Shahida Imani

Shahida Imani is the Co-Founder and CEO of Singular Photonics, an Edinburgh-based semiconductor spinout from the University of Edinburgh's School of Engineering. With a background spanning photonics research, enterprise commercialisation, and deep-tech leadership, she brings both scientific credibility and commercial acumen to the company's mission of turning single-photon imaging research into manufacturable products.

Prior to co-founding Singular Photonics, Imani spent nearly a decade in leadership roles at Heriot-Watt University, working at the intersection of photonics research and industry engagement. Her experience in that environment gave her a firsthand understanding of the challenges involved in translating advanced optical research into products that can be built at scale — a gap that Singular Photonics was founded to close. She is also a board member of EPIC, the European Photonics Industry Consortium, reflecting her standing within the broader European photonics community.

At Singular Photonics, Imani leads a team commercialising a portfolio of SPAD (Single-Photon Avalanche Diode) image sensors that simultaneously capture depth and temporal data to produce rich 4D images. The company's sensors are among the first to bring advanced on-chip computation to SPAD-based imaging, with applications spanning Raman spectroscopy, fluorescence lifetime imaging, autonomous vehicles, medical diagnostics, and augmented reality. Having secured backing from the Scottish Venture Fund, Cambridge Angels, and Old College Capital, and partnerships with organisations including AMS Technologies and Meta, Singular Photonics is advancing from research spinout to commercial supplier in one of photonics' most technically demanding sectors.