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👋 Céad míle fáilte! Can you believe it? The Christmas lights are back up on Grafton Street, and another year has flown by.
Cast your mind back to January. The decorations were just coming down, the gym memberships were brand new, and the Irish Insights team was nursing a bad hangover.
Back then, fueled by optimism (and perhaps a drop of the pure stuff), we made six bold predictions for 2025. We promised to hold ourselves accountable, and we are nothing if not men of our word.
So, it is time to face the music. We have devised a highly scientific marking system to grade our prophetic abilities:
1 Point: Bang on the money.
0.5 Points: Right idea, wrong execution (Partial credit).
0 Points: Not even close (The "wishful thinking" category).
PREDICTION #1
The Unicorn Stampede 🦄
Daragh Murphy, Co-founder & CEO of Imprint
The Prediction: We are kicking things off today with an absolute banger. We tipped Tines and Imprint as the next Irish startups to hit the billion-dollar "unicorn" valuation.
“Both companies exemplify Irish innovation that is making a significant global impact. We anticipate major valuation updates in the upcoming year.”
The Reality: Earlier this year, Tines (the automation powerhouse), founded by Eoin Hinchy and Thomas Kinsella officially entered the Irish unicorn gods circle after a $125M Series C in Feb.
I thought that was it, but I shit you not, just yesterday, Imprint (the loyalty disruptor), co-founded by the legendary Daragh Murphy joined the club with a massive $1.2 billion valuation. I honestly had to go back and rewrite this entire section!
What these two companies have achieved is a masterclass in staying the course. Both are a testament to the "solve a real, painful problem" philosophy. Well done to everyone involved, especially our Tines and Imprint followers! 👀
Verdict: Bang on the money.
Score: 1 / 1 (We are off and running!)
PREDICTION #2
Ireland Caught in the Middle ⚔️
The Prediction: We warned that Ireland would find itself in a diplomatic squeeze between both sides of the Atlantic.
“Tensions between the US and the EU over tech regulation will escalate in 2025, with Ireland caught in the middle.”
The Reality: We are currently witnessing a high-stakes game of "regulatory chicken." The EU is doubling down on tech fines, while the US administration’s "America First" policy has turned aggressive.
Just this week, the Trump administration threatened retaliation and countermeasures against the EU. They’ve even started naming names, listing Spotify and Accenture as targets.
Under the EU’s "One-Stop-Shop" rule, Ireland is the lead regulator for giants like Meta, Google, and Apple. When Ireland enforces EU law, Washington is starting to see it as a hostile trade act from Dublin.
The government is caught in a trap. They are legally required to penalise the very companies that generated a record €10 billion in corporation tax in November. To put that in perspective, the State collected more last month than it did in the entire year of 2014. I REPEAT - MORE IN A SINGLE MONTH THAN AN ENTIRE YEAR JUST A DECADE AGO!
It’s a geopolitical octopus, and it just got even more tangled: the IRS has hit Meta with a $16 billion tax claim over profit-shifting through its Irish subsidiaries.
Verdict: Sadly, this was spot on and probably not surprising to many of us.
Score: 2 / 2
PREDICTION #3
The Stripe IPO 💰
The Prediction: After years of waiting, we claimed 2025 would be the year the Collison brothers finally rang the opening bell.
“The fintech giant, valued at around $70 billion, has long been one of the most anticipated IPOs in the market. Recent tender offers have allowed early investors and employees to cash out some shares, but the next logical step appears to be a public listing.”
The Reality: It seems we were a bit eager. While the rumours were loud, Stripe decided to keep calm and carry on... privately. They remain the ultimate "will they, won't they" couple of the tech world, but in 2025, they’ve completely rewritten the rulebook on how to be a giant without an IPO.
Waiting for Stripe to IPO be like….
Verdict: Nil points.
Score: 2 / 3
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PREDICTION #4
Less Hype, More Agents 🕵️
The Prediction: We said the "Generative AI" buzz would die down, replaced by "AI Agents" that actually do the work.
“In 2025, we predict a shift from the overused buzz around AI to a sharper focus on AI agents—specialised tools designed to autonomously perform tasks, connect with other systems, and deliver real-world results without the fluff.”
The Reality: This one is a split decision. If you look at Google Trends, "Generative AI" is still the king of the hype cycle. People are still obsessed with the "magic" of creation.
However, search volume doesn't tell the whole story; the boardroom has moved on to execution.
Receipt #1 (The Market Pivot):
While the "chat" hype remains, the Agentic AI market hit a massive $10.86 billion this year, with an insane projected growth rate (CAGR) of 43.8% through 2034. (Precedence Research, 2025)
Receipt #2 (Production Over Pilots):
52% of enterprises have already moved beyond "chatting" and have deployed autonomous agents into their live business workflows. (Google Cloud ROI of AI 2025 report)
Receipt #3 (Visionary Backing):
Verdict: Taking the half-point because the hype is still loud, but the work is definitely moving to agents.
Score: 2.5 / 4
PREDICTION #5
Bitcoin to Break $200k 💸
The Prediction: We told you to grab your tin hats. We predicted BTC would smash through $200,000.
"With plenty of volatility, Bitcoin will break $200k in 2025."
The Reality: We might have inhaled a bit too much "hopium" on this one. While the crypto markets were electric and the ETFs brought in the "institutional suits" in record numbers, we didn't quite reach orbit.
Bitcoin hit an all-time high of roughly $125,000 in October 2025, then settled into a volatile range between $85k and $95k as we head into Christmas.
We told you to grab your tinfoil hats for this prediction!
Verdict: Let's move on quickly...
Running Score: 2.5 / 5
PREDICTION #6
The All-Ireland
The Prediction:
🏐 Football: Stephen backed Tyrone (he’s a pure red hand die-hard), and Chris backed Kerry (no loyalty whatsoever)
🏑 Hurling: Stephen - Cork, Chris - Limerick.
The Reality: Well, well, well. What a season. In football, the Kingdom reigned supreme (I am currently looking very smug). In the hurling, Tipperary beat out Cork to lift the Liam MacCarthy.
Verdict: As a collective team, we successfully predicted the Football winner. We are taking half a point for David Clifford, sorry, I mean Kerry!
Final Score: 3 / 6 - Look, a 50% success rate? In the world of venture capital (or weather forecasting), that probably makes you a legend.
Rounding it out for another year!
🎄That is officially a wrap for us in 2025 🎄
The Irish Insights team is taking an extended Christmas break. We are hanging up the laptops to recharge the batteries, eat our body weight in selection boxes, and get ready to go again.
Thank you for sticking with us through 2025. We wish you all a safe and merry Christmas and New Year, wherever in the world you may be.
We will be back in January, fully refreshed and ready to tackle another year of Irish tech chaos. But before we go, we want to hear from you. What is your big prediction for 2026? Please drop us a reply to this email.
Slán go fóill,
Chris, Stephen, Conor & Eoghan
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