Swapnil Desjmukh - Qinara

What three words best describe your entrepreneurial journey? Resilient. Experimental. Purpose-driven.

Founders: Swapnil Desjmukh, Satwik Dalvi and Rahat Santosh 

Startup: Qinara 

All three graduated from the School of Informatics 

This interview is with Swapnil Deskjmukh 

What is the startup?

Qinara is a deep-tech startup building hybrid quantum-AI software to accelerate advanced computing. Designing algorithms that improve performance, reduce training costs and make quantum and AI technologies more commercially viable. The goal is to bridge the gap between theoretical quantum research and scalable, real-world applications.

Tell us more

I come from a background in quantum computing and artificial intelligence, and before starting my postgraduate studies, I spent several years working on applied AI problems in industry. My co-founders also bring expertise in areas like quantum hardware, biomedical systems, and secure software. We (Rahat, Satwik, and I) met during our time at the University of Edinburgh, where we were all exploring how emerging technologies could solve real-world challenges. 

The idea for Qinara began during a competition called Space Intelligence, where we were challenged to predict deforestation in Bolivia using satellite imagery. Classical models underperformed, but when we applied a Quantum Support Vector Machine, accuracy jumped from 37% to 94%, a breakthrough moment. However, we quickly realized that while quantum models were powerful, they were also expensive and unstable. That’s when the core idea emerged: instead of choosing between classical and quantum, why not combine them? A hybrid approach that balances classical efficiency with quantum precision. We founded Qinara to build on that insight, creating scalable quantum-AI tools that bridge the gap between cutting-edge potential and real-world usability.

What motivates you as an entrepreneur?

What motivates me as an entrepreneur is the drive to solve real problems in a way that leaves a lasting impact. I’ve always been raised on a quote: "Don’t make history try to make an impact." It’s something I wrote in my application essay to the University of Edinburgh, and it still defines how I work at Qinara today. For me, it’s not about building a company just for the sake of innovation or recognition it’s about building something that matters, something that improves lives, even if only in subtle but meaningful ways. Whether it's reducing the environmental strain of massive AI workloads or helping detect cancer earlier through quantum-enhanced models, we're building tools that can shift how industries function. The idea of impact goes beyond product. It’s about how we operate, who we empower, and the kind of legacy we leave behind in technology and society. That’s what gets me out of bed every morning.

How do you define success?

For me, success means turning breakthrough ideas into tools that create real, measurable impact across industries and society. It’s not just about building advanced technology, but about making it usable, scalable, and valuable in the real world. At Qinara, we’ve seen early signs of that success. Our work has been recognized through highly competitive programmes like the University of Edinburgh’s Startup Summer Accelerator (SuSA) and Venture Builder Incubator (VBI). We’ve also secured early-stage backing from Old College Capital, the University’s venture arm and are finalists in Converge. Recently, we have received an SMART grant of £88K from Scottish Enterprise to develop our product Q-PRISM. 

More importantly, our technology is beginning to show potential across fields. From reducing quantum circuit training costs in collaboration with IBM, to advancing early cancer detection through quantum-AI methods, we’re seeing our hybrid approach find traction in both industry and research. That’s what success looks like to us; real-world validation, cross-sector relevance, and forward momentum built on impact, not hype.

What piece of advice would you give to budding entrepreneurs?

If there’s one piece of advice I’d give, it’s this: success takes longer than you think, and that’s completely normal. 

When we started Qinara, we had a breakthrough early on during the Space Intelligence competition, which gave us a strong push. But turning that idea into a real company required months of quiet, unglamorous work, reading papers, debugging unstable quantum prototypes, getting rejected from grants, and rewriting the same pitch over and over. What kept us going was patience, because meaningful progress often looks slow, because each failure taught us what to fix. And it was hard work, the kind that doesn’t get celebrated but is absolutely necessary. Entrepreneurship is not about big moments. It’s about consistently working towards problems you are trying to solve through your products.

What role has Edinburgh Innovations played in your entrepreneurial journey?

Edinburgh Innovations has been central to our entrepreneurial journey, providing both structure and support as we built Qinara from the ground up. As an organisation, they have created a clear pathway for student founders to move from research to commercialisation. Through programmes like the Startup Summer Accelerator, we gained access to funding, expert mentoring, legal and IP support, and a network of peers and advisers who understand the challenges of building a deep-tech startup. Within that structure, we’ve had the privilege of working closely with individuals who have gone above and beyond and are still helping us today. 

We also received invaluable guidance from Old College Capital, who helped us understand the investor mindset and navigate early-stage funding. Although they are not part of our core team, we often say that working with Edinburgh Innovations feels like having an extended team. They bring specialised insight and a genuine commitment to helping us succeed. While all of them hold their own roles within the University's enterprise ecosystem, their support has been so consistent and hands-on that it often feels like we’re building Qinara alongside them. Beyond practical support, Edinburgh Innovations has given us the confidence that we’re not building in isolation. It’s a community that believes in student-led innovation and actively helps translate ambition into execution.

What's next?

We are currently engaged in negotiations with IBM to support the deployment and scaling of our optimisation platform through a cloud-based agreement. We’ve also filed a patent for our core technology, Qronos, marking a key step in protecting our IP and preparing for commercial rollout. In parallel, we’re working with Microsoft on the early development of Q-PRISM, a quantum cybersecurity tool that is currently being supported through a SMART grant from Scottish Enterprise. We are also working on developing Qure, a biomedical AI platform focused on early cancer detection and drug discovery. Our next phase is focused on advancing these technologies, deepening industry collaborations, and expanding our impact across sectors.