Gloabl talent Visa

[komal_pahwa]

Hi everyone,

I am compiling evidence for Global talent visa, to apply next year and would love to get your thoughts/feedback for the same.

I am a Visual Designer ( UI/UX designer, Illustrator ) and a service designer working for HMRC.
I have 6+ years of experience in design, while started working with HMRC this year in January. Before than I have worked with NHS for short term projects, have done community and user centric workshops with cancer patients and have been mentoring students for jobs in the public sector since last year, along with mentoring them on global projects in collaboration with Royal College of Arts.

I have won awards as an illustrator in the last five years while working as a freelance illustrator and designer for FCB health in the US. My work has been displayed at Somerset house in UK ( but that has been around 2020 ).

I am also speaking at conferences this year in September as a guest speaker for Trauma informed Design.

Other than this, I won an entrepreneurial award by Imperial College last year for my startup idea focused on creating a tech enabled solution for Dementia/Alzheimers.

I am continuing to work towards my startup and also was selected in January to be on the ‘Alzheimers Society Launchpad’ for new/budding startups that are working towards the cause where I have been working closely iterating testing my idea ( for now a digital app ) with people who have lived experiences with Dementia.

Can you help me with how should I make my application strong with the above? I wish to stay in the UK to work towards my startup and continue to build and work towards it as I have received a lot of support from various organisations for the startup. I don’t have revenue numbers to backup my idea right now since it’s yet to be launched so how can i put it?

Also, can I qualify for exceptional Promise if not exceptional talent? I am not sure how to approach either with what I have.

Any suggestions would be much appreciated.
Thanks so much!

[Raphael]

@komal_pahwa Yes, you can qualify under Exceptional Promise, but your application will need to strongly frame your startup’s innovation and your trajectory in digital design domain and not just service design for the public sector. You are close, with a focused narrative and the right documentation, it is very possible.

All the best.

[komal_pahwa]

@Raphael thanks so much! That’s super helpful and reassuring. I’ll work towards it with that approach in mind.

[Francisca_Chiedu]

I think you first need to read the tech nation guide and map your evidence to related criteria. Your work interests in health technology sounds niche, so you may hace an advantage if you have evidence to show your work and there are external evidence to corroborate your claims. try to list your evidence to get for each criteria to get more tailored feedback on what you should consider.

[komal_pahwa]

@Francisca_Chiedu thanks for that, I will surely work on that, and come back with more refined evidences for each criteria for feedback then. Highly appreciate your help on this. Thank you.

[komal_pahwa]

Hi @Francisca_Chiedu @Raphael here’s a little more detail of the evidence that I have been thinking of, can you please help with this for the ‘Exceptional Promise’?

LORs : Letter 1: Head of Design at my current job

Letter 2: Head of Operations at Alziemers Society

Letter 3: Creative Director at my first job in the US

Letter 4: Head of Department at my previous college in UK

Letter 5: GP/Doctor working for the NHS as a surgeon and working
with me as an advisor on my Startup

Letter 6: Senior researcher in gov/ research specialist and co-founder at my startup

Letter 7: Good innovation senior consultant who worked with me on my startup as a mentor/advisor

Mandatory Criteria

1. Proof of recognition for work outside of your immediate occupation that has contributed to the advancement in the sector
   (Evidence of going beyond day-to-day professional responsibilities to engage in activities that contribute to sector advancement)

• I have been mentoring students on research projects focused on the ageing population, in collaboration with Wicked Labs x Imperial College London in the UK.
• I was invited as a guest speaker at the Royal College of Art (RCA) to guide students and junior designers on applications for product design and design roles in the UK. Although the audience was under 100, I have supporting evidence in the form of screenshots and email confirmations.
• I will also be speaking as a guest speaker at “SDinGov” this year in Edinburgh, an event with an audience of over 1,000 people. It is one of the most respected design conferences in the UK. (I’m unsure if it qualifies since it focuses on service design, but it is still a significant sector event.)
• I am actively applying to grants and accelerator programmes, and if successful, I plan to include evidence of these as well.

---

Optional Criteria

1. Significant technical, commercial, or entrepreneurial contributions in the digital tech sector as a founder, entrepreneur, or employee

• I plan to highlight my entrepreneurial journey, which began last year, focused on developing a tech-enabled platform for caregivers. This AI-powered marketplace aims to support dementia and Alzheimer’s care — a digital health innovation for social good.

• I have email correspondences and screenshots from various organisations and experts supporting the startup and who I have worked with, along with evidence of community testing and validation.

• I will also provide evidence of the along with the slides “Entrepreneurial Award from Imperial College London (2024)”, recognising the idea as a promising innovation for social good.

• Additionally, I will share evidence of my selection for the “5-month UK Launchpad by Alzheimer’s Society” (January 2025), and the ongoing work within the community around this concept.

2. Recognition of potential as a leading talent in the digital tech sector.

• I will include letters of recommendation from experts in the healthcare and healthtech sectors who can speak to my potential as a future leader in digital innovation and social entrepreneurship.

3. Examples of exceptional ability in the field through academic contributions, endorsed by a research supervisor or expert.

• I led a long-term research initiative at HMRC over 1.5 year, where I contributed to the prototyping and testing of an internal product journey. I can provide a signed summary of this work from a senior expert at the organisation.

• I have also been conducting research related to dementia and Alzheimer’s, working closely with caregivers and individuals with lived experience to validate digital product concepts (including UI design screens). I can provide evidence in the form of collaboration emails, screenshots of the design process, and user feedback. This research directly supports my startup’s mission.

[Francisca_Chiedu]

It think some of your recommended won’t be considered experts in the field. Head of operations at Alzheimer may not be acceptable, the other lists are not so clear if the are tech leaders.

If you are yet to speak at some of the event and still applying for accelerators, It means you are working bro get eligible in the future.

[komal_pahwa]

@Francisca_Chiedu ohh okay, yeah sorry she is the head of innovations team at Alz. Society.
Yes, I ll be applying in the future, that i next year around January but wanted to collecting based on what I have and will have. Thanks so much!

[Akash_Joshi]

Your application has strong potential for Exceptional Promise, but you need to address some key areas before submitting. I’ve seen similar profiles succeed when they focus on the right narrative and evidence quality. Strengthen your recommendation letters by focusing on digital technology experts. The Head of Innovation at Alzheimer’s Society is good, but you need more tech-focused referees who can speak to your digital design expertise.

Frame your startup and design work around digital innovation rather than just healthcare impact. Your AI-powered platform for dementia care is genuinely innovative, but emphasize the technical aspects - the AI algorithms, user interface design, and digital marketplace features. Include screenshots of your design work and technical documentation to show you’re building actual technology, not just providing services.

Timing matters significantly for your evidence. Since you’re applying next year, focus on completing the speaking engagement in Edinburgh and securing at least one accelerator acceptance before submitting. You also need to showcase sustained contribution for more than 12 months, so you can’t showcase those as evidences unless you meet that requirement. Use this time to build stronger technical evidence and get letters from people who can speak specifically to your digital technology skills.

[komal_pahwa]

@Akash_Joshi Thanks so much for the detailed response and feedback. This is super insightful. I’ll work on it with the recommended suggestions and list of people.

[komal_pahwa]

@Akash_Joshi @Francisca_Chiedu @Raphael Over the past months as per your feedback and guidance I have been working towards collecting evidences and building my profile for Exceptional Promise to submit next year around March. Huge thanks for the guidance it has really helped me focus on my next steps. Before I move ahead I wanted to get feedback from you as well as the community of experts here based on my evidences collected so far.

I have been working towards reframing and have now been working with industry experts on digital innovation to tackle AI bias and fill the knowledge gap for dementia care focussing on culturally diverse communities within North east England for my startup : culture2care ( Csquare ).

I will be applying as a UX/Visual designer and Founder of Digital Innovation in Health Tech ( 2 years as a Founder ) focussing in dementia care through Exceptional Promise. I am also currently working at HMRC as a Service and UX designer which I am using as a part of

Here are my list of evidences:
LOR1 : Alzheimers Society Innovation Lead

LOR2 : CEO of a 300 million (Tech innovation/ AI Professor + Digital Medicine) supporting us as an advisor/Mentor and partner

LOR 3 : Senior Director in Tech for AI transformation ( India ) working as Mentor for the last 2 years with C square.

LOR 4 : Head of design, HMRC

MC doc 1: Imperial Entrepreneurial Award Grand Prize Proof of award and recognition from experts

MC doc 2: Official Acceptance Letter + external media proof for Alzheimers Society Launchpad selection ( Top 30 )

MC doc 3: Selected and won 5000 micro grant through accelerator program to utilise funds towards solidifying the product for research within the community,
Selected for Breakthrough Accelerator funded by Innovate UK.

OC doc 1: Prototypes for the innovation ( used for testing within communities ) + technical diagrams/architecture + features as a part of prototypes for the UX

OC doc 2: Research Report summary of research done with 58 carers from the community including family carers living with dementia and HCPs, Testimonials from carers through research supporting the need and urgency for this innovation.

OC doc 3: Proof of partnership with Newcastle university to partner for research papers for the research done.

OC doc 4: Business plan and vision for the next 5 years

OC doc 5: Guest Speaker for SDinGov in 2025 in Edinburgh in September.

OC doc 6: Mentoring UX designers and designers in UK personally and by being a guest speaker at HMRC ; screenshots and slides for both.

OC doc 7: Screenshots of the UX prototypes for my work with HMRC for a massive digital transformational project launching a digital service for different user types for HMRC.

OC doc 8 (in progress): securing PhD partnership with Newcastle University for C square

Can you please guide me on the above, would be super helpful for next steps as I prepare for my visa. Thanks so much!

[pahuja]

Hi @komal_pahwa

Your story has good potential as a founder of an innovative tech startup however your evidences require amore strengthening
to have a shot at endorsement. It will be helpful if you can categorize the below evidence set into specific OCs you are applying to.

You need 3 LORs from people who have worked with you or know of your work closely in a non-mentor capacity for atleast 12 months and who themselves have a strong tech background to be called experts in tech.
MC1: is this an event at the university? Who were the participants, judges and scale of this event in the tech industry? University level awards are not strong evidences as per guidelines.
MC2: Is this a tech launchpad?
Since your specific OC classification is unclear, I cannot comment specifically however a few pointers to consider:

1. Prototypes can show innovation if this was innovative but beyond your contribution you also need to show the impact and market traction. Products yet to be launched are not strong evidences.
2. Research summary report is not a valid evidence.
3. What is the nature of this partnership? What contribution of yours is this an outcome of, what are the commercials involved here?
4. Future plans, business plans, forecasted businesses are invalid evidences as per guidelines.
5. What was the scale of SDinGov? What is its stature and scale in tech industry? if it was a leading tech event with 100+ attendees, ensure you have invite letter for keynote speaking, a letter from program director confirming the scale and attendees, pictures and any testimonials/news coverage and media of the event.
6. Mentorship is only considered if its part of a structured mentorship program with selection of mentees. You need to provide a letter from the program director, proof of program structure and impact on advancement of field.
7. Same feedback as above prototypes.

Your evidences are insufficient or invalid based largely on future prospects & early prototypes while being self-claim heavy. I would highly recommend thoroughly reviewing the guidelines to understand the ask of each criteria and an understanding of strong/weak and valid/invalid evidences. Since you are applying next year you can work on specific areas once you have the guideline understanding to work on strengthening your evidence set.

[Francisca_Chiedu]

Pahuja has covered what I want to say. Again your evidence will still be considered recent based on when you plan to apply. Do you have evidence spanning 3 years or most are 2025

[Akash_Joshi]

Your evidence collection shows strong progress, however, I’ve seen similar applications struggle because they rely too heavily on future potential rather than demonstrated impact. Your Imperial Award and Alzheimer’s Society Launchpad selection are good starting points, but university-level awards don’t carry as much weight nowadays.

Your letter writers need careful reconsideration. The 12-month relationship requirement is strict, and they must be recognized tech leaders who can speak to your digital innovation work. The Head of Innovation at Alzheimer’s Society is acceptable, but ensure your other referees have strong digital technology credentials.

For your evidence, focus on what’s already launched and impactful rather than prototypes or business plans. Your research with 58 carers is valuable but needs to demonstrate how it advances digital technology, not just healthcare outcomes. Consider getting external validation through partnership letters that confirm your technical innovation. The SDinGov speaking engagement should include proof of scale and invite letters confirming keynote status. Your HMRC work is solid for showing employment credentials but keep it as supporting evidence rather than a primary focus.

You’re on the right track with your entrepreneurial narrative around AI and dementia care. With March 2025 as your target, use this time to build more concrete evidence of impact - whether that’s through the Newcastle partnership materializing, securing more grants, or showing early adoption metrics from your prototypes. Your story is compelling and addresses a real need, which gives you a strong foundation to build from.