In May 2024, we made a decision. After years of building something we were proud of under the STC INSISO name, we became COMET. A new identity, a clearer focus, and a stronger signal of where we were heading.

Two years on, it feels like the right moment to look back honestly at what has happened since and to say something about where we are going.

A first full year that tested us

Our first full year trading as COMET was not without its challenges. Market conditions in Aberdeen were difficult. The energy sector went through a tough transition, and that was felt. But COMET continued to grow. We welcomed new customers from sectors we had not previously served at scale, and we took our products and services further afield than ever before.

As Mark Rushton reflected at the end of 2025: the growth we saw was down to the people we work with. Customers old and new, partners, and our team. That trust is not something we take for granted.

Today, COMET is improving the safety of 350,000+ people across high-risk industries in over 190 global locations. Our clients operate across energy, water, rail, construction, marine and ports, and other high-risk industries. We deliver services on every continent, and we are still growing.

Partnerships that open new doors

One of the most significant developments since the rebrand has been the partnerships we have built.

In September 2024, we announced a global partnership with Arcadis, one of the world's leading design and consultancy businesses. The partnership combines COMET's data-driven software with Arcadis's EHS expertise and services, helping organisations reveal and resolve past, present, and future risks across their existing safety management landscape. Arcadis has been our implementation partner in North America, and the projects developed in 2025 are set to grow significantly in the year ahead.

In October 2025, we announced our partnership with Intelex, a global leader in safety management software based in Toronto. Together, we are working to help organisations move from incident management to genuine prevention, combining structured investigation and root cause analysis with broader safety data management. It is a young partnership, but the momentum has been real from the start.

We have also strengthened our relationship with Port Skills and Safety, becoming a trusted training partner for the UK ports community, and in February 2026 we became an approved training partner of the Railway Industry Association, recognising the growing importance of the rail sector within our work.

Recognition that reflects the journey

COMET was a finalist for the OEUK People and Culture Award in 2025 celebrating organisations that champion mental health, improve employee engagement and foster inclusive environments. This nomination emphasised our ongoing commitment to career development and inclusion, which continues to be a priority at COMET.

We were also nominated for Inspiration from Innovation in 2025 at the Northern Star Business Awards which recognises organisations that have developed groundbreaking technologies or products. Along with Going Global in 2026, which highlights businesses with sustained international growth. For a company delivering services on every continent and expanding into new sectors at pace, it feels like the right moment to be noticed for it.

The past two years have brought recognition that goes beyond what we have built as a product. Mark Rushton and Arrash Nekonam have been named as finalists for the EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2026 award, selected for their bold leadership, long-term vision, and clear commitment to building a business that creates genuine value. It is a meaningful reflection of how far COMET has come and the ambition that continues to drive it forward.

Taking safety conversations on the road

In September 2025, COMET kicked off its first official Port Tour, visiting the ports and airports of Peterhead, Blyth, Liverpool, Humber and Farnborough.

At each stop, the COMET team toured facilities, captured what’s working well, analysed repeat failure and delivered an insights report and root cause masterclass. But beyond individual site visits, this also fed into a UK-wide report capturing anonymised findings across the ports and airport sector so each location can benefit from the shared learnings confidentially.

The tour was designed to evaluate safety protocols, share practical insights, and build a collective database for industry best practices. We believe sharing lessons across high-risk environments is the fastest way to reduce incidents, build resilience and strengthen safety culture, if you’d like your port to be part of the tour, get in touch!

The COMET AI Assistant

Perhaps the most significant product development since the rebrand has been the launch of the COMET AI Assistant. Built specifically for incident investigation and root cause analysis, it is the only AI capability of its kind designed around the prevention of repeat failure.

The AI Assistant is not a shortcut, it is not a box-ticker feature. It exists to support investigators, to help them ask better questions, surface relevant information faster, and reach better conclusions. The AI supports. The investigator decides.

This was seven years in the making. We did not rush it into the market because AI was having a moment. We built it because it genuinely makes investigations better, and because the stakes in high-risk industries are too high to do anything less.

A new voice in the safety conversation

In 2025, COMET launched The Risk Factor, a podcast that gets to the root of the matter in safety, risk and leadership. Each episode brings in industry experts to have honest conversations about what’s working, failing or needs changing. Three episodes in, the show has featured a former Detective Superintendent drawing parallels between major crime investigation and repeat workplace incidents, an honest conversation about whether corporate mental health programmes are genuinely helping employees, and a direct examination of whether rapid AI adoption is creating new risks in high-stakes environments or bringing solutions. Every episode is available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and the conversations so far have been anything but surface-level.

‍Listen to The Risk Factor here.

Building a community, not just a customer base

Alongside the product developments and partnerships, the last two years have included moments that are harder to put in a slide deck. During Offshore Europe 2025, we hosted An Evening with COMET at the Freedom an' Whisky lounge in Aberdeen, bringing together clients, partners, and our own team to celebrate what we had built together. It was an evening of whiskey and bonding we continue to reminisce about.

Last month, we co-hosted a yacht party with Arcadis in Galveston, Texas, bringing together clients and partners from across our international network. These events reflect how COMET operates as a business that invests in relationships as much as in its products.

From reactive to proactive

The clearest thread running through the last two years is a shift in what our customers are asking for. Fewer want to simply record and report what went wrong. More want to understand why patterns of failure repeat themselves, and how to stop them before the next incident happens.

That shift is where COMET has always been heading. Smarter analytics, AI that helps you act, not just inform. Integrations that give organisations a single point of truth across their safety and risk data.

We are not interested in helping organisations tick boxes. We want to help them identify those warning signs before they become failures. To stop repeat incidents that should never have happened twice. To turn data into foresight.

As Mark put it at the end of 2025: it is going to be another nail in the coffin of repeat failure for organisations that choose to put their faith and confidence in COMET.

Two years. Still moving.

The rebrand was a statement of intent, everything since has been about making good on it. New capabilities, new partnerships, new sectors, and a community of investigators who rely on COMET for the most important work their organisations do.

The mission has not changed. Reveal risk. Resolve it. Eliminate repeat failure.

We are just getting started!