Innovation and startup glory are on the agenda as Scotland will establish seven new tech scaler hubs.
The Scottish Government says a contract worth up to £42 million has been awarded to Edinburgh-based CodeBase to launch the hubs. The firm is a tech ecosystem support organisation active in 27 hubs across the UK.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced the ‘Tech Scaler’ contract, which is one of the largest investments by the government into Scotland’s “potential as an entrepreneurial nation”, ahead of an event at the new Barclay Eagle Lab Campus in Glasgow.
Partners include Google for Start-ups UK, Barclays Eagle Labs and Reforge, a San Francisco-based membership programme that teaches startups how to grow using Silicon Valley founders’ best practice. It seems the Valley can help the Highlands go higher.
Sturgeon says the startups will get access to “education and mentoring and opportunities for peer learning and networking through the tech scalers”.
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CEO and Co-Founder of CodeBase, Stephen Coleman OBE, adds: “We will continue to work closely with our partners – old and new, local and global – to make Scotland one of the most tech startup friendly places in the world.”
There are a lot of quotes in the official announcement, but Economy Secretary Kate Forbes reckons that Scotland’s tech industry is forecast to be the second-fastest growing sector in Scotland by 2029.
While this is great news for startups, there has been no shortage of talent in Scotland prior to the contract.
eWeek UK has covered notable Scottish firms in the cybersecurity and data sectors, fintech companies in Edinburgh and Glasgow, and tech firms in Edinburgh and tech firms in Glasgow.
Last month, and in terms of the bigger picture, it was revealed investment in the UK’s tech sector overtook both India and China compared to the full year 2021 rankings with $15.6 billion (£12.7 billion) raised to the end of May 2022.
