OpenAI clarifies ‘acquisition’ offer for Irish teen's startup idea was a joke

Lessons from Ukraine on keeping up morale

Sweaty, insane, cracked: Decoding the language of founder praise

Exclusive: Zurich-based Exclaim Robotics comes out of stealth, raises $4.95m

What the CEO of Irish unicorn Tines learned from its AI overhaul

How to give your elevator pitch to a king

'I'd do things differently than Elon Musk': The free founder crash course teaching teenagers to break into tech

Munich robotics startup Microagi raises $55m, Germany’s largest ever seed round

Europe’s ‘real’ founder factories: Klarna and Improbable

Exclusive: Peec rival Promptwatch raises €6m seed round

‘Physical AI is Europe’s last chance to be useful to the world’

‘I want to be the MrBeast of tech’: Why Max Tkacz left n8n to become a Youtube gameshow host

Anthropic release puts science startups on the defensive

An AI agent was named after this 57-year-old Belgian credit analyst. Is he philosophical about it?