A Leeds AI startup Plato funding round of £260,000 has been secured by two University of Leeds graduates who built the business while still studying. Plato is an AI-powered study assistant that integrates directly into university module materials, answering academic queries within the context of a student’s course content. The tool also provides institutions with structured analytics on student engagement and learning behaviour.

Dragos Popa, who studied BSc Computer Science at the University of Leeds, co-founded Plato during his third year alongside Nikita Dumitriuc. The pair developed the prototype after Popa spotted the potential of large language AI models during his studies. He built the business with support from SPARK, the university’s start-up incubation programme, which provided office space at Nexus, mentorship and grant funding.

Dragos Popa, Co-founder and CEO said:

The SPARK team really helped our business during this time with office space at Nexus, advice and mentorship. Being an enterprise scholar in my first year and the financial support from the grants Plato received, have got us this far. The business is now in a place to raise finance because of SPARK. If it wasn’t for SPARK, we wouldn’t have been based here in Leeds.”

How Leeds AI Startup Plato Funding Will Be Used

The investment from London-based SFC Capital will fund further development of Plato’s analytics and reporting features, alongside governance, compliance and customisation capabilities. Brian Baillie, Head of Business Start-Up at SPARK, described the founders as “outstanding entrepreneurs” who are inspiring earlier-stage businesses within the incubator community.

Why this matters for Leeds

Plato is exactly the kind of story that defines Leeds’ growing reputation as a tech and innovation hub. A student spots an opportunity, builds a prototype with university support, and secures external investment without leaving the city. SPARK and Nexus are increasingly proving that Leeds can retain its best graduate talent.