Twitter co-founder invests in laundry start-up's £1.4m funding round

One of the co-founders of Twitter has taken part in a funding round into a British start-up that runs a hi-tech laundry service used by hospitals and care homes.

Biz Stone, who co-founded Twitter in 2006, took part in a £1.4m investment round into Oxwash.

The Oxford-based business uses electric bicycles to collect laundry from businesses and then cleans the items using ozone technology to sterilise them.

Companies House filings show that Mr Stone owns around 1.4pc of the business through his family trust.

Oxwash is being used to sterilise scrubs and equipment from GP surgeries and the Oxford coronavirus vaccine trial.

Chief executive Kyle Grant, a former NASA engineer, says his business previously serviced restaurants and properties rented through Airbnb, but has seen a wave of interest from healthcare providers following the spread of coronavirus.

“Our riders had to go from wearing hoodies and shorts to hazmat suits,” he said.

Mr Grant said he believes the pandemic will cause the hospitality industry to pay for more advanced laundry services in the future. “Being able to show that you can disinfect will be absolutely enormous in the years ahead,” he said.

Other investors participating in the funding round include TrueSight Ventures, Indeed.com co-founder Paul Forster, and Founders Factory.

The company will use the funding to expand into London from its current coverage area of Oxford and Cambridge. It also plans to hire more staff and fund research and development.

Other on-demand laundry businesses have struggled to remain afloat in recent years. Laundrapp, a laundry start-up backed by Michael Spencer, collapsed into administration in February.

Mr Grant said these companies struggled because they served as a middleman between customers and existing laundrettes.

Mr Stone said: “Our world is in unknown territory and people are turning to tech for options to improve their lives. Oxwash is using revolutionary technology that can be utilised to prevent viral transmission on textiles during this period and give people reassurance about their safety and those of their loved ones.”