💡 24% said yes, 38% said no...

👋 Céad míle fáilte!

Last week’s poll asked: Would you move back to Ireland in the next 5 years? Here are the results:

👍 Yes, sign me up for Tayto and turf fires (24%)
👎 No chance, sunshine and dollars suit me fine (38%)
🤷 Maybe, depends on jobs (and housing) (38%)

Your two cents:
👍 D.J: “My head tells me Sydney is safer, more prosperous, more stable. My heart tells me Ireland, with all its flaws, is where I belong.”
👍 Ch: “We already did, after 10 years in Australia with 3 children born in Sydney we moved back. It was a struggle in the first year back, but we did it and are glad we did”
👎 D.N: “Weather is a big part of my decision, I wake up in paradise everyday and that has a massive positive contribution to one’s life and mindset.”
🤷 C.M.L: “The frustrating thing for an emigrant is that it seems relatively straight forward to make Ireland a world class place to live - sort the housing crisis and work on infrastructure”

🗳️ This week’s poll is live down below. Have your say. 👇👇

⏳ Today’s read 3 minutes 30 seconds. ⏩ In a rush? Here's your cheat sheet:

• $180m AI play: F5 buys Irish-lead CalypsoAI.

• Dubai Edge: UAE AI Minister headlines Irish biz event.

• Hospitality OS: Nory lands €31.5m to ease hospitality chaos.

• Station F dreams: Taoiseach seeks Paris-style incubator.

• Gamified growth: Sligo-born, Melbourne-based Dr. Gráinne Oates' Quitch app hits millions.

Enjoy ☕

LATEST UPDATES
News From Abroad ✈️

🇺🇸 AI security shake-up: Nasdaq-listed F5 is shelling out $180m for CalypsoAI, the Dublin–New York firm led by Donnchadh Casey and James White. CalypsoAI’s bread and butter? Stress-testing large language models so they don’t spit out unsafe nonsense, leak your data, or get you sued. “Enterprises want to move fast with AI while reducing risk,” said Casey. For F5, it’s less about fattening revenue and more about strategic value and strapping on AI street cred.

🇦🇪 The Edge in Dubai: The Irish Business Network’s annual seminar packed the room Sunday, with UAE AI minister Omar Sultan AlOlama reminding everyone that artificial intelligence is moving from buzzword to backbone. Irish Ambassador Alison Milton reinforced the ties between Ireland and the Gulf, while a heavyweight line-up swapped insights on tech, business, and strategy.

🇺🇸 Supply chain power move: Irish-founded Overhaul is snapping up U.S. visibility player FreightVerify, marrying risk-based shipment monitoring with item-level tracking across 280k+ shipping sites. Translation: manufacturers can now know which exact widget is stuck in traffic and fix it before factories grind to a halt. CEO Barry Conlon called the deal a “rare find.” We call it every supply chain manager’s dream… or nightmare, depending how late those parts still are.

Back Home 🏠

• Nory has raised €31.5m to build its AI-powered “OS for hospitality.” Founded by Conor Sheridan, the Dublin start-up wants to turn restaurant headaches into data-driven decisions.

• VC investment in Ireland has slumped to a 10-year low. Without action, Ireland’s brightest sparks could be scaling in Silicon Valley while our start-ups stay side hustles.

• Ireland wants its own Station F? Taoiseach Micheál Martin has tapped Xavier Niel (the billionare behind Paris’s mega-incubator) for advice.

EXTRA INSIGHTS
Sligo-born lecturer turned Melbourne entrepreneur builds gamified learning app ‘Quitch’

Living abroad: “I grew up on a small farm in Sligo with six siblings. I came to Australia backpacking, met my husband, and stayed.”

The spark: “My students were glued to their phones before and after lectures. With their help, Quitch was born.”

The leap: “As an academic everything is structured. In business, you’re suddenly fundraising, hiring, designing - it’s a wild ride.”

Bootstrapping: “I started with a small teaching and learning grant of about $20,000 from Swinburne. That got me started.”

Abroad advantage: “You don't tend to have that network… but you can almost reinvent yourself if you like.”

Growth: “Quitch has been used by millions worldwide. At Australian Catholic University, it improved student retention by 13%.”

Advice: “Just get over that fear. What's the worst thing that can happen?”

👉 FULL INTERVIEW: From Sligo farm to global edtech — how Grainne Oates built Quitch.

[We first featured Gráinne’s story last year but it’s one we still think about. If you missed it then, it’s worth your time now.]

🧠 BRAIN FOOD
“Get good at being shit”, cry at a marathon, decode Irish talk

💬 Quote: “The alternative is they get good at being shit.” Des Traynor, Co-Founder of Intercom on what happens when talented people aren’t pushed to high standards.

💼 Job: Web Marketing Manager @ Tines (Remote 🌍). Own and elevate Tines web presence end to end.

☘️ Tool: Outmin is a Irish-founded AI bookkeeping platform made for growing businesses.

🎧 Pod: Digital Irish Podcast: The Morrison Legacy - A moving celebration of the Morrison Visa and the stories shaping the Irish-American experience.

🐄 That’s Interesting: “Nothing says ‘innovation’ like asking someone else to solve your problems.” Eamon Leonard on the government’s proposed Station F-style national incubator.

😊 Good news: Irish women have the internet in floods with emotional Sydney Marathon moment.

😂 Meme: The Rosetta Stone of Irish conversation:

📊 Insights Poll

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