Pause carousel
Play carousel
Digital health project by Dr Ahmed Saeed wins top prize at the 2026 Converge Awards
An Abertay University researcher has won a national innovation award for a project helping NHS teams manage patient demand and improve healthcare planning.
Dr Ahmed Saeed received the Digital Health & Care Innovation Centre (DHI) Award for his project Bottleneck Explorer at this year's Converge Awards, one of Scotland's leading competitions for university-led innovation and entrepreneurship.
The award includes £5,000 in equity-free funding to support the further development and commercialisation of the project.
Bottleneck Explorer is an interactive scenario-planning tool designed to help healthcare teams better understand and respond to pressures across the NHS. Developed through collaboration between healthcare, design and data researchers and co-designed with NHS staff, the tool allows users to test changes in demand, explore potential system impacts and make more informed decisions about service delivery.
The project addresses a significant challenge facing healthcare services, with the NHS managing around 1.7 million interactions every day. Hospitals and healthcare providers are under increasing pressure from growing demand, lengthy waiting times and stretched resources, creating a need for more effective planning tools.
By helping teams identify and address bottlenecks before they occur, Bottleneck Explorer aims to improve patient flow, support better outcomes and reduce operational costs.
Dr Ahmed Saeed said:
They say it takes a village, and this recognition is a reflection of mine. I am deeply grateful to my team, Abertay University, Converge, my mentors, and the wider entrepreneurial community. Your belief, encouragement, and support have helped turn an idea into reality. This award belongs to everyone who has been part of the journey.
Professor Jim Bown, Vice-Principal of the Faculty of Design, Informatics and Business, said:
This is a fantastic achievement for Ahmed and a great example of how Abertay research is helping to address real-world challenges. Bottleneck Explorer demonstrates the power of combining expertise in data, design and healthcare to develop innovative solutions with the potential to improve patient outcomes and support more effective decision-making across the NHS.
The award was presented at the Converge Awards ceremony at Glasgow's Barony Hall, where Scotland's next generation of entrepreneurs and innovators were recognised for developing solutions to major societal challenges.
Since launching in 2011, the programme has trained more than 1,000 aspiring founders and supported the creation of over 500 companies.
This year's competition attracted 123 entrants from across Scotland, with 34 finalists representing a record 15 Scottish universities competing across six categories.
Adam Kosterka, Executive Director of Converge, said:
This year's finalists represent one of the strongest and most diverse cohorts in our history, spanning industries from healthcare to climate tech. Being selected among such a competitive field is a testament to the skill, creativity and commercial potential of all our winners.
Businesses supported through the Converge programme have a three-year survival rate of 86%, significantly higher than the national average, demonstrating the value of combining university research with entrepreneurial support and industry expertise.
