GRAFT has added a major new keynote to this year’s founder-focused tech summit, welcoming Somayeh Taheri, Co-Founder and CEO of UrbanChain for an in-depth fireside conversation on the realities of building a Deep Tech success story in the North.
In Deep Tech, the numbers are unforgiving – only a tiny fraction of companies break through. Taheri’s story sits firmly in that 1%. Since founding UrbanChain in Manchester, she has taken the business from an early disruptive idea to a fast-scaling “soonicorn”, recently securing £5.25m in Series A investment and expanding its role in reshaping the UK energy market. Somayeh’s session forms part of GRAFT’s tightly curated programme, built around its 1:4 founder-to-investor ratio designed to spark meaningful conversations and real opportunities.
The session will explore:
- How UrbanChain carved out a new model in a tightly regulated and highly competitive sector
- The shift in mindset needed to lead a high-growth Deep Tech company
- What it takes to keep belief in a mission when most of the market hasn’t caught up
- Lessons from navigating investment, scaling, and product-market fit in the North
UrbanChain uses AI and blockchain to directly connect renewable energy generators with consumers – a model that removes intermediaries and aims to make green energy more cost-efficient. It’s a Northern growth story built in one of the toughest corners of tech, offering founders a rare, practical look behind the scenes of a company moving beyond start-up and into scale-up territory.
Taheri’s fireside chat is designed to give attendees grounded insight rather than theory, with a focus on the decisions, pressure points and turning moments that shape a 1% outcome.
The session will take place at GRAFT, Prolific North’s founder-first tech summit on 11 March at SISTER, Manchester.
For the full agenda, visit the GRAFT event page.
