Converge 2025 cohort
With breakthroughs spanning food safety, neurodivergent health, aerodynamic transport and accessible communication—this year’s winners and finalists are driving innovation for a safer, more inclusive and sustainable Scotland.
Meet our 2025 winners:
| Name | Business | University | Challenge |
| Hayleigh May & Andrew Callender | Biosers | Strathclyde | Converge |
| Nathan Dudley | New-Found-Hope | Dundee | Create Change |
| Sam Evans | Aeroflow | Edinburgh | Net Zero |
| Christopher Kaan Caudwell | Gestura | Highlands & Islands | KickStart |
| Payam Bozorgi | Novo Hydrogen | Glasgow | Hydrogen |
| Michael Walsh | Waste2Watt | Heriot-Watt | Hydrogen |
| Issac Burnett | Mimetolith | Stirling | Performing & Production Arts |
Meet our 2025 Runners-up:
| Name | Business | University | Challenge |
| Hana Woods | MedAscend | Dundee | Converge – 2nd |
| András Kufcsák | OptoLoc | Heriot-Watt | Converge – 3rd |
| Garance Locatelli | Marked | Strathclyde | Create Change |
| Jani Shibuya | Hychor | Aberdeen | Net Zero |
| Soham Mitra | CAnswer Biosolutions | Aberdeen | KickStart |
| Scott MacLeod | UroFlo | Heriot-Watt | KickStart |
Meet our 2025 special award winners:
| Name | Business | University | Award |
| Jani Shibuya | Hychor | Aberdeen | Blue Economy |
| Aliyu Dala | Raygonal | Edinburgh | Blue Economy |
| Szabolcs Pap | CassioPeia | Highlands & Islands | IBioIC |
| Cherie Gilruth | LapCaddy | Dundee | KickStart -Creative |
| Andrew O’Malley | SimPatient | St. Andrews | KickStart – Ent. Spirit |
| Ali Tajabadi | LotusDx | Glasgow | KickStart – Impact |
| Adam Lockhart | ParkinSense | Heriot-Watt | The Data Lab (Advanced) |
| Christopher Kaan Caudwell | Gestura | Highlands & Islands | The Data Lab (Early stage) |
| Solomon White | SEASAT | Edinburgh | The Ventures Lab |
Meet our 2025 finalists:
| Name | Business | University | Challenge |
| Nanik Ramchandani | LastingAsset | Edinburgh Napier | Converge |
| Swapnil Deshmukh | Qinara | Edinburgh | Converge |
| Luigi Manfredi | Softech Robotics | Dundee | Converge |
| Amy Blake | Fair Trade Electives | Glasgow Caledonian | Create Change |
| Keith Wilcox | Loadstone Leashes | Dundee | Create Change |
| Daniel Brown & Alison Stobie | Neurodapt | Strathclyde | Create Change |
| Stephanie Horn | Blue Food Performance | Stirling | Net Zero |
| Jillian Gordon | Ovation Agriculture | SRUC | Net Zero |
| Jonah Davies-Jones | Cykelworx Design | Strathclyde | KickStart |
| Hanna Ostapenko | Gecko Lasers | Heriot-Watt | KickStart |
| Richard Palmer | MantaRAI | Edinburgh | KickStart |
| Akash Pande Rajeshkumar | NovaHealz | Glasgow | KickStart |
| Pratik Naikwadi | ZygoteLink | Aberdeen | KickSart |
| Abel Zhang | CoCreate TYA | Queen Margaret | Performing & Production Arts |
| Rebecca Whitener | Scottish International Tuba Festival | Royal Conservatoire | Performing & Production Arts |
| Albert Suriñach Campos | Studio Platero | St. Andrews | Performing & Production Arts |
Meet our 2025 semi-finalists:
| Name | Business | University | Challenge |
| Chinenye Obioha | Biha Med | Glasgow School of Art | Converge |
| Alexandre Colle | Borobo | Heriot-Watt & Edinburgh | Converge |
| Stephen Langston | Cyberhare Solutions | West of Scotland | Converge |
| Matthew Moore | DroneTector | St. Andrews | Converge |
| Arash Badakhsh | Entropyst | Strathclyde | Converge |
| Daniel Shorr | GoLLM | Edinburgh | Converge |
| Vincenzo Rinaldi | Ground Truth XR | Dundee | Converge |
| James Flewellen | Kāhu SiliconBio | Edinburgh | Converge |
| Salisu Uba | NatQuest | Strathclyde | Converge |
| Ebtehal Alotaibi | Pixconvey | Edinburgh | Converge |
| Magdalena Raykova | Rapisense | Strathclyde | Converge |
| Shivoh Chirayil Nandakuma | Ridescan | Heriot-Watt | Converge |
| Michael Crichton | TissueMetrics | Heriot-Wattt | Converge |
| Amy Winter | accessAble Scot | Dundee | Create Change |
| Fergus Leith | Heilan | Highlands & Islands | Create Change |
| Eduardo Sanchez Lopez | ImmerCity | Glasgow School of Art | Create Change |
| Ana-Maria Railean | KUMA | Edinburgh | Create Change |
| Sayed Murad | Leximos | Dundee | Create Change |
| Leo Fakhrul | Mamba Sounds | Heriot-Watt | Create Change |
| Bobby Laing | NCLSV | Glasgow Caledonian | Create Change |
| Thomas Barton | Placementt | Dundee | Create Change |
| Karen Watchman | SquarePeg Training | Stirling | Create Change |
| Joel Chaney | Tern360 | Heriot-Watt | Create Change |
| Andrew Rae | Alis Apta | Highlands & Islands | Net Zero |
| Shanmugapriya Krishnamurthy | BEYOND | Heriot-Watt | Net Zero |
| Abdelfateh Kerrouche | DeepSeaLab | Edinburgh Napier | Net Zero |
| Sevda Norouzi | Envirosus Sensors | Heriot-Watt | Net Zero |
| Liam Laverty | Etive Mor | OU in Scotland | Net Zero |
| Adedoyin Mfon | Grains & Oil | Edinburgh | Net Zero |
| Luci Carey | InGlaze | Aberdeen | Net Zero |
| Aleksandra Bavdaz | SensFish | Glasgow | Net Zero |
| Diana Baez | SIMULEX | Heriot-Watt | Net Zero |
| Faheem Abdusathar | 7 Technologies | Strathclyde | KickStart |
| Oscar Vazquez | AI Well Solutions | Heriot-Watt | KickStart |
| Melissa Main | Altar of Earth | West of Scotland | KickStart |
| Taneem UR Rehman | Blockeyfi UK | Strathclyde | KickStart |
| Liam Watt | BlueHarvest Innovations | OU in Scotland | KickStart |
| Alexandros Christou | BLOOP | Strathclyde | KickStart |
| Colton Botta | Broonie | Edinburgh | KickStart |
| Justyna Skop | CogniMusica | Dundee | KickStart |
| Jiaxuan Xie | CrystalStim | Aberdeen | KickStart |
| Lorenzo Zorcolo | Cuaddu Pizza | Queen Margaret | KickStart |
| John Lim | Diabetik Diagnostik | Dundee | KickStart |
| Hajk-Georg Drost | EarthClust | Dundee | KickStart |
| Aamir Wani | Ecotherm | Edinburgh | KickStart |
| Linda Shore | Ethnologic | Glasgow School of Art | KickStart |
| Rakshit Jain | Finwise School | Strathclyde | KickStart |
| Li Chen | Flashsens Health | Glasgow | KickStart |
| Lucas Ayres | FlowFrame | Robert Gordon | KickStart |
| Raheema Chunara | Global Health RI | Glasgow | KickStart |
| Charlie Leslie | Hypo-Realistic | Edinburgh | KickStart |
| Lauren McCann | IM INNOVATION | Robert Gordon | KickStart |
| Mittran Gopala Krishanan | JFX Technology | Heriot-Watt | KickStart |
| Ada Anizoba | Kaizo | Aberdeen | KickStart |
| Michelle Buchanan | Michelle Buchanan Health | Stirling | KickStart |
| Priyanka Rao | Microinterns | Aberdeen | KickStart |
| Princy Mariam Jacob | Modularity Robotics | Heriot-Watt | KickStart |
| Ineta Joksaite | NetaNode | Strathclyde | KickStart |
| David Rodriguez De La Cruz | PedalADS | OU in Scotland | KickStart |
| Holly Richardson | Power Plant | Highlands & Islands | KickStart |
| Tom Gibson | RentRight | Glasgow School of Art | KickStart |
| Rafael Tsantes | Rigma Design Studio | Glasgow School of Art | KickStart |
| Adam Foulis | Scotia Biotech | Strathclyde | KickStart |
| Libu Manjakkal | Smart Interactive Textile | Edinburgh Napier | KickStart |
| David Bajek | SolDefender | Dundee | KickStart |
| Karen Gateson | Spark Narrative | Strathclyde | KickStart |
| Eliza Ralph | Spectral Wrender | Abertay | KickStart |
| Ewan Wills | SwimSmart | Heriot-Watt | KickStart |
| Iva Atanassova | Think Forward | Aberdeen | KickStart |
| Carl Bettosi | Tiplo | Heriot-Watt | KickStart |
| Betsy King | Creative Connect Scotland | Queen Margaret | Performing & Production Arts |
| Charlotte Perkins | Mackintosh Ensemble | Royal Conservatoire | Performing & Production Arts |
| Fraser Mackie | Backstage Pass | Queen Margaret/RCS | Performing & Production Arts |
| Gabriela Krumova | Mon Espoir Theatre | Queen Margaret | Performing & Production Arts |
| Iliana Hernandez Valdivia | Northern Stories | Aberdeen | Performing & Production Arts |
| Jennifer Kelly | KELLY //SORJONEN | Royal Conservatoire | Performing & Production Arts |
| Johanna Denke | THE DENKE | Queen Margaret | Performing & Production Arts |
| Lucia Cate Ireland | DollsnRags Productions | Queen Margaret | Performing & Production Arts |
| Maureen Malcolm-Gourley | Sound and Song | Royal Conservatoire | Performing & Production Arts |
| Meghan Wallace | Without Compromise Theatre | Edinburgh Napier | Performing & Production Arts |
| Sean McGarvey | Auchinairn In You | Royal Conservatoire | Performing & Production Arts |