Welcome to the latest edition of the DIGIT Deal Roundup.

From Glasgow to Aberdeen, in Universities to the streets, the biggest Scottish tech deals that went down in November are all listed below.

Let’s take a look at them.

Funding and Investments

Aberdeen Street-side EV Charging Startup Nabs £500K Grant

Aberdeen-based Trojan Energy landed a £500,000 grant from the Low Carbon Manufacturing Challenge Fund in a stride towards cleaner and more sustainable energy.

Trojan Energy specialises in designing, manufacturing, installing, and maintaining a unique flat and flush charging system that integrates into pavements.

This technology allows multiple charging points to be deployed on the streets, offering a solution for electric vehicle (EV) owners who lack access to a driveway. Moreover, the design ensures that pavements remain clutter-free, enhancing the aesthetic of urban environments. Each charging system has up to 15 charge points and are each 22 kilowatt capable.

To read more, click here.

Scots Green Heat Projects Secure £750K in Funding

In a bid to help strengthen Scotland’s green heat supply chain, Scottish Enterprise has awarded more than £750,000 to 16 businesses.

The recipients are developing technologies, products, or processes that will help support the transition to low carbon heat or improve the thermal performance of buildings.

They include Glasgow-based solar thermal technology developer Soltropy, Aberdeen-headquartered environmental tech company Kionnali Living Systems, and smart buildings solutions company Prioto Limited, also located in Glasgow, among others.

To read more, click here.

Heriot-Watt researcher secures almost £1m funding for hollow-core optical fibre

A researcher at Heriot-Watt University has been awarded almost £1 million in funding to develop a mass manufacturing process for a type of hyper-fast optical fibre that could eventually replace conventional telecoms networks.

Dr Calum Ross, a Research Associate in Heriot-Watt’s School of Engineering and Physical Sciences, has secured the funding award of £970,000 through the Future Leaders Fellowships programme of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) – the UK’s national funding agency for investing in science and research.

“For the next generation of technologies in artificial intelligence and augmented reality, we need very fast data transfer speeds to deliver applications in real-time,” Dr Ross explains. “This needs low-cost fibre that is tens of kilometres in length – and that’s currently just not possible with hollow-core fibre.”

UK to Invest £80M for AI Development in Africa

In conjunction with the start of the UK’s AI Safety Summit, the UK government is teaming up with global partners to accelerate the development of artificial intelligence in Africa.

Along with Canada, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the US, and partners across the continent of Africa, the UK is helping to fund a £80m boost in AI programming aiming to combat inequality and boost prosperity.

The goals of the UK government’s AI for Development programme range from creating or scaling at least eight responsible AI research labs at African universities, to helping at least ten countries create sound regulatory frameworks for responsible, equitable, and safe AI.

To read more, click here.

UK Gov to Invest £320M Into Startups and Spinouts

The chancellor of the exchequer, Jeremy Hunt, has announced a £320 million plan as part of his Mansion House reforms aiming to support high-potential companies and drive domestic innovation.

Under the multi-million pound plan, announced ahead of the Autumn Statement tomorrow, the government is to support new investment vehicles tailored to the needs of pension schemes.

Speaking on the spinout investment in particular, science and technology secretary Michelle Donelan commented: “Turning new ideas and innovations into blossoming businesses is the bedrock of a vibrant economy and our £20m investment will drive more successful UK spinout companies like Oxford Nanopore and Darktrace, ensuring world-class research translates into world-leading industries.

To read more, click here.

Five Charities Get Share of GoFibre’s £50K Community Fund

Five charities from across the regions of Fife, East Lothian and the Scottish Borders have received funding towards crucial projects from independent Scottish broadband provider, GoFibre and its GoFurther Fund.

Selected from over 60 worthy applicants, the five organisations offer fundamental support and transformative services to those they serve. Amongst the recipients are organisations that provide education and employability services for young people and the disabled community, social sessions that help tackle loneliness and isolation and after school support and activities for children who come from deprived households.

Simen Holm, Fundraising and Communications Manager at Bridges Project, said: “We are proud to say that GoFibre’s GoFurther Fund will play an important role in enabling us to continue to work with young people across East Lothian, helping those most in need in our local communities.

£2 Million Raised by Scots Drug Delivery Device Firm

1nhaler, the drug delivery device firm based in Edinburgh, has raised £2 million to develop its single-use dry powder inhaler (DPI).
The firm’s DPI is cardboard-based with the same dimensions as a credit card, and the platform technology includes a breathable membrane to help deliver individual, inhalable medicines to patients.

Inhalable medicines are already widely used to treat health conditions such as asthma, epilepsy, and allergies. However, delivery options have been somewhat limited due to aspects like cost, performance, and environmental impact.

“Our DPI has the potential to become the simplest, most convenient single-dose, disposable inhaler on the market, revolutionising the delivery of critical drugs, without the cost and environmental impact of existing devices,” said founder Lisa McMyn.

To read more, click here.

Mocean Raises £2.7 for Commercialisation Plans

Wave energy pioneer Mocean Energy has raised £2.2 million new equity alongside a £500,000 grant to drive the commercialisation of its wave energy technologies.

The equity funds come from existing investors including Equity Gap, Scottish Enterprise and Old College Capital, the University of Edinburgh’s venture investment fund, alongside new shareholders Norwegian impact investors Katapult Ocean and MOL PLUS, the corporate venture capital arm of listed Japanese shipping conglomerate MOL.

In addition, Mocean has secured a £499,500 Low Carbon Manufacturing Challenge Fund grant, targeted specifically at the detailed design, build and testing of key subsystems for their small-scale Blue Star wave energy machine.

Scots Audio Tech Firm Secures New Funding, Appoints New Director

The deal included participation from current shareholders in addition to Kelvin Capital, the Glasgow-based investment syndicate, and Scottish Enterprise, the national economic development agency.

It’s claimed that Fi-Live offers “better than Bluetooth” audio over Wi-Fi, providing higher quality, longer range, and faster transmission while connecting to the standard Wi-Fi systems in PCs, tablets, and phones.

John Crawford, Ingenious Audio chief executive, said: “Steve brings the skillset and first-hand experience of generating demand in a very targeted manner which is critical to advance Fi-Live as we expand from being a product focused company in one niche to a broad technology provider.”

To read more, click here.

Acquisitions

Scots IT Services Provider Makes Ninth Acquisition

Kick ICT Group, the North Lanarkshire-based IT services provider, has announced its latest acquisition in C2 Software. The deal, which was made for an undisclosed sum, marks Kick’s ninth acquisition in eight years.

By acquiring a specialist in Microsoft Dynamics services, Kick has grown its Dynamics division and its ability to offer more product options, services, and support for SME businesses and large enterprises.

“With C2 joining us, our Dynamics team is now stronger than ever and I’m looking forward to collaborating with Finlay, Kirk, and the wider team,” said Kick ICT CEO Tom O’Hara.

To read more, click here.

Aberdeen-based IT Firm Converged in New Acquisition

Aberdeen-based IT, cybersecurity and internet service provider, Converged Communication Solutions, has acquired Caleycom, a wireless internet service provider bringing high-speed internet to rural communities throughout Scotland, for an undisclosed sum.

The takeover, which will allow Converged to offer connectivity service to customers, comes not too longer after its acquisition of Aberdeen Technical Services earlier this year, and sees Caleycom merge with a separate company under the Converged Group, Converged Rural Broadband (CRB).

“With the acquisition comes Caleycom’s great reputation, ten years of technical knowledge and a robust client base of over 500 customers,” according to Converged’s founder and technical director, Neil Christie.

To read more, click here.