Six technology entrepreneurs will be given access to Heriot-Watt University and National Robotarium experts and facilities to develop deeptech prototypes ready for investment.

The six month pilot run by DeepTech LaunchPad will provide each entrepreneur with a £15,000 innovation voucher, which will be repaid to the programme if they win funding or hit a profit target.

Supported by Barclays Eagle Labs and funded by the UK government Department for Science, Innovation, and Technology, the scheme could be rolled out across other Scottish universities if shown to be a success.

Deeptech, or deep technology, aims to revolutionise entire sectors by harnessing scientific and engineering discoveries and innovations, rather than cause only slow-moving change.

In order to advance this aim, the pilot will offer entrepreneurs training and support from the university’s commercialisation team, guiding them to be investment-ready with tested prototype products, viable routes to market, and industry partners.

“Having a deeptech accelerator is one of the missing pieces in Scotland’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and will allow our nation to create companies that can compete on an international scale,” Grant Wheeler, head of commercialisation at Heriot-Watt, said as reported by Insider and others.

“This isn’t about organic improvement – it’s about harnessing the latest scientific research and engineering breakthroughs to create companies that will disrupt their industries and grow to a global scale.

“We expect that the businesses that will be created will go on to attract support from other parts of Scotland’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, such as Codebase’s Techscaler programme and Scottish Enterprise’s programmes for high-growth businesses.”

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Matthew Corbidge, director at Barclays Eagle Labs, added, as reported by Insider: “Heriot-Watt University’s DeepTech LaunchPad is exactly the type of game-changing initiative that we want to support through our Ecosystem Partnership Programme.

“This isn’t about reinventing the wheel or setting up competing schemes – instead, this is about spotting gaps in the ecosystem and helping existing players to fill that need.

“Deep-tech is one of the most-promising opportunities within both the Scottish and wider UK economies and accessing deep-tech at the National Robotarium will help to create companies of a truly global scale.”