Edinburgh-based start-up crowned Scotland’s ‘most exciting tech business’

An Edinburgh-based biotech business has been selected to represent Scotland in the search for the best of UK tech.

OGI Bio, which develops products for the growth and analysis of bacteria, yeast and algae, was one of nearly 400 businesses to have applied to the nationwide KPMG competition. It was then shortlisted as one of the nine most exciting tech offerings in Scotland and invited to pitch in the regional heat.

OGI Bio will now progress to the UK final which is due to be held in London next month. The firm’s chief executive and co-founder, Alex McVey, is said to have impressed a panel of judges at the pitching competition held earlier this month.

Amy Burnett, head of KPMG Private Enterprise Access: 'The judges had a tough time selecting a winner.'

Runner up in the Scotland heat was Microplate Dx, a Glasgow start-up specialising in rapid antibiotic susceptibility testing diagnostic, enabling clients to select the best choice of antibiotic to treat a patient’s infection.

Amy Burnett, head of KPMG Private Enterprise Access, said: “In 2024 Scotland received its highest ever number of applications for the tech innovator in the UK competition. The judges had a tough time selecting a winner from a mix of ‘web3’, life sciences, fintech and AI businesses. In the end, the judges were impressed by the story that OGI Bio told - solving a problem from a lived experience, with a clearly articulated product that solves a real need. There is a demand for this product from various sectors and countries.”

OGI Bio helps the biotechnology industry to more effectively develop the next generation of products for a wide range of applications, including health and beauty, food manufacturing, feedstock and green alternatives to petrochemicals. Founded in 2020, out of the University of Edinburgh, the fledgling venture only launched its first products into the market in the last year.

McVey said: “There is a fantastic wealth of innovation happening right now in Scotland and that was reflected in the other companies we were up against, so it’s a real honour that the judges selected us. I’m really looking forward to the UK heat in London, where it will be a great opportunity to showcase OGI Bio on a national stage.”

The nationwide competition, which is celebrating its 11th year, has uncovered British tech innovators including What3Words, Inovus Medical and 2022 winner HiiROC, which went on to win the global final during Web Summit.

OGI Bio will now progress to the national final which will be held on July 23. It will pitch against the winners from seven other regions for the title of Tech Innovator in the UK 2024. The overall winner will then go on to represent the UK at a global final, which takes place alongside Web Summit in November, where the selected firm will compete against businesses from 23 other countries representing major regions of the world in front of a panel of global judges for the title of 2024 KPMG Private Enterprise Global Tech Innovator.

The other regions involved in the UK selection were east of England, the north-east, the north-west, south central, south west and Wales, the Midlands and London.