We’re very happy to bring you a guest blog from Katy Guthrie - the AI Accelerator Programme Manager at the University of Edinburgh - to discuss the programme’s application process and this year’s themes.

The AI Accelerator Programme

The University of Edinburgh AI Accelerator programme is open for applications! I’m Programme Manager and this is always an exciting time for us. We start with a blank slate as we commence to determine which companies will be taking part in the programme from September 2024. 

Discovering the ways in which innovative founders are using AI to address a broad range of problems is fascinating and is one of my favourite points in the programme cycle. By the summer holidays, we will have selected up to 16 AI-driven scaleups in our themes of Climate, Health and AI for social impact.  

 What the AI Accelerator is - and isn’t

What is the AI Accelerator? It’s a business development programme for AI-driven scaleups so training topics could include product pricing or how to negotiate. There’s a big focus on 1-1s with experts so that participating companies can get support on their own challenges. Some sessions will have an AI aspect: for example, we will cover AI ethics, embedding MLOps practice, the regulatory landscape for AI and perhaps look at different cloud providers for computer power and tooling. Our programme evolves and changes depending on the needs of the founders. Sharing of experience between the cohort – all AI driven companies - is another important element of the programme. 

In the five years that the programme has been running, the AI landscape has changed dramatically, and interest in the programme has increased. That’s fantastic but it does mean that we need to manage expectations about what we’re looking for; everyone is using AI but that’s not quite what we mean when we say “AI driven.”  

So, it’s equally important to also say some of the things that the AI Accelerator isn’t: 

It isn’t about developing your AI from scratch. You don’t need an enterprise scale deployment, but it does need to be more than a vague idea that AI would be a good thing to have as part of your product. If your AI is entirely aspirational, this is probably not the programme for you. There is always one exception and in this case it’s companies which are developing tools to improve the way that AI itself work – for example, more climate friendly chipsets for AI could fit into the climate theme, or tooling to improve explainability could fit into the social impact theme. 

It also isn’t specifically about adopting consumer AI into your business. We’ll no doubt talk about this though because there’s an ever increasing number of handy AI tools which can improve productivity, provide inspiration and do parts of your work for you. They’re not without downsides though as anyone who has ever been in a meeting with more notetaker apps than real people can attest to!  

Themes

Our themes are something else that has evolved over time. We’re looking for companies that are using AI to improve health, tackle climate change and create positive social impact. We want big ambitions as there are a lot of challenges to address.  

Health is an area where there are huge potential gains but equally high barriers, such as the sensitivity of the data and the complex regulatory environment. Over the years we’ve seen some great companies come through the programme tackling topics from drug discovery (eg. Carcinotech) to mental health (eg. eMoodie) to diagnostics (eg. MicroplateDx). We also encourage companies in social care to apply (eg. Smplicare).

Using AI to tackle climate change can be a challenging concept as data storage and compute are power hungry. How can we make AI and other computing work in way that creates less demand for energy? And how can we use AI to address some of our climate challenges? Companies such as Danu Robotics and Bennu.ai are helping by using AI to improve recycling rates, while Reoptimize Systems are improving the productivity of wind turbines.  

Our third theme is now AI for social impact. Decisions made by AI processes can embed and exacerbate existing inequalities in training data. Anything that can help address that would be of interest to us. Similarly, if you’re using AI to broaden access, address inequality or provide humanitarian support that would be very relevant. Without getting overly political, technology often reflects the economic power structures which create it. Do you have a creative tech solution which helps? 

Applications are open now!

The programme is open to companies from anywhere in the world – no prior relationship with the University of Edinburgh is required. Around 50% of our sessions are online which helps with travel if you’re from out of town and we have had founders from America, Africa and Thailand take part. Participation comes with a £10k stipend which is expected to cover expenses; we do not take equity. The F2F sessions take place in the Bayes Centre - the University of Edinburgh’s innovation hub for data science and AI. Being part of the Bayes Centre community is another benefit as we’re home to some brilliant data and AI focussed startups and researchers. Full disclosure – I’m biased – but it is a fantastic programme. Some of our programme alumni help bring that to life in the case studies – see HERE. And if you’re developing an innovative AI business, who wouldn’t want to be working with the top University in the UK for AI research? 

If you’re interested in application, be aware – you must apply by 19th May. For more details, FAQ and applications link see HERE. Please contact katy.guthrie@ei.ed.ac.uk or Fabrizio.formichella@ei.ed.ac.uk for more info.