Global Mindsets, Local IP: What Tech Leaders Learned at the Deeptech Connected Investor Dinner

Put a room full of Scotland’s most ambitious deeptech founders together with investors from London, New York, Tokyo, and Taiwan, and the conversation gets real very quickly.

Following Turing Fest 2026, Techscaler hosted the Deeptech Connected: Investor Dinner in Edinburgh. Co-hosted by Allan Cannon, Entrepreneur in Residence at CodeBase, and Mairi McCallum, Head of Scaleups at CodeBase, the evening brought together high-potential deeptech founders from across our ecosystem for closed-door, candid discussions with an international panel of VCs and ecosystem leaders.

Joining the table to share their global perspectives were:  

• Karen Yu – President at ITIC (Taiwan)
• Ayse Baybars – Founding Partner at Phenomena Ventures (London / US)  
• Dr Luke Charbonnier-Bevan – Senior Manager at Zinc (London / Japan)  
• Jessalyn Gerbholz – Angel Investor & Partner at PXN Group (US / Scotland)  
• Andrew Noble – COO & General Partner at PXN Group  
• PingChen Lin – Founder & CEO at CybPass  

From world-class IP to navigating capital markets, here are the core takeaways from the panel discussion and closed-door conversations.

Think Global from Day One

Scotland is widely recognised for generating exceptional university spin-outs and early-stage intellectual property. However, scaling deeptech ventures requires looking beyond regional borders much earlier in the business lifecycle.  

As Jessalyn Gerbholz highlighted during the panel, many founders fall into the trap of thinking about global expansion either too early without a plan, or far too late after exhausting local channels. To build a globally competitive venture, internationalisation must be integrated into company strategy from day onebenchmarking milestones against global market standards rather than just regional metrics.  

Whether identifying key international pilot markets or building cultural competency in overseas ecosystems, being deliberate from day one about where your end customers live is vital.  

Commercialising Deeptech Requires Strategic Demand-Pull

Raising capital in deeptech isn't just about seeking standard financial VC funds; it’s about aligning with strategic corporate partners who understand industrial supply chains and manufacturing.  

Karen Yu pointed to the immense potential for collaboration between UK technological innovation and global manufacturing clusters like Taiwan. Rather than relying solely on early equity rounds, engaging with strategic corporate partners through proof-of-concept projects or joint development can validate real demand-pull. In deeptech, establishing early corporate relationships not only builds commercial credibility but also unlocks long-term scaling pathways.  

Deeptech Funding Requires Patience and Narrative Flexibility

Deeptech timelines rarely fit neatly into standard SaaS venture capital models. Commercialising hardware, photonics, quantum systems, and advanced robotics takes years of rigorous developmentand traditional 10-year fund lifecycles are often stretched by these realities.  

Navigating today's changing capital landscape requires narrative clarity and adaptability. Whether framing a core technology through the lens of climate resilience, national infrastructure, or specialid AI, founders need to adapt their storytelling to align with specific investor theses while remaining radically honest about technical milestones.  

What the Cohort Had to Say

The true value of the evening lay in bringing early-stage founders and experienced ecosystem investors into the same room without pitch decks, fostering an open environment to address the hard questions of scaling.

"I was delighted to be invited to the dinner post-Turing Fest with Techscaler. Really valuable conversations both with other founders in the room and investors from different parts of the world. Great to have that kind of international dimension to the evening, and looking forward to continuing those conversations."  

— Myles Bax, Commercial Lead, Aurora Avionics  

As Scotland’s deeptech ecosystem continues to mature, closed-door gatherings like these reinforce that our founders aren't just building for regional growth—they are equipping themselves to compete and lead on the global stage.

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