Student entrepreneurs from Brown University, Imperial College London, King’s College London, McGill University, Newcastle University, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Stellenbosch University, the Institute of Science Tokyo, the University of Toronto, and UCL will compete for the cash prize in the ninth year of the competition.
16 March 2026 – The Society of Chemical Industry (SCI) has revealed the finalists for its Bright SCIdea challenge. Teams will present at the final on Tuesday 17th March at SCI’s London base of operations, with the chance to win the £5,000 cash prize.
Bright SCIdea provides training and mentoring for aspiring entrepreneurs with science-based business ideas that could benefit society, with those business ideas then presented to a panel of expert judges.
Judging the competition in 2026 are Victor Christou, Managing Partner at Hotdog Capital; Sarah Iveson, Commercial Unit Head North-West Europe at Sygenta; and David Ring Vice President – Group Innovation at Synthomer.
The 2026 Bright SCIdea finalists are:
- Ascenx – A subscription-based solution enabling safe disposal of arsenic waste while recovering valuable materials
- AvennaX – Automated computational platform that performs every step of protein structural analysis for every bioscience student and researcher, accelerating the discovery of life-saving medicines
- Chego – An add-on sensor system that transforms standard closed suction catheters into precision-guided medical devices, providing real-time beeping feedback to prevent over-insertion during mucus removal
- Mediketo – A digital app for sustainable ketogenic diet therapy in refractory epilepsy
- Napré – Reimagining preservatives through the valorisation of agricultural bio-waste
- QROOT – An automated ultra-precision farming system which remediates soil to optimal health, pre-emptively adapts to meteorological conditions, and shares actionable regional insights with the communities who need them the most
Previous Bright SCIdea winners have gone on to grow their businesses and raise further capital. The 2022 winners CardiaTec are developing technology to address cardiovascular disease and recently won £1.4 million of seed funding. 2019 winners LCM (Low Carbon Materials) have gone from strength to strength and were finalists for the Earthshot Prize in 2022.
Find out more about the Bright SCIdea Challenge here: SCI - Bright SCIdea Challenge
About the Society of Chemical Industry
SCI is an independent, charitable learned society that helps bring science from the lab into industry quicker for the benefit of society.
SCI is a global network of innovators using science to tackle some of the big societal challenges of the day, across climate & planet and health & wellness. SCI brings together companies with $500bn in global sales and $30bn in scientific R&D; publishes nine peer reviewed journals, including the recently launched Sustainability journal; and convenes a broad range of technical and regional interest groups.Through its mentoring and training programmes, SCI empowers future leaders in science and business.
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