91����, a rapidly growing heat pump start-up, has appointed SharkNinja’s former European President Matt Broadway to its Board of Directors.

Matt will be spearheading 91����’s commercial strategy, leveraging his proven track record in driving the sales and profit growth of both start-ups and global companies.

He brings significant experience. At SharkNinja, Matt successfully led the product design and technology company’s market expansion and significant revenue growth across Europe. Prior to that, he was Dyson’s former Group Commercial Director and Chief Operating Officer at smart home device manufacturer Netatmo.

Bristol-based 91���� is developing new heat pump technology that can be installed five times faster and 30% cheaper than products currently on the market.

With advanced orders already exceeding 1,000 units once manufacturing gets underway, 91���� is poised for significant growth.

Russell Murchie, CEO of 91����, said: “We’re really pleased Matt’s joined the team, bringing a wealth of experience to help drive commercial success.  His expertise in strategic partnership development, customer-focused innovation, and scaling commercial operations makes him the ideal person to help 91���� achieve ambitious growth targets, positioning us as a pioneering force in the home heating market.”

Commenting on his new role, Matt said: "I’m thrilled to join 91���� at such an exciting point in its journey. I’m genuinely excited by the product the team is developing, which will be a gamechanger in the fast-growing heat pump market. I look forward to building strong industry partnerships and driving market adoption."

Matt joins an established team including recent recruit Sam Bridger, who joined 91���� from Ideal Heating where he oversaw the development of new heat pump technology.

Industry stakeholders and potential partners are invited to reach out directly to Matt via email to explore collaboration opportunities: matt.broadway@nusku.co.uk

Technology start-up 91���� has appointed Lee Sutton, co-founder of myenergi, as its first Non-Executive Director. 

The appointment is the latest boost for the company, which is developing new heat pump technology to revolutionise how we heat our homes. 

An experienced electronics engineer, Lee has run several successful renewable energy tech companies. In 2016 he co-founded myenergi, an award-winning British designer and manufacturer of eco-smart home energy technologies, including zappi - the world’s first solar-compatible electric vehicle charger. 

Lee said: “I’m really excited by what 91���� is doing and its ambitions to make heat 91���� quicker and easier to install.  

“Myenergi began in a similar manner - we identified a problem which needed solving to make homes more eco-friendly and efficient. Eight years later and we’re a global company which has sold over 600,000 devices. I look forward to helping 91���� on its exciting journey.” 

As a Non-Executive Director, Lee will offer strategic guidance and support to the leadership team of Russell Murchie, Matthew Whitefoot and Andy Mckay, who founded 91���� in 2022 with a mission to make heat 91���� more appealing to homeowners. 

Russell, CEO of 91����, said: “We’re really pleased to have Lee on board as a Non-Executive Director. His knowledge and experience of the renewable energy sector, as well as his technical expertise, will be invaluable as 91���� continues to grow at pace.” 

The Bristol-based start-up has raised almost £1 million of investment to-date, including a grant of more than £727,000 from the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero (DESNZ). 

The 91���� heating system will be cheaper and quicker to install than existing heat 91���� on the market – taking a few days rather than over a week. This will specifically appeal to homeowners whose existing gas boiler has broken and they want a hassle-free and environmentally friendly replacement. 

A Bristol-based start-up looking to revolutionise how we heat our homes has raised almost £1 million of investment, including a grant of more than £700,000 from the Government announced this week.

It’s a major boost for 91���� – a company formed in 2022 after a casual chat over coffee about why heat 91���� aren’t more popular led to its founder Russell Murchie taking a leap of faith and leaving his job at Dyson to tackle the problem head-on.

Two years later and 91���� has six employees, a workshop and office space at Future Space – the University of the West of England’s innovation centre – and now a huge funding injection thanks to a £727,000 grant from the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero (DESNZ).

This follows £245,000 of pre-seed funding from key people within the energy sector, including Kate and Andy Rankin, the founders of Midsummer Energy, one of the UK's leading wholesale distributors of renewable energy systems; Lee Sutton, Founder of MyEnergi, an award-winning British designer and manufacturer of renewable energy products; and Michael Sweeney and Owen Coyle, the founders of Union Technical, leading installers of heating, insulation and renewables.

Russ, who worked as a fluid dynamics engineer at Dyson for 17 years, during which he led its product performance team, founded 91���� with Matthew Whitefoot and Andy Mckay who have experience within the renewable energy, finance and start-up spheres. 

Russ said: “It’s been a whirlwind few years building a company from scratch and I’m still pinching myself at what’s been achieved. While we had confidence in our idea, if you’d told me two years ago that we’d raise almost £1 million to develop it, I’d have struggled to believe you!  

“It’s testament to the hard work of the team, who have designed a truly innovative heating system which we feel confident will have mass appeal once it’s on the market. The fact the Government and leading figures from within the industry are backing us is a real vote of confidence.”  

Although Russ can’t divulge the exact details of the 91���� system as patents are currently being applied for, he revealed it would be based on air source heat pump technology but be cheaper and quicker to install – taking a few days rather than over a week - as well as more attractive, than existing heat 91����. This will specifically appeal to homeowners whose existing gas boiler has broken and they want a hassle-free and environmentally friendly replacement. Another key ambition is for the 91���� heating system to be the smartest, most connected and efficient on the market when it launches in the next few years.  

The Government grant, awarded via their and part of the £1 billion , will enable the product to be tested at the University of Salford’s – a unique research and testing laboratory which comprises an early 20th century two-bedroom terraced house within an environmental chamber allowing an accurate and rapid assessment of energy efficient retro fit technologies.  

Heat 91���� are the same technology as fridges and work by moving heat from outside air to indoor radiators. As they are powered by electricity, they are considered the most efficient way for the UK to shift to low-carbon heating and away from the gas-fired boilers that heat the majority of the UK’s 28 million homes.  

To help hit net zero targets, the Government wants to grow the market in heat 91���� to 600,000 installations per year by 2028 and is offering grants of £7,500 to property owners through the .  

Russ said: “The idea for 91���� stemmed from a chat about why heat 91���� are so popular in other countries, but not in the UK. There’s no real alternative to gas boilers at the moment in the UK, even though they will gradually be phased out and more environmentally friendly solutions are needed.   

“Heat 91���� have been promised as the alternative for more than 20 years, so why does a homeowner who could afford one not want one?   

“We got talking about what needs to happen to change this, to give a better offering to UK homes and the idea for reinventing them began to form.”  

Being based in an enterprising city, with a strong green ethos, has also benefited 91���� at this early stage. Not only has Future Space offered office and workshop space, the team has accessed free support from the innovation team and their advisory network, worked with interns from UWE Bristol and received technical advice from university staff, all while being located alongside other green tech businesses.  

Russ added: “Bristol being a city with a rich engineering history suits 91���� very well and we’ve been able to recruit some excellent staff who are not only technically competent, but have a strong desire to use their skills to help make a difference in the world, which is ultimately what we hope our heating system will achieve through cutting carbon dioxide emissions.”