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Eighteen Strathclyde projects in Converge semi-finals

Campus viewed from Rottenrow

Eighteen Strathclyde projects have been selected for the semi-finals of Converge, Scotland’s springboard for university-born innovators.

The projects account for more than 10% of the 100 entries on the shortlist, from universities and research institutes around Scotland.

In four categories – Converge, Create Change, Net Zero and KickStart – the entries cover a vast range of disciplines and research interests.

All semi-finalists will be invited to attend in-depth business training, with the most advanced projects invited to pitch their ideas live to an invited audience of investors, entrepreneurs and business leaders on 5 June in Edinburgh.   

Fiona Ireland, Head of Entrepreneurship at Strathclyde, said: “The quality and quantity of Strathclyde entries in the semi-finals of Converge demonstrates the level of research innovation and entrepreneurial acumen amongst our staff, students and alumni.”

“We have a strong record in Converge in recent years and hope for further success in 2024.”

Academic innovators

Dr Claudia Cavalluzzo, Executive Director of Converge, said: “Innovation thrives on the intersection of creativity, curiosity and market needs and nowhere is this more apparent than in our 2024 cohort. Representing the very best academic innovators from across our world-beating university sector, their ideas have the potential to fundamentally change life as we know it.

“It’s this drive to create something new, to make the world a better place and to disrupt the status quo that has always fascinated me. It’s also one of the reasons why I love to spend time with entrepreneurs. I can’t wait to get to know this year’s cohort and look forward to finding out more about them and their businesses. 

“I’m also encouraged to see such a multitude of projects from diverse backgrounds this year. Scotland has always been a welcoming place, particularly in our universities. It’s great to see that they continue to attract top-tier students and researchers from around the world.”

Strathclyde’s shortlisted projects are:

  • Dr Momchil Vasilev (EEE), inProcess
  • Dr Daniele Marini (NMIS, DMEM alumnus) Kaiba
  • Dr Marc Reid (Pure & Applied Chemistry), Kineticolor
  • Dr Peter William Tinning (EEE), Northern Light Microscopy
  • Iain McDougall, PCAD
  • Dr Clare Daly (Psychological Sciences & Health), Dyamigo
  • Matthew McLean (MAE Graduate), Airspection
  • Dr Arash Badakhsh (Chemical & Process Engineering), ENTROPYST
  • Vivek Reghu (DMEM Postgraduate Student), Academy of Thought
  • Jonah Davies-Jones (Undergraduate Student, DMEM), Cycelworx Design
  • Faheem Abdusathar (Graduate), Enlight
  • Rowan Cunningham (DMEM Graduate), Inclusio Design
  • Salisu Uba (DMEM Graduate), NatQuest
  • Daniel Brown (DMEM Undergraduate Student), Neurodapt
  • Garance Locatelli (Business Postgraduate Student), Orchy MG
  • Adam Foulis (Graduate), Scotia Biotech
  • Kayla-Megan Burns (Graduate), Podplistic
  • Calum Mackinnon (PNDC), Ubiquitous Grid.