Edinburgh is home to a buzzing AI start-up and spin-out scene - and we are at the heart of it. We run several programmes to empower AI entrepreneurs with the skills, contacts and resources to make their ideas a reality, benefiting businesses, consumers and the economy. We have a portfolio of opportunities available for AI and digital external founders and companies, as well as students and researchers at the University of Edinburgh. The suite of resources includes a business development programme for AI driven scaleups, and a programme to validate the commercial potential of digital ideas and innovations. We offer entrepreneurs skills and insights for their investment journey and support access to finance and investment.Activity is led by the Bayes Centre, the University of Edinburgh’s Innovation Hub for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence, in partnership with Edinburgh Innovations.Accelerating Entrepreneurship AI AcceleratorThe AI Accelerator programme nurtures AI driven scaleups, supporting them to bring about transformative change in areas of global challenge. With AI technology efficiencies, companies on this cohort are creating new propositions with the potential to disrupt the market.Since 2019, 94 companies have been supported and £90m funding has been raised. Applications to be part of the next cohort open in April 2025. AI AcceleratorCase study: BioLibertyVenture Builder IncubatorThe Venture Builder Incubator programme specialises in helping PhD students bridge the gap between academia and entrepreneurship. By guiding participants to develop a robust commercialisation and funding strategy, the programme supports the entrepreneurial cohort to validate the commercial potential of digital and science-based ideas and innovations.Venture Builder IncubatorCase study: Bennu.ai Explore our spin-outs and start-upsWith a sharp focus on future health and care, data and digital, and sustainability our spin-out companies are pushing boundaries in research, driving innovation and delivering impact for the benefit of our society and our planet. Prothea Technologies Deep-tech spin-out Prothea Technologies Ltd is developing tech to ‘see and treat’ diseased lung tissue in one hospital visit. Lung cancer is the third most common cancer in the UK but the team behind Prothea say their technology could alleviate hospital pressure and pave the way for diagnosis and treatment to be carried out in a single hospital visit. Concinnity Award-winning spin-out company Concinnity Genetics is transforming the safety of gene therapies by designing novel control mechanisms using its cutting-edge AI platform and synthetic biology expertise. Concinnity Genetics has developed novel RNA-based systems that enable the precise control of gene therapies even after dosing, conveying the ability to respond to and reduce their own side effects as well as improve the efficacy of these innovative treatments. Omecu University of Edinburgh spin-out company Omecu is developing a high-performance genomics and health data analysis platform. The Omecu team has developed a computation engine and web platform that is capable of powerful and highly sophisticated analyses, giving researchers the freedom to interactively query multiple federated genomic datasets and get the answers they need in seconds. Aveni Award-winning fintech company Aveni is spearheading a revolution in financial services productivity by fusing advanced AI with human ingenuity. The University start-up company’s solutions are accelerating financial services workflows by providing automated admin support and quality assurance, analysing customer interactions and providing actionable insights. SeaSat Student start-up SeaSat is addressing the temporal data gap in marine environments. Its pioneering Machine Learning algorithm leverages satellite remote sensing data to classify water types, estimate salinity and temperature. It also helps to predict heatwaves and extreme events that could threaten marine stocks. Fisheries and governments have faced obstacles in accurately monitoring changes in fish stock activity and marine environments, but SeaSat can provide accessible, real-time data models of water conditions. The company’s technology has the potential to revolutionise environmental monitoring and management and bolster marine conservation efforts. Related linksBayes CentreEdinburgh InnovationsImage credit: Concinnity: Calima - stock.adobe.com; Omecu: NicoEINino - stock.adobe.com; SeaSat - zhihao/Getty Images; Prothea: abvbakarrr - stock.adobe.com; Entrepreneur - Maverick Photography. This article was published on 2025-03-11
