University of Edinburgh startups monitoring ocean health, developing accessible antivenoms, and helping businesses navigate the use of AI responsibly were among the winners at Scottish EDGE 26, Scotland’s premier business awards competition. Barry McCulloch from the British Business Bank with MantaRAI's Richard-Palmer MantaRAI, founded by School of Informatics graduate Richard Palmer, won £10,000 in the Young EDGE category. The award, supported by the Scottish Government, British Business Bank, Techscaler, Scottish Enterprise and Converge, recognises companies whose founders are under the age of 30.MantaRAI is an intelligent AI governance platform designed to help regulated businesses build trust in their AI systems. It translates complex regulations into clear, auditable workflows, enabling organisations to demonstrate compliance, manage emerging AI risks, and unlock the full value of AI. The platform provides visibility of shadow AI use and nudges behaviour towards best practice, embedding culture, risk awareness, and governance into everyday work.The company’s approach focuses on four key principles: Clarity, Readiness, Confidence, and Flexibility, ensuring businesses can harness AI responsibly while gaining benefits such as customer trust, smoother compliance, higher-quality products, and competitive advantage. MantaRAI also champions transparency, security, and human-first design, prioritising ethical technology that keeps humans in control.The competition, held on Thursday, 4 December at the Royal Bank of Scotland Conference Centre, saw nearly 300 startups and scaleups judged across multiple rounds, with a collective prize pot of £1.5 million.Richard Palmer joined winners from other University of Edinburgh ventures, including SeaSat and PhytoVenomics, in receiving recognition for their innovative solutions. Emerging from our 26th round with such a strong cohort of new winners is testament to Scotland’s ever-evolving entrepreneurial landscape. Each year, we witness remarkable ventures pushing boundaries, not only driving innovation, but shaping a more sustainable, inclusive, and forward-thinking future. It’s a privilege to champion these visionaries as they turn bold ideas into lasting impact. Evelyn McDonald CEO of Scottish EDGE Winning at Scottish EDGE is a remarkable achievement for any early-stage company, and our student-led ventures have excelled among highly competitive fields from across the Scottish business ecosystem. Their wins highlight not only their innovation and drive, but also the strength of entrepreneurial talent emerging from the University of Edinburgh. We’re delighted that Edinburgh Innovations has been able to support them as they turn promising ideas into impactful, scalable ventures. Lizzie Withington Director of Venture Creation at Edinburgh Innovations Scottish EDGE 26 Awards Ceremony at RBS Gogarburn Conference Centre. CREDIT: Sandy Young Photography Related links Edinburgh Innovations - Student entrepreneurs win at Scottish EDGE 26 Link to MatraRAI website Publication date 09 Dec, 2025
