Leeds startup brings “revolutionary” technology to city for the first time

An alumnus of University of Leeds’ Spark startup incubator has launched the city’s first dedicated ‘no code’ development agency, Erised, boosting the presence of the “revolutionary technology movement” in the city.

No code, a technology movement that tech consultancy Gartner predicts will account for 65 per cent of apps by 2024, allows companies to build web and mobile apps in around 10 per cent of the time traditionally taken and without any coding expertise.

The agency, working out of Leeds with a global technology and development team, at launch in January 2022 serves clients in diverse sectors including educational software for dyslexic children, an app designed to promote Diversity and Inclusion, and a 3D manufacturing company utilising blockchain technology, also based in Yorkshire.

Founder Taras Lanchev has pledged to use Erised to democratise software development and coding for businesses of all sizes in Leeds and beyond, including many of the city’s startups, by reducing barriers to entry, cost, and time taken to build software including apps.

Originally from the Ukraine, Taras was part of the University of Leeds’ Spark Startup Incubator and received an exceptional talent visa from Tech Nation, allowing him to remain in the UK after graduating with a degree in Management and Computer Science.

Taras commented: “Starting a business is really hard, but launching a technology business is even harder. Over the years of being involved in the startup scene in the UK I’ve met so many talented founders saying that they wish they knew how to code or had a technical cofounder.

“Erised was born out of wanting to help founders develop software at a fraction of the cost and time vs. traditional software development.”

Regarding the tech landscape in the city, Taras continued: “Leeds has grown over the years and the tech scene has evolved into one of the biggest ones in the country. It is super exciting to be a part of it and contribute to it with the launch of Erised.”