TECHNOLOGY
CURRENT PROJECTS
The AI Language Coach
Kwiziq helps adults learn a foreign language up to 10X faster. Kwiziq was recognised by UK Gov as one of three British AI start-up leading the way. Kwiziq was also a top three finalist in CogX’s Best AI Product in Education Award, three years running: 2017, 2018 and 2019.
The name "Kwiziq" is a portmanteau of "Quiz" and "IQ".
Never Hate Cardio Again
Beat Fitness Games is a reboot of "Exertris". Download and play exercise-powered games on your mobile at the gym, at home, or outside. Have fun getting fit.
Beat Fitness Games will launch later this year.
Rapid Concept Modelling
Pidgin is a free online tool that makes drawing flow charts and relationship diagrams as quick and easy as describing them in pidgin English.
Don't draw, describe!
PAST PROJECTS
The World's First Exercise Gaming Bike
Founded in 2000, Exertris was taken from concept to launch in just 18 months. It was presented by Bill Gates at CES 2003, who described it as "really quite amazing". Gruff featured on BBC Tomorrow's World twice and was a TV finalist in their 2003 Innovation Awards for Inventor of the Year. Exertris pre-dated Nintendo's Wii Fit by seven years. Following 9/11 and an industry recession the company hit serious financial problems and was forced into liquidation in 2004.
The brand name "Exertris" was a portmanteau of "Exercise" and "Tetris". It was originally the name of the first game developed for the platform. The company rebranded and renamed the game "Gems".
Gruff never gave up on the idea and worked on developing a pure software solution for more than a decade in his spare time: Beat Fitness Games launches in 2020.
Website Builder
Moonfruit was co-founded in 1999 by Gruff's two best friends from Imperial, Wendy Tan and Eirik Pettersen along with Joe White.
Gruff joined as Data Architecture and Head of R&D. He left to form Exertris but came back many times to help out over the years.
Moonfruit sold in 2012 to Yell for $37M. Wendy is now VP at X, Google's Moonshot Factory. Eirik is CTO of Secret Escapes. Wendy and Joe married and live in the US with their two children.