CTO Dermot Condron and CEO of Mersus Technologies Geoffrey Allen.

Company co-founded by Offaly man wins major European award

A company co-founded by an Offaly man has received a major technology award.

Athlone-based company Mersus Technologies received the European Technology Award (Virtual Reality) at the European Technology Awards last Friday, December 1 at the Ritz Hotel in Paris.

Mersus Technologies was founded in 2018 by CEO Geoffrey Allen and CTO Dermot Condron, from Tubber, and has established itself as a leading player in the immersive technology space.

The European Technology Awards bring together professionals from the tech sector to promote excellence and knowledge. Rewarding innovation and agility it sets the bar for success higher every year. The awards endeavour to both reward and drive the sector for many years to come. Accepting the award, Geoffrey was delighted with the win, saying: “Awards like this are important within the industry, to be recognised by your peers is a significant milestone. In such a global industry for it to happen on a European level is even more encouraging.”

The focus of Mersus attention is the Avatar Academy, a Virtual Learning Experience Platform. This award-winning software platform allows scalable virtual reality training. It can be customised to meet the specific needs of an organisation, combining advanced VR technologies with data analytic tools creating an unparalleled learning experience and allowing users to hone their skills in a safe and controlled ‘virtual’ environment. In a rapidly evolving world where emerging technologies often take decades to become integral Dermot believes Mersus's strategic evolution is perfectly timed. “Since inception, we’ve developed our Avatar Academy, software platform which holds immense value for life science operations.

“Skills training is in high demand, with many companies struggling to fill positions in ever-expanding operations. The strong demand for talent is driving competition, and transitioning new operators onto production lines faster is an attractive proposition for these companies. We've tirelessly developed virtual reality solutions, culminating in our revolutionary ‘Avatar Academy.’ This platform simplifies VR media creation, addressing the two key adoption barriers, time and cost.”

Awards’ director, Antonio Queijeiro, expressed his admiration for the Irish entry. "Mersus Technologies has managed to transcend the boundaries of imagination, blending creativity with technology in an exceptional manner. This immersive experience redefines our perception of reality, highlighting the potentially transformative impact of virtual reality in the field of training and development. We congratulate the creators for their innovation and ability to transport us to new dimensions of possibility."

Back at base in Athlone, COO Brenda Mannion reflected on the team’s achievement, stating: “This award recognises years of work by dozens of developers that have gone into building our revolutionary product. In the current market, we’re in the enviable position of having a pipeline of talent, all of whom want to work on the exciting new frontier that is Virtual Reality. This award is a reflection of the ingenuity, skill and professionalism of the staff of Mersus Technologies.”

This is not the company’s first time in the limelight. Just last month Mersus won Best Tech Family Business at the Irish Family Business Awards. Last year the team won the ‘Best Training & Development Program’ category at the Annual Irish Research, Manufacturing and Supply Chain Awards and ‘Best Emerging Technology’ at the Irish Times Innovation Awards.

You can learn more about Mersus Technologies and the team behind the Avatar Academy Programme via www.mersus.io. You can view all the winners at the European Technology Awards via https://www.theeuropeanawards.eu/gala/european-technology-awards/4th-edition-european-technology-awards-2023-g11.