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§ Private Profile · London, United Kingdom
Wazoku is a technology company.
Wazoku delivers an enterprise innovation platform to manage innovation delivery. Its AI-enabled software facilitates idea capture, evaluation, and implementation from internal and external ecosystems, integrating crowdsourcing and open talent via its Innocentive acquisition. The platform unifies market intelligence, innovation management, and ecosystem orchestration, connecting groups to accelerate problem-solving and meet strategic goals.
Simon Hill founded Wazoku in 2011, driven by the insight that valuable ideas can emerge from any source, yet organizations often lack effective systems to harness them. Hill established the company to build a technological framework for systematic insight collection, development, and action from a broad network. This core understanding shapes Wazoku’s collaborative innovation methodology.
The company serves global organizations across innovation-driven sectors, fostering a continuous innovation culture. Wazoku's vision ensures every idea creates value, every challenge finds a solver, and every decision relies on robust data. It aims to empower businesses to activate collective intelligence and drive transformative change as a dedicated innovation delivery partner.
Wazoku has raised $19.9M across 6 funding rounds.
Wazoku has raised $19.9M in total across 6 funding rounds.
Wazoku is a UK-based technology company providing an AI-enabled Innovation Ecosystem Platform that centralizes innovation workflows, data, and talent for organizations. It integrates market intelligence, innovation management, ecosystem management, and Innocentive—a global community of problem solvers—to accelerate collaboration and problem-solving[1][2][3]. The platform serves large enterprises and midsize businesses, including NASA, UK Ministry of Defence, NICE, Bayer CropScience, Microsoft, and HSBC, solving the challenge of siloed ideas and inefficient innovation tracking by enabling idea submission, evaluation, collaboration, gamification, and analytics[1][3][5][6]. With over 11 years of operation, Wazoku demonstrates growth through scalable impact, carbon neutrality certification since 2019, and a product roadmap focused on AI enhancements and integrations[1][3][4][5].
Founded in February 2011 in London, UK, Wazoku emerged as an idea management company, with its name meaning "Great Idea" in Japanese[2]. Co-founders Simon James Hill (CEO, experienced in SaaS B2B startups like Huddle, where he drove partnerships and funding) and James King (involved in commercial, product, and tech activities, pivoting from his prior venture Find Invest Grow) developed the initial SaaS product, Idea Spotlight, to help SMEs capture, evaluate, and surface employee ideas[2]. Early traction built on this cloud-based platform for mid-market innovation, evolving over 11+ years into a comprehensive ecosystem trusted by global organizations, marked by milestones like carbon neutrality in 2019 led by COO Sarah Counts[1][2][5].
User reviews note strengths in cross-functional collaboration and momentum-building challenges, though some critique outdated UI, limited AI/analytics depth, and form design[3][6].
Wazoku rides the wave of AI-driven enterprise innovation, where organizations seek centralized platforms to democratize idea generation amid rising demands for sustainability and rapid problem-solving[1][4][6]. Timing aligns with post-pandemic shifts toward hybrid work and open innovation, amplified by market forces like digital transformation and ESG pressures—evident in its carbon-neutral push and clients like NASA and Bayer[1][5]. It influences the ecosystem by fostering inclusive cultures, reducing idea silos, and enabling global crowdsourcing, positioning idea management as a strategic SaaS category leader for scalable impact[3][6].
Wazoku is poised to expand its AI integrations and analytics for deeper insights, addressing UI critiques while capitalizing on trends like generative AI for idea enhancement and broader sustainability mandates[3][4][6]. Expect growth through enterprise wins in regulated sectors and ecosystem partnerships, evolving from idea capture to full innovation orchestration. As the go-to platform connecting technology, people, and global solvers, Wazoku will amplify its role in delivering confident, sustainable innovation for tomorrow's challenges[1].
Wazoku has raised $19.9M in total across 6 funding rounds.
Wazoku's investors include Octopus Ventures, Alexander Crawford, Steve Jaffee, Calculus Capital, Sean Duffy, John Yeomans, Fig, Cambridge Angels, New Model Venture Capital.
Wazoku has raised $19.9M across 6 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $9.0M Series B in September 2022.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 1, 2022 | $9M Series B | Octopus Ventures | Alexander Crawford | Announced |
| Mar 16, 2022 | $2M Debt Financing | Steve Jaffee | — | Announced |
| Jul 13, 2020 | $1.6M Series A | Calculus Capital | — | Announced |
| May 2, 2019 | $3.3M Venture Round | Alexander Crawford | — | Announced |
| Mar 10, 2017 | $2.8M Debt Financing | — | Sean Duffy, John Yeomans, FIG | Announced |
| Apr 7, 2014 | $1.3M Venture Round | Cambridge Angels, NEW Model Venture Capital | — | Announced |