Flutter’s Alpha Hub to Drive Paddy Power’s Call for Innovation

Alpha Hub, Flutter Entertainment’s global innovation community, is searching for emerging tech start-ups to help Paddy Power shape the future of retail betting.

Paddy Power has been in the business of entertaining customers since 1988 and is one of the most distinctive brands in the industry, serving hundreds of thousands of customers from 625 retail betting shops across the UK and Ireland that are packed with innovative multi-media tech and broadcast tens of thousands of sporting events every month.

As part of ‘Paddy’s Start-up Showcase’, Alpha Hub is looking to partner with start-ups who can provide bold and tenacious ideas to a brief focused on three main areas:

Data & Analytics

• How do we improve data collection and analysis from shop activity?
• How do we create customer insights to help improve the shop experience?
• How do we ensure we gather and process the right data to best protect our players?

In-Store Experience

• How can we improve in-store betting engagement and experience for customers?
• How can we provide better customer support and engagement in shops?
• How can we attract more customers into shops with novel, immersive viewing experiences that can’t be replicated online?

Future of Self-Service Terminals

• How can we enhance the customer experience and empower customers with the next generation of frictionless, intuitive self-service functionality?
• How do we ensure we’re building our solutions on the most reliable and innovative self-service hardware and software?

For start-ups that can provide interesting ideas that don’t quite fit the brief, there is also a wildcard option for companies to submit their ideas and solutions on how Paddy Power can create safe, entertaining experiences for our customers now and in the future.

The successful start-ups will receive support from both the Paddy Power and Alpha Hub teams in the form of paid proof of concept trials across Paddy Power’s UK and Irish retail estate as well as insight into the Paddy Power retail business, product feedback, and tailored mentoring sessions with Paddy Power Retail executives. Companies will also receive introductions to other Flutter Entertainment brands and Alpha Hub’s extended network of partners.

Rob Smith, Head of Emerging Technologies at Flutter, said:

“If you follow the world of retail, there’s a very good chance you’ve heard of Paddy Power. The brand is one of the most eye-catching and popular in the industry, with a huge retail footprint that spans 625 retail outlets managed by thousands of colleagues who provide an outstanding service to customers all over the UK and Ireland. But we never rest on our laurels. Although we have the scale of a leader, we maintain the mindset of a challenger, so we’re constantly innovating in a race to the top for our customers. If your company can help us do that, we’d love to hear from you. In return, you’ll get the chance to run a paid proof of concept in our retail estate with the support of a global network powered by Flutter Entertainment.”

Paddy Power is part of the UK&I division of Flutter Entertainment, the parent company for some of the world’s biggest and most popular betting and gaming brands. Flutter has operations in more than 20 regulated markets and brings entertainment to life for more than 18 million customers worldwide in a safe, responsible and sustainable way.