What first inspired you to develop Rephobia, and how has your vision for the technology evolved over time?

Rephobia really started with my own brain. I grew up with OCD and a pretty heavy phobia of public speaking, and exposure work was the thing that shifted the needle for me. It was awful at the time, but it proved that facing things head-on actually works.

In my last year of A-Levels, I wanted to turn that experience into something useful, so I bought the domain, sketched the first logo, and founded Rephobia before I’d even stepped into my first lecture. When I arrived at Queen’s, I already knew the problem I wanted to spend my degree obsessing over.

Originally, the vision was ultra-lean – a simple app paired with a Google Cardboard-style headset so anyone could access phobia support cheaply. But once I started speaking with therapists, clinical partners, and the 400+ people who responded to our QUest survey, the idea evolved. People didn’t just want “VR content” – they wanted real therapy, proper clinical oversight, and environments that were responsive rather than passive.

That’s when the vision shifted from “cheap VR app” to “therapist-led, clinically grounded VR platform.” Rephobia became less about gadgets and more about building serious health technology that can sit confidently beside evidence-based CBT in a clinic.

What problem were you determined to solve, and why does it matter to you personally?

The core problem I’m obsessed with is this: too many people live their lives around their fears instead of through them, and the support that works is often too hard to access.

Phobias sound small until you see them up close. It’s not “I don’t like lifts.” It’s “I’ll walk ten flights of stairs and avoid certain jobs or cities because there’s a lift involved.” Anxiety quietly shapes people’s lives in ways that outsiders never see, and I know what it feels like when your own mind doesn’t feel like a safe place.

If I hadn’t pushed through my fear of public speaking, I wouldn’t be pitching, building a company, or doing half the things I’m doing now. So I’m determined to take that same mechanism - exposure, done properly - and make it more accessible, more structured, and far less intimidating to begin. People shouldn’t have to white-knuckle their way through this or wait months hoping for help. Rephobia exists to close that gap.

What has been the most significant breakthrough or milestone in developing the Rephobia software so far?

Our biggest milestone is our upcoming clinical trial with Queen’s University Belfast in February 2026.

It’s our first full evaluation of Rephobia in a structured research setting, comparing interactive VR environments with 360-degree video and analysing changes in people’s stress responses and subjective units of distress. We’re working with a dedicated VR developer, a clinical team, QUB researchers, and a 360 filming crew to build environments that are clinically meaningful, not just visually impressive.

For me, this trial marks the line between “promising startup” and “emerging medical technology.” It’s the first step toward showing that Rephobia doesn’t just create immersive environments - it can meaningfully allow a person to experience their phobia, gradually, in a safe environment.

You recently pitched in front of Peter Jones for National Entrepreneur of the Year (Congrats!). What was that experience like, and what did it teach you about yourself as a founder?

Utterly insane, in the best way.

The regional final in Manchester was my first time pitching Rephobia in England. Getting through to the national final in Buckinghamshire lined up perfectly with me moving to Northampton for my placement, which felt like the universe nudging me forward.

The final itself was surreal. I went in with a rough script, but I also did what any VR founder would: I built a custom fear-of-heights environment with the Peter Jones Foundation logo on a huge billboard. A couple of the Dragons tried it; Peter didn’t, but the others were literally dangling off a virtual height while we discussed phobia therapy - a sentence I never expected to say.

There was no presentation screen, no slick PowerPoint – just the headset and my voice. That taught me how much I need to adapt to the setup in front of me. With Rephobia, the pitch can change drastically depending on whether I can cast footage, bring the headset, or rely on imagination alone.

The best part was being around other young founders building socially conscious businesses. You realise you’re not the only one slightly obsessed with trying to fix your corner of the world. I’m at the awards ceremony next week - whatever the result, I’m just excited to be in that room again.

How did the QUest programme and wider support across QUB help you advance Rephobia from an early concept to a high-potential tech solution?

In short, I wouldn’t be where I am without QUest or the wider Queen’s ecosystem.
QUest gave me the chance to test my assumptions instead of building on guesswork. It funded a survey of over 400 people living with phobias, and their responses shaped everything - which fears to prioritise, how people feel about VR, what they’d pay for, and what they’d need to trust a tool like this clinically.

And Queen’s support didn’t end there. Dragon’s Den this year was incredible, and placing third opened the door to ESBF’s Champion of Champions, which I pitched at and won in London. That’s what Queen’s does - the support compounds. The Make It Happen Fund, What’s the Big Idea, QUest… each one pushed Rephobia up another rung. The Make It Happen Fund literally paid for my first 360 camera.

SU Enterprise has been game-changing. Robbie, Judith, Fran - and now Claire - have been phenomenal mentors. Their support is priceless, especially for students who need encouragement or solo founders who sometimes need advice or just a sounding board. In my case, I was both.

The follow-on £5k QUest award was another turning point. It helped shift Rephobia from “interesting student side project” into “this could genuinely become a scalable health-tech product.”

Can you share a moment when resilience was essential, and how you kept going when things became challenging?

Honestly, right now is that moment.

Things are snowballing in a really exciting way, but that also means the workload is stacked. We are preparing for a clinical trial in February, coordinating a VR developer, a clinical team, QUB staff, and a 360 VR filming crew. At the same time, I am working full time at Mercedes AMG HPP, helping out with another startup, trying to stay vaguely human with a social life and a gym routine, and also not completely abandoning sleep.

People love to say, “When you are passionate, it does not feel like work.” It still feels like work. Passion just makes you more willing to carry it. For me, resilience has looked like being brutally honest with my time. Time is a currency with no refunds, so I am learning to prioritise harder, say no more often, and design my weeks so I do not burn out before Rephobia even gets to help its first patient.

What keeps me going is remembering the real people behind the problem - every email from someone who is desperate for help with a phobia, every conversation where someone says, “I wish this existed sooner.” That is the fuel. The rest is project management and stubbornness.

What achievement to date makes you proudest as an entrepreneur, and why?

The achievement that means the most to me is receiving the Engineering Leaders Scholarship from the Royal Academy of Engineering.

My grandad was an electrical engineer. He was the one who put Raspberry Pi kits and electronics sets in front of me when I was younger and quietly showed me that engineering is just applied curiosity. So being recognised by the Royal Academy as one of around 35 scholars across the UK each year feels very personal.

The scholarship has only recently opened up to computer science students, so I am one of just two computer scientists in the UK to hold it at the moment. A month ago, I met the rest of the cohort for our first annual meet-up, and the energy in that room was unreal - people obsessed with everything from sustainable materials to space systems.

For me, it is not just an award. It is this full-circle moment: the kid soldering little circuits with his grandad now using software and VR to build tools for mental health. That makes me very proud.

What message or piece of inspiration would you offer to aspiring entrepreneurs who are thinking about taking their first step?

Do not wait until you feel ready. You will not.

Take the smallest possible first step: tell one person your idea. Then tell another. Send one email. Apply for one programme. Sketch the logo in the notes app. Tiny actions compound faster than you think.

You do not need a perfect roadmap, just enough courage to move one square forward. The clarity comes from motion, not from overthinking on the sidelines. And if you are lucky enough to be somewhere with support - like a university with enterprise programmes - use it. People genuinely want you to win more than you think.

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