# dotforge

> dotforge is a VC fund in Manchester backing Medical and Smart Home. See 3 investments, check sizes, portfolio and contact details. Updated Aug 2026.

- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Manchester, United Kingdom
- Total investments: 3
- Last investment: Jun 2018
- Lead investor: 33%
- Last updated: Aug 2026
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/dotforge
- X (Twitter): http://twitter.com/dotforge
- Website: http://dotforgeaccelerator.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dotforge

dotforge is an intensive 13 week mentor-supported accelerator programme. It fast tracks high-growth startups through smart investment capital and a bootcamp process that develops robust and globally-connected businesses. The programme is located in Sheffield and is open to early stage startup teams from the UK , EU and the rest of theworld. The programme and mentor pool has been developed to attract and support startups building B2B, big data or cloud-based supply chain products and services.

## Contacts

5 contacts available for dotforge. Shizune tracks 3 team members at dotforge. Sign up free to unlock them: https://app.shizune.co/sign-up/investor-profiles/find-team-emails/dotforge?utm_source=investor_profile

## Investment focus

### Industry

| Industry | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Medical | 1 | 33% |
| Smart Home | 1 | 33% |
| Health Care | 1 | 33% |
| Medical Device | 1 | 33% |
| Virtual Reality | 1 | 33% |

9 industries tracked in total.

### Stage

| Stage | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Pre-Seed | 1 | 33% |
| Debt Financing | 1 | 33% |

### Country

| Country | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Spain | 1 | 33% |
| United Kingdom | 1 | 33% |

## Team

| Name | Title | Investments | Profile |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Colin Tan | Entrepreneur in Residence | 0 | — |
| Julie Kenny | Founding Investor | 0 | — |
| Lee Strafford | Co-founder, Chairman and Investor | 0 | — |

## Investments

| Company | Description | Amount | Stage | Date | Website |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Simplifai | Simplifai is a holistic Artificial Intelligence (AI) company with the vision to empower tomorrow's digital winners and to release the full potential of human employees through the smart application of artificial intelligence and automation technology. The company's disruptive, hyper-automation solutions allow customers to automate workprocesses where free-text, natural language emails, documents, or chat are the information carriers. Its Emailbot can automate the handling of up to 80% of the inquiries in an average customer service center.Simplifai was established in 2017 and is headquartered in Oslo, Norway. |  | Seed | Jun 01, 2018 |  |
| WIFIPLUG | WIFIPLUG is an app controlled smart plug and smart light switch that enables you to control your lights & devices remotely.They are the first 2 pioneers 2 patents with regards to saving money automatically and securing the home using Machine Learning.They are the first company to work with all the major voice platforms including, AppleHomeKit, Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and IFTTT.The only smart plug with open source API for simple easy integration with B2BWIFIPLUG is based in Leeds, United Kingdom & has an office in St.Louis, USA. | $66K | Debt Financing | Mar 01, 2017 |  |
| MedicSen | MedicSen is a start-up dedicated to health care, to technological innovation as a key tool. With several projects under mind, we have launched the most ambitious of them all, GlycSen. It is designed for intelligent treatment of insulin dependent diabetes device. | $30K | Pre-Seed | Sep 01, 2015 |  |

3 of 3 investments shown.

## Co-investors
- [Funding Circle](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/funding-circle) — VC Fund, 1 deal together
- [TURN8](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/turn8-seed-accelerator) — VC Fund, 1 deal together

## Similar investors

### Similar stage
- [Antler](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/antler-be9c) — VC Fund
- [Right Side Capital Management](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/right-side-capital-management) — VC Fund
- [Everywhere Ventures](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/everywhere-ventures) — VC Fund

## FAQ

### What does dotforge invest in?

dotforge invests primarily in Medical, Smart Home and Health Care startups, most often at Pre-Seed and Debt Financing stage. Most of the 3 investments tracked by Shizune back companies in Spain. The Investment Focus section breaks down every industry, stage and country in the portfolio.

### How do I contact dotforge?

Public channels for dotforge include LinkedIn, X (Twitter) and the website linked on this profile. For a verified work email and phone number, create a free Shizune account — contact data is searched across 20+ sources and validated before delivery, so your outreach lands in the right inbox.

### Who are the partners at dotforge?

The team at dotforge includes Colin Tan (Entrepreneur in Residence), Julie Kenny (Founding Investor) and Lee Strafford (Co-founder, Chairman and Investor). The Team section lists each member with their title, investment count and links.

### Is Shizune's investor data accurate?

Yes — every stat on this profile is calculated from confirmed public funding rounds monitored across hundreds of sources since 2020. This profile was last refreshed in Aug 2026 and is updated monthly. Spotted something off? Use the “Suggest an edit” link near the top of the page.

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