Bristol Electrical and Electronic Engineering Society (BEEES)

What Bristol Electrical and Electronic Engineering Society (BEEES) does

Bristol Electrical and Electronic Engineering Society (BEEES) is a volunteer-run student society at the University of Bristol that serves students interested in electrical and electronic engineering, primarily those enrolled in EEE programs but explicitly open to all university students. The society operates under the governance of the University of Bristol Students' Union (Bristol SU) and is led by a 15+ member student committee that turns over annually, with a 2025/2026 committee headed by President James Gordon and including newly structured roles such as Wellbeing Officer, Sustainability Officer, International Officer, and Project Soteria Lead.

BEEES delivers its value through a calendar of in-person events and workshops rather than commercial products or technology platforms. Its flagship activities include the annual Robot Wars antweight (150g) competition, which has run for 11+ years; the Brishack hackathon, which in 2024/2025 is sponsored by Boeing and the James Dyson Foundation; the Make-a-thon (with a £500 prize pool, 50+ participating students, and a 2021 virtual COVID-themed pivot); the MVBall formal dinner (hosted at Mercure Grand Hotel Bristol in 2023 and The Square Club in 2025); weekly Wednesday industry seminars; and hands-on workshops covering Arduino, ESP32, 3D printing, hardware design, and Soldering 101. Activities are hosted in University of Bristol venues including the Queens Building (GE lab), Merchant Venturers Building (rooms 1.11/1.11A and the MVB Hackspace), and Bill's Brown Suite. Community is maintained through Discord, WhatsApp, and WeChat channels, with a dedicated outreach effort aimed at Chinese students.

The society's revenue model combines three streams: annual membership subscription fees set at Bristol SU's minimum, corporate sponsorship from a recurring base of industrial partners (Imagination Technologies, James Dyson Foundation, Babcock International, ARM, and Boeing as of 2024/2025), and modest event ticket sales such as the £10 Robot Wars workshop kit and MVBall formal dinner tickets. No commercial products, paid staff, equity funding, or external investment exist; the organization is structurally a non-profit student body rather than an investable entity.

Name

Bristol Electrical and Electronic Engineering Society (BEEES)

Legal name

Bristol SU (University of Bristol Students' Union) Bristol Electrical and Electronic Engineering Society (BEEES)

Website

https://beees.co.uk

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Bristol Electrical and Electronic Engineering Society (BEEES) is a volunteer-run University of Bristol student society serving engineering students through Robot Wars competitions, hackathons, Make-a-thons, industry seminars, and hands-on workshops, funded by membership fees and corporate sponsors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Bristol

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Events or Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Subscriptions: Annual subscription fees collected from members. The constitution states there shall be a subscription fee levied for membership, fixed at the discretion of the Committee being no less than the minimum rate demanded by Bristol SU. Exact amounts are not publicly disclosed.
2. Corporate Sponsorship: BEEES receives financial and in-kind support from industrial sponsors including Imagination Technologies, Dyson (James Dyson Foundation), Babcock International, and ARM. Sponsors support specific events (Robot Wars, Brishack hackathon) and provide opportunities for student members.
3. Event Ticket Sales: Revenue generated from paid events including MVBall formal dinner (3-course meal, wine), Robot Wars workshops with kits (£10), and potentially other ticketed social events.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

BEEES is a University of Bristol student society that organizes engineering-focused events and activities for its members, including flagship Robot Wars antweight (150g) competitions, annual Brishack hackathons, Makeathons, formal dinners (MVBall), weekly staff seminars, and hands-on workshops in the MVB Hackspace covering robot building, 3D printing, Arduino/ESP32 development, and hardware design. The society operates under Bristol SU and serves as a bridge between EEE students and industry sponsors such as Imagination Technologies, ARM, Dyson, and Babcock.

Product overview

BEEES (Bristol Electrical and Electronic Engineering Society) is a student society at the University of Bristol that organizes events, workshops, and competitions for students interested in electrical and electronic engineering. It is not a technology product company. The society provides community-building activities including Robot Wars competitions, hackathons (Brishack), Make-a-thons, formal social events (MVBall), and staff seminar series. BEEES does not offer commercial products or services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Robot Wars Workshop Kit £10 build kit provided at the Robot Wars workshop sessions held every Wednesday at the Queens GE lab. Allows University of Bristol students to assemble an antweight-class (150g) robot for entry into the society's Robot Wars competition. Optional — competitors may build their own robot from parts available at the BEEES Robot Wars Store Hub.
• Annual Society Membership Subscription membership for University of Bristol students, priced at the discretion of the elected committee but no less than the minimum rate demanded by Bristol SU. Provides access to events, workshops, seminars, social activities, the MVB Hackspace, and the wider BEEES community.
• Robot Wars Competition Flagship antweight (150g weight limit) robot combat competition held at MVB rooms 1.11/1.11A. Open to University of Bristol students and competitors from outside, with a fixed arena, scheduled fights, a Battle Royale finale, and a prize ceremony. Sponsored by Imagination Technologies.
• Brishack Hackathon Annual largest hackathon run by BEEES, open to all University of Bristol students. Held at MVB with themes such as 'eco' (2025). Sponsored by Boeing and Dyson in 2024/2025.
• Makeathon Free-entry 24-hour innovation challenge for University of Bristol students, with £500 of prizes. Teams of 2-6 recommended; individuals also welcome. Topics have included climate change (2020) and COVID-19 (2021). Held at the Merchant Venturers Building.
• MVBall Formal Dinner Ticketed end-of-academic-year formal dinner with a 3-course meal and half bottle of wine, run with a black-tie dress code. Co-hosted with CSS at venues such as the Mercure Grand Hotel Bristol (2023) and The Square Club. Bristol SU hardship funding is available for attendees needing financial support.
• MVB Hackspace Access Member-only maker space in Merchant Venturers Building rooms 1.11/1.11A, equipped for robot building and workshops. Members are required to complete training before using 3D printers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 50 students participated in single Makeathon 2020 event
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• University of Bristol - School of EngineeringcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Society is specifically targeted at students in the School of Electrical, Electronic and Mechanical Engineering. The department provides venue access (MVB, Queens Building), faculty judges for events, and institutional support for society activities. Staff members regularly participate in Wednesday Staff Seminar Series events.
• Bristol Student Union (Bristol SU)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBEEES is officially affiliated with the University of Bristol Students' Union and represented by the Societies' Network. Bristol SU provides the institutional framework, event platforms, hardship funding access, and regulatory oversight for the society's operations.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Major League Hacking: Hackathon league organization that runs student hackathons across multiple universities globally. Comparable to BEEES's Brishack hackathon activity but operates at much broader scale across many institutions rather than single-university focus, and serves as the de facto industry standard for student hackathon partnerships.

Direct peers

• University of Manchester EEE Society: Engineering student society at University of Manchester focused on electrical and electronic engineering students, providing comparable events, competitions, technical workshops, and industry networking opportunities at a peer Russell Group institution.
• UCL Electronic and Electrical Engineering Society: EEE-focused student society at University College London serving electrical and electronic engineering students with events, workshops, hackathons, and industry engagement — directly comparable UK university EEE society.
• Imperial College Electrical Engineering Society: EEE student society at Imperial College London with comparable mission of supporting electrical/electronic engineering students through technical events, competitions, industry engagement, and maker space access. Closest UK Russell Group EEE student society peer.
• University of Edinburgh Engineering Society: Engineering student society at University of Edinburgh running events, technical projects, and industry engagement for engineering students — directly comparable to BEEES in mission and operating model at a peer institution.
• University of Southampton ECS Society: Electronics and Computer Science (ECS) student society at University of Southampton serving a similar student population with events, hackathons, and industry partnerships — directly comparable peer in EEE/CS scope.
• University of Sheffield Engineering Society: Engineering student society at University of Sheffield with comparable mission of supporting engineering students through technical events, competitions, and industry engagement at a peer UK institution.
• Cambridge University Engineering Society: Engineering student society at University of Cambridge providing events, technical projects, industry networking, and community for engineering students — directly comparable peer to BEEES in scope and structure.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/universityofbeees
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/beees

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bristol Electrical and Electronic Engineering Society (BEEES)