The city of Glasgow in Scotland will be “Europe’s largest smart things and IoT innovation hub” – if the UK government and city council has its way. They have joined in a partnership with local startup group, the Smart Things Accelerator Centre (STAC), plus executives from global companies with offices in the city, to direct a £2.5 million public and private sector investment into a 250-desk facility called ‘thebeyond’ at SkyPark campus in the Finnieston area of Glasgow, on the north bank of the River Clyde between the city’s centre and West End districts.
A statement from the trip said: “Projections are for Glasgow to evolve into an innovation leader with a focus on industrial, lifestyle, health, and sustainability technologies, with a view to as many as 100 companies being up and running by the end of 2024. Through the partnership, Glasgow… will become a test bed for homegrown innovations via STAC… Glasgow can become a frontrunner in the predominant technologies over the next decades spanning drones, robots, AI, IoT, nanotech, medtech, and cleantech.”
The city’s new strategy to be an IoT innovation hub is backed by “significant government investment”. Glasgow is the third biggest city in the UK, and Scotland’s economic centre. STAC was launched in 2021. The Skypark campus, covering six office buildings and three development sites, is in the city’s so-called Digital Media Quarter, which is home to the BBC, STV, Capital Radio and others. The new initiative is supported by executives from Dyson, Plexus, Meta, Blackberry, Motorola, and Volvo Cars.
The stated plan is to “revolutionise industries [and] yield substantial economic, social, and environmental impact.”
Paul Wilson, chief executive and co-founder of STAC, said: “Glasgow can be a powerhouse in the key technologies that will enhance life and industry for the next decades. As we build the leading tech cluster around STAC’s ‘thebeyond’, we will gain a reputation and attract international investment. That’s the goal, ambitious and realisable. We believe ‘thebeyond’ will be Europe’s largest smart things and IoT space. Glasgow has all the elements – talent, innovation, and a collaborative spirit – needed to lead the ‘Era of Things’. We are on the cusp of something extraordinary [where local] tech companies will develop tomorrow’s technologies to compete in global markets.”
Jim Rowan, chief executive at Volvo Cars and advisory member at STAC, commented: “We have the talent and innovation from our universities, now we are boosting entrepreneurship and increasing the ambition to position Glasgow as a leader in the development and application of key future technologies that will allow it to compete on the global stage.”
Sean Murphy, vice president of global supply chain at Meta and advisory member at STAC, said: “Technology innovation being driven through STAC’s accelerator programme can provide companies like Meta a vital source of ‘first-of-kind’ technologies that will change how people live, communicate, and play in future. That’s the play here at ‘thebeyond’.”
Ricky Bell, deputy leader at Glasgow City Council, said: “This collaboration will help Glasgow become a leading technology-driven city, with our services and buildings powered by homegrown innovation to the benefit of everyone who lives, works and studies here. We will empower Glasgow’s start-ups to hone their technologies here and then compete internationally, enhancing our position on the global tech stage and bringing a great number of new jobs and careers in this sector.”
