71. Happl The employee benefits industry needed a shake up. Happl delivers this with personalised packages for employees and better workflows for businesses. Written by Helena Young Sponsored by Sage Published on January 12, 2026 About the Startups 100 Now in its 18th year, the Startups 100 is the definitive list of the most promising new UK businesses. There's no fee for entry or for inclusion in our index. The Startups team of new business experts judge all our top 100 entrants in collaboration with specialist industry consultants. See our guide to this year’s hottest new businesses and most exceptional founders in the complete 2026 Startups 100 index. Founder: Ben TowersYear founded: 2020Website: happl.comThe employee benefits industry is massive but, says Happl founder Ben Towers, it has often pushed back against innovation. This is where Happl comes in.The platform uses AI to shift company benefits back to focusing on the talent. It delivers personalised plans but also includes instant support and insights for HR and Finance teams. The tools include customisable workflows and the ability to set budgets by role or team. There is also a Happl Accommodation product for business trips and an Insurance option.In this way, Happl brings everything into one platform – getting rid of the disparate platforms that businesses have had to use in the past, which kept data siloed and therefore of limited value. Instead, teams can automate many processes on the platform to save time, and businesses get the best for their employees but also know that they will remain compliant.The team has managed to facilitate integrations with major small business tools, including Workday and Xero, and is approved on the UK Government Benefits Framework.Towers admits that many global companies hadn’t really thought about personalised benefits because they couldn’t find one provider to run their benefits infrastructure. He adds, though, that this is an industry in which “there are old incumbents who often stop innovation”. He adds that “..from day one, even as a baby, we had to push against them.The model is working, despite the naysayers. Happl has a 98% retention rate and is active in more than 160 countries with more than 70 languages supported. Revenue has gone up nine times since the start of the financial year, with clients including Hootsuite. The company also raised $5m in equity financing in a round led by 6 Degrees Capital and Ascension.The platform’s uptake has been huge, but Towers says that the aim is to be no less than the global leader in the benefits category, delivering personalised perks that ensure employees get the most out of their workplace, feel valued, and are fully engaged.View the full Startups 100 Index for 20261. Omnea2. HIVED3. MAGIC AI4. OXCCU5. Lightyear6. Neuranics 7. Hormona8. Burbank9. Better Dairy 10. Lenkie Technologies11. Userled12. Hoxton Farms13. Rensair14. PulpaTronics15. TradeKart16. 32Co17. Carmoola18. cheqd19. Sightline Analytics20. Adamo Foods21. Bold Bean Co22. Beams Renovation 23. Pan Galactic24. Capi Money25. Spotted Zebra26. ANTHROTEK 27. Unravel28. Perci Health29. Untap Health30. Hair Syrup31. Connect Earth 32. spacebands 33. Unfabled34. Lightning Reach35. STOCKED36. Embeddable37. XR Therapeutics38. Literal Labs39. Scooch40. Openr41. Fibe Limited42. Inicio AI43. Peachies44. Better Nature 45. Ctrl Alt46. Resting Reef47. Nila48. ROXFIT49. Finmile50. NavLive51. Volunteero52. Inntelo AI53. Zonova54. A&B Smart Materials55. Ethicronics56. Treeapp57. kennek58. Soil Benchmark59. Vox Aeris60. Asan Cup61. Nuuri62. Mindstone63. MYNDUP64. Enbiosis Biotechnology65. JUX Food66. Danu Robotics67. Wylde Market68. Air Aware Labs69. Mimicrete Ltd70. ALYVE71. Happl72. Living Things73. Grub Club Pets74. Mealia75. PetProov76. Lylo Products77. Chest78. ZIM Connections79. Uptime Labs80. Teal81. Zero Fintech82. Micro Thermal Energy 83. Kanjo 84. Merlin Cloud85. My Skin Feels86. Eleria87. Cashblack88. RevvedUp89. Cosysense90. SuperFi91. Loom92. Legacy Compass93. Meshed94. SWURF95. Main Squeeze96. Sampl Technologies97. Over the Moo98. Pioneering People99. Bikebook100. Recondition Share this post facebook twitter linkedin Tags 2026 Written by: Helena Young Deputy Editor Helena is Deputy Editor at Startups. She oversees all news and supporting content on Startups, and is also the author of the weekly Startups email newsletter, delivering must-know SME updates straight to their inbox. From interviewing Wetherspoon's boss Tim Martin to spotting data-led working from home trends, her insight has been featured by major trade publications including the ICAEW, and news outlets like the BBC, ITV News, Daily Express, and HuffPost UK. With a background in PR and marketing, Helena is particularly passionate about giving early-stage startups a platform to boost their brands. That's one reason she manages the Startups 100 Index, our annual ranking of new UK businesses. Sponsored by: Sage Startups 100 Index Sponsor 2026 Sage exists to knock down barriers so everyone can thrive, starting with the millions of Small and Mid-Sized Businesses served by us, our partners and accountants. Customers trust our finance, HR and payroll software to make work and money flow. By digitising business processes and relationships with customers, suppliers, employees, banks and governments, our digital network connects SMBs, removing friction and delivering insights. Knocking down barriers also means we use our time, technology and experience to tackle digital inequality, economic inequality and the climate crisis.