The importance of a compelling narrative, well-placed story or captivating interview can’t be understated for early-stage startups. A truly groundbreaking product has little impact if it’s flying under the radar of investors and customers.
PR and communications agencies, a hidden part of the startup ecosystem, make this happen. They help startups build credibility, visibility and create whole new categories, becoming category creators themselves.
In the age of AI, communications is changing. A shift to personalisation and authenticity has emerged to combat generated press releases and LinkedIn posts, making a human touch and creativity more important than ever.
This list features the startup ecosystem’s top PR and communications agencies.
See the agencies below:
CommsCo
Founding: CommsCo was founded in 2013 by Ilona Hitel to help ambitious B2B technology brands break into competitive markets with sharper storytelling, founder profiling and impactful campaigns.
Mission: The agency was created around the concept of challenger PR which, unlike traditional PR agencies, combines senior strategic counsel, deep sector expertise and uses AI to aid delivery and provide greater speed, flexibility and measurable impact for its clients.
“We’re an agency built for ambitious businesses and founders that are disrupting established markets and need a communications partner that can match their pace and ambition,” CommsCo tells Tech Funding News.
As a result, the agency has established a distinct category within the PR industry, helping technology brands compete more effectively against larger and better-known competitors. While creating its own category, hinged on challenger PR, it also helps its clients become category creators of their own.
Beyond high-impact campaigns, the agency also acts as a strategic communications partner to fast-growth technology companies, advising on the full spectrum of corporate communications — from funding announcements and market positioning to thought leadership and founder profiling.
The agency’s clients span sectors including AI, fintech, healthtech, martech, public sector technology, retail tech, edtech, and more. They include eflow, ICS.AI, Semble and Crescendo. CommsCo is also PR partner to TechMarketView, the UK’s leading tech analyst.
Spitfire Strategies
Founding: Spitfire Strategies was founded in 2002 by Kristen Grimm, who wanted to provide strategic communications and advocacy for the nonprofit and philanthropic sectors. Its current president is Jennifer Carnig, who has two decades of experience leading major campaigns.
Mission: Spitfire’s work is anchored on the idea that everyone belongs, and everyone has the power to spark change, the agency tells TFN. Its partners with everything from grassroots organisations to major foundations which are driving forward social justice and tackling the world’s most complex challenges.
Its client highlights include BurnBot, a wildfire management tech platform. It worked with the company and Tahoe Fund to implement the Fire Smart Community Pilot, which is creating more fire-ready communities in the Lake Tahoe Basin.
FieldHouse Associates
Founding: FieldHouse Associates was founded in 2012 by Cordelia Meacher after spotting a gap in the market for good PR that was tailored towards startups. Meacher is still the firm’s managing director.
Mission: The entrepreneurial and investment ecosystem was just taking shape when FieldHouse was founded and “it was clear” that no other PR agencies understood exactly what it took to help a business scale, fundraise and deploy — and how those elements world together, FieldHouse tells TFN. Meacher designed her agency specifically with this in mind.
Today it counts Oxford Ionics, which it supported throughout Series A to a £1.1 billion acquisition by IonQ, as one of its successes. The deal followed an ambitious media campaign and an invitation from the European Commission to speak at the prestigious Quantum Cafe, FieldHouse says.
Elsewhere, it started working with Glasgow-based rocket manufacturer Skyrora in 2020 and has secured 120 pieces of coverage for it in the last year. The startup also bagged invitations to the relevant UK Parliamentary Select Committees.
Jihane Teretal, JT Conseil
Founding: Jihane Teretal launched her own operations in 2019 after over 15 years in PR, notably as a director in major agencies where she led accounts for Google Cloud, Akamai, and Logitech.
Mission: Teretal wanted to bring that same strategic rigor and operational excellence she had seen in communications for big tech companies to French startups and scale-ups.
Today, she works on high-level strategy with the tech ecosystem to bridge the gap between the communication standards of tech leaders and the agility of high-growth startups. Teretal mainly works across fintech, cyber, insurance, and AI, and counts Plaid, Pennylane, Upway, Ringover or Stoïk among her portfolio.
Perseid
Founding: Perseid was founded in 2025 by Harry Ashcroft and Ivy Chiou, who head up its Europe and US operations, respectively. It specialises in media relations and corporate communications for tech startups, scale-ups and VCs.
Mission: The pair’s vision was to curate bold, creativity-led campaigns for high-growth, high-ambition brands across tech, consumer, venture capital, and lifestyle. It is named after the famous Perseids meteor shower, reflecting how the agency aims to support its clients through a high-impact presence.
Its client highlights include World Fund, Norrsken, search engine Ecosia, and others.
Cosmyc Partners
Founding: Cosmyc Partners was founded in 2020 to provide strategic communications and PR support to VC firms, startups and high-growth technology companies.
It was created by Marie Fabiunke — a former VC partner herself who spent more than a decade in the European tech and VC ecosystem — to provide a PR approach that meets the pace, complexity and strategic demands of VCs, venture-backed businesses and tech companies.
Mission: Cosmyc Partners was built on the understanding of how the innovation ecosystem operates: the speed of decision-making, the importance of reputation, and the role visibility plays in fundraising, deal flow, hiring and growth, Fabiunke tells TFN.
Its mission is to build and maintain awareness for clients, which include Point 9 Capital, Norrsken, and ARX Robotics.
H/Advisors
Founding: H/Advisors was founded in 1994 by Angus Maitland. Its current CEO is Neil Bennett, who has two-decades of experience overseeing many of Europe’s largest M&A transactions, IPOs and other corporate communications.
Mission: H/Advisors, which includes H/Advisors Maitland and H/Advisors Cicero, has worked at the intersection of policy, finance and corporate reputation for over 30 years, helping clients make clear decisions and deliver results.
From regulatory and public policy change to corporate transformations, financial communications and reputation-sensitive situations, the firm advises its clients towards action and impact, the firm says.
It has supported business leaders through major transactions, market shifts and political events that define their long-term strategies.
DWR eco
Founding: DWR Eco was founded in 2012 by David Wortmann, who is also an advisor to climate fund Planet A Ventures and venture partner at PropTech1.
It was created on a simple but urgent conviction: Earth is humanity’s only home, and it must be protected. To do so requires the right technologies, companies, policies, and narratives that all move society towards net zero — at speed.
Mission: DWR Eco differentiates itself by working across market strategy, policy advocacy, and public relations to help climate solutions scale. It covers the full spectrum of Europe’s climate economy, including renewable energy, hydrogen, circular economy, and only takes on clients it sees as being fully aligned with a sustainable future, it tells TFN.
DWR Eco works with startups and growth-stage scaleups to global corporates and institutional investors. Its notable outcomes include securing European Commission recognition for natural polymers under the EU Packaging & Packaging Waste Regulation for a client, and increasing top-tier media placements by 79% year-on-year for a venture capital client.
This list was published in partnership with CommsCo; with the agencies featured recommended by people in the startup and VC ecosystem.
