Rachel Curtis

About

Rachel Curtis founded Inicio AI in Coventry in 2020 after seeing how slow and hard income and expenditure assessments were for people in debt. Its virtual agent, Budgie, guides people through the assessment in conversation and checks for extra income with a built-in benefits calculator, which helps lenders and advisers get more forms completed with fewer calls.

In April 2025 Inicio raised £2.6m in seed funding, won KPMG's Tech Innovator 2025 award three months later, and secured £1.35m through the 'One To Win' pitch competition at Birmingham Tech Week.

Number 42 on the Startups 100 Index 2026.