Fluid Focus raises £640K to grow screen time productivity app globally

Belfast-based tech company Fluid Focus has secured £640,000 in investment from Co-Fund III and a network of business angels across the UK and Europe, to grow its team, enhance its core product and expand in new markets, beginning with the United States.

Fluid Focus is an app which rewards users for healthier screentime and productivity habits. Users earn ‘Fluid Coins’ by avoiding distracting apps and engaging in focused work sessions, which can be redeemed for rewards like weekly giveaways and charitable donations.

The company recently partnered with renowned generational expert Dr. Paul Redmond from the University of Liverpool to complete a research programme involving 18 academic institutions and over 2,800 students. The study explored how Gen Z engages with technology, offering students a platform to share how smartphones affect their studies, focus, sleep, and overall mental wellbeing. 

Findings revealed that students spend an average of 5.5 hours per day on their phones, equating to 25 years of screen time over their waking lifetime if habits remain unchanged.

Connor Mason, Co-Founder of Fluid Focus, shared:

The reality is the big tech companies have monetised our time and attention. Every second spent on their platforms translates to revenue. The incentivisation model is all wrong, which is why we as a society are realising a broad range of negative outcomes, from diminishing attention spans to rising anxiety and body image issues. 
Our mission is to restore individual agency, empowering people to lead healthy, intentional and fulfilling lives.

The funding round attracted a diverse group of distinguished local and international investors, with strong participation from Co-Fund III, managed by Clarendon Fund Managers. Among the angel investors are serial entrepreneurs, CEOs, seasoned technology investors, and leaders from Apple, Airbnb, top-tier global banks and law firms.

Jill Wilson, Investment Associate at Clarendon Fund Managers, said:

Fluid Focus has tapped into the public’s desire for a healthy relationship with technology with a research-led approach and has great potential for growth, particularly in the Gen Z market. We’re excited to see how the company develops and grows with this investment.

Fluid Focus’s plan is now to expand the team and establish a presence in the US with a focus on building partnerships with academic institutions and businesses to provide its service for students and employees to enhance productivity, wellbeing and general lifestyles.

Glenn Stephenson, Co-Founder of Fluid Focus, said:

As a Belfast-born company with global ambitions, this investment marks a major milestone and sets us up to expand into the US market. The challenge we’re tackling is universal: people are overwhelmed by tech that’s designed to keep them hooked. Fluid Focus is proud to be at the front of a growing movement to flip that model - rebalancing how people interact with their devices and giving individuals and institutions the tools to take back their time, focus, and wellbeing.

Lead image: Fluid Focus and Clarendon Fund Managers | Photo: Uncredited