Student start-up success stories

Medily AI is an app that’s been designed by ARU medical student Talha Mehmood to improve patient care and streamline clinical decision-making.

The app acts as an assistant and second pair of eyes for medical professionals. It can listen into consultations and write up notes automatically, craft accurate medical letters and can suggest exercise and meal plans.

As well as assisting medical professionals, the app is also designed for trainee doctors to help them prepare for various types of exams, providing quiz questions and accurate simulations involving AI-generated patients. It could allow doctors to spend less time on admin tasks and more time with patients.

Talha’s journey in technology began at the age of 12, when he started developing applications in healthcare, gaming, and online services. Over the years, he expanded his expertise across leadership, software development, blockchain, and medical sciences, culminating in his work in AI-driven health tech solutions.

Having joined ARU to study Medicine, Medily AI started as a midnight idea in Talha’s bedroom – a tool designed to help fellow students and clinicians quickly access accurate medical information.

Initially, it was a simple platform for Talha and his friends to organise their medical revision notes. However, recognising its potential, he scaled it to a University-wide application; this later evolved into a full-fledged AI-powered B2B healthcare solution.

Talha has built Medily AI into a cutting-edge platform that enhances clinical decision-making. His dedication to improving healthcare accessibility has led to industry recognition, rapid adoption, and a growing impact in medical AI.

From a student project to a transformative healthcare innovation, Talha’s journey is a testament to entrepreneurial thinking, and the power of technology to revolutionise patient care.

Recently, Talha took first place in the inaugural Ignite competition, launched by social enterprise philanthropists The Ford Family Foundation, and secured £20,000 of funding.

Jo Living, Enterprise Development Manager at ARU, said:

At ARU we’ve been educating healthcare professionals for more than 25 years, and opened our School of Medicine in 2018. We’re proud of the progress Talha has made with developing Medily AI, and its potential to drive improvement in public services, and enhance health outcomes.

Magda Michalik is a young entrepreneur who has rapidly transformed her professional aspirations into a thriving business venture.

Within just three months of graduation, she launched Model Mutts, a specialised puppy socialisation service in Essex, demonstrating exceptional business acumen and entrepreneurial spirit.

Her journey began with the Freelancer Fast-Start Programme, a practical, hands-on programme at ARU which offers support to budding freelancers and student entrepreneurs.

While on the programme, Magda distinguished herself by embracing every training session, mentoring opportunity and masterclass available. Her commitment was recognised when she was awarded 'Best Brand' during the programme's Showcase Day, delivering a presentation that highlighted her innovative approach and strong communication skills.

Magda's business, Model Mutts, was not just quickly established but strategically developed. Within three months, she secured business premises, built a distinctive brand, and attracted a solid client base.

Having studied at ARU in Writtle, Magda has become a representative of entrepreneurial success in the Essex region. Her journey embodies the potential of young entrepreneurs who leverage their education, professional support, and personal drive to create meaningful business opportunities.

Model Mutts was only registered as a business with HMRC by Magda in August 2024 (having just graduated) and has already onboarded and delivered to 18 clients and counting. She offers a mix of puppy classes and private client training sessions. Puppy training classes are already operating out of Layer de la Haye Village Hall with projections to expand to a second location in Elmstead Market in2025.

Magda has worked hard to build a fantastic brand and is now focused on marketing and client discovery via building up her social media presence. She reports that posting informational videos have already landed her several clients, despite being very early days. She has also built an innovative and effective business network by joining forces with other dog trainers in the surrounding areas. This dog trainer 'support system' and referral scheme, sees professionals mutually recommend each other where a client request is from a catchment area they do not cover.

For client outreach, Magda is also running a puppy socialisation hour at Pets Corner in Colchester every Saturday, where she gains the bulk of her puppy clients by giving them taster sessions. This has been great in building up clientele as it gives puppy owners a no-pressure way to get to know her and introduce her service offering.

What sets Magda apart is her mature approach to business development. She quickly absorbed critical advice spanning finances, taxation, brand strategy, marketing, sales techniques, and negotiation. Her ability to integrate these insights and rapidly scale her business is remarkable, especially for someone at the early stage of her career.

Beyond her commercial success, Magda demonstrates a profound commitment to community and future entrepreneurship. She has committed to returning to the Fast-Start Programme in 2025 to support upcoming students, positioning herself as a relatable role model for the next generation of freelancers. This reflects her dedication to giving back and supporting emerging talent.

Exelerex, comprising ARU students Enrico Iraldo (left), Joseph Ashton (right), and Asima Rafique, aims to address the issue of drowsiness in the haulage industry.

Their proposed retrofittable safety device will monitor alertness in drivers using brain signals and infrared cameras.

Exelerex won £4,000 in prize money and an additional £3,000 Engineers in Business Award, six months’ free office space at ARU’s Arise Innovation Hub, and a one-year membership of the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), at the Big Pitch 2022.

Information is Power, a start-up by ARU student Ellie Benham, aims to establish a centralised online information hub providing valuable information for those that have experienced violence, as well as their friends and family.

The hub aims to improve conviction rates and victims' feelings of safety and control. The idea already has the backing of Essex County Council and Essex Police, demonstrating its potential.

Information is Power was a finalist at the Big Pitch 2022.

My Safety App Match (MySAM), comprising ARU students Sam Wood (left) and Cannelle Roumanie (right), aims to help individuals find a personal safety app, out of more than 50 on the market, that suits their particular needs.

The app will ask users about their safety needs and safety features that appeal to them, and make two or three suggestions based on their answers.

It will save agencies such as local councils and the police recommending different apps to different user groups, and data provided with users' consent could help app developers better meet their needs in the future.

MySAM won £4,000 in prize money and virtual business support from Arise at the Big Pitch 2022.

Green Wave, a start-up by ARU student Sebastiano Pagliaro, proposes to convert the kinetic energy of streams into electricity by using powerful water flows. It aims to give the excess energy back to the grid.

It also proposes to empower rural and urban communities by educating people on how to protect the environment, and how to make use of it without harming it.

Green Wave was a finalist at the Big Pitch 2022.

Embrace Neurodiversity, a start-up by ARU student Simon Preston, aims to support businesses in developing a neurodiversity-friendly environment that generates innovation. It proposes to highlight the important difference between integration and inclusion.

In doing so, it will promote an inclusive leadership and management framework that recognises and derives maximum benefit from from neurodivergent team members' strengths, and makes reasonable adjustments to accommodate their difficulties.

Embrace Neurodiversity won £1,000 in business funding at the Big Pitch 2022.

Neurogether Ltd. is an early stage start-up that aims to create a global networking platform for all neuro-minded people.

These include clinicians, researchers, neurodiverse individuals, and those affected by various neurological disorders.

People with an interest in various brain science fields such as neuroscience, neurology, neurosurgery, psychology, neuropsychology, computational neuroscience, and psychiatry are also welcome.

Neurogether takes the form of a website and an app-based networking platform. It also aims to organise events and conferences to connect neuro-minded people in the "real world".

Founder Utkarsh Gupta won the first prize of £5,000 in business funding, six months' rent-free space at ARU's Chelmsford Arise Hub (worth £6,000), and a raft of support from business experts, at the Big Pitch 2021.

Since then, Neurogether has become a registered company in the UK. It has completed closed beta testing of its website and recently released the Neurogether app for open beta testing on both the Apple Store and Google Play Store.

Currently, Neurogether is actively involved in organising its first annual conference, Neurogether Conference 2022.