Recruitment

Hamilton Forth

Hamilton Forth, a part of the Livingston James Group, has strengthened its team of digital and technology recruiters with the appointment of two new consultants, Lynne Munro and Hazel Swan.

Munro and Swan join the firm to focus exclusively on Salesforce appointments.

The pair join Hamilton Forth from a UK-based recruiter specialising in Salesforce appointments and have several years’ experience in the recruitment sector.

Hamilton Forth Managing Director Ali Shaw commented: “With many of our clients requesting support around Salesforce recruitment, expanding our services in this area is a natural next step for Hamilton Forth.

“I am confident that both Hazel and Lynne will be instrumental in making this venture a success and I am pleased to welcome them to the Hamilton Forth team.

“We have ambitious plans for the next 12 months and will continue to expand the team throughout the year.”

AND Digital

Digital tech consultancy AND Digital is opening its third Scottish Club in Edinburgh in 2022, bringing a further 100 new tech roles to the city.

The launch follows the success of the company’s first Edinburgh Club, Club Sommerville, launched in March 2020, and Club Almeida, launched in Glasgow in June 2021.

AND Digital’s new location will bring tech roles for analysts, developers, and designers across all levels to the city.

Commenting on the news, Andrew Smith, Chief for Next at AND Digital said: “Given the growth we’re continuing to see in Scotland’s digital economy, it’s no surprise that AND Digital has seen great success from its first two major investments in the nation.

“With its entrepreneurial reputation and thriving tech community, Edinburgh remains an ideal destination for AND’s expansion. We strongly believe the city will continue to provide exceptional tech talent, which we will grow within our collaborative Club environment, to solve our clients’ tech challenges.

“Our intent is to build on the fantastic work of our existing Clubs, and provide our Scottish customer base with the support it needs to achieve digital acceleration – whether that’s supporting in the building of innovative products for themselves or supporting them in developing their own tech capabilities.”

Want to find out more? Read the full story here.

Arrayjet

Commercial activities of Arrayjet will be led by a newly appointed Vice-President of Sales for North America, Craig Cardella, who has spent twenty years working in precision liquid-handling and integrated robotic systems.

He will lead Arrayjet’s expansion by strengthening existing customer partnerships, forging new collaborations amongst the life science community and significantly growing Arrayjet Inc.’s coast-to-coast footprint.

He commented: “I am really excited to join the Arrayjet team and assist in further growing the brand in North America. The company has a stellar reputation for the level of support it provides, and for its global portfolio of inkjet printing instrumentation and manufacturing services.

“I am prepared to offer current and future customers in North America a world class experience of partnering up with Arrayjet within our newly formed Arrayjet Inc.”

Iain McWilliam, CEO of Arrayjet, added: “This expansion represents Arrayjet’s commitment to support current and future North American partners, with more in-person interaction, state-side instrument demonstrations, and extra logistical support, so they can continue to use our technology for their cutting-edge microarray applications.

“Arrayjet Inc. shares a vision with its USA customer base to advance the frontiers of scientific research, recognising the strong ecosystem of life science and biotechnology that will help accelerate innovation for a better understanding of human health. The creation of Arrayjet Inc. is a defining moment in our company history.”

Cloudsoft

Following significant growth over the past year, software and service provider Cloudsoft has expanded its management team with the appointment of Tim Shirley as vice president of software sales.

With more than a decade of experience in the managed cloud sector, Shirley will focus on driving growth for Cloudsoft AMP, Cloudsoft’s innovative digital platform conductor (DPC) tool, with an emphasis on businesses in the banking and financial services sectors and beyond.

Tim joins Cloudsoft with significant business development experience in the cloud technology and data sector, most recently as country manager for Scotland at Rubrik, Inc. He previously worked at companies including Proact IT UK, DTP Group, and Hewlett-Packard.

Ross Gray, CEO of Cloudsoft, said: “Over the past year we have seen significant growth at Cloudsoft with new team members helping us maximise opportunities across a range of sectors.

“Tim has an in-depth understanding of how businesses use applications in different ways to protect their complex operations. His is a timely appointment; the forthcoming Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) from the EU and similar legislation expected in the UK will add complexity to the financial services sector.

“Businesses will need to work with experts that can help them boost their resilience and create more effective and scalable systems in the process.”

Shirley added: “Banks and Financial Services organisations operate incredibly complex application environments that present a huge challenge when it comes to continuous operational resilience. So much so that regulators are stepping up their scrutiny of how banks and insurers digital operational resilience.

“Seeing the pressure this is placing on the sector was one of the reasons that I wanted to join Cloudsoft. Cloudsoft AMP’s ability to automate resilience for both on-premises, legacy environments and across multi-cloud deployments is unlike anything I’d seen before. This is super-orchestration on steroids and it’s exciting to see the market responding so positively to it.”

Head Resourcing

Edinburgh headquartered recruitment specialists Head Resourcing, has announced the internal promotion of Lyle Ritchie to Head of Talent Solutions.

Ritchie will lead a specialist team responsible for attracting and supplying a diverse range of top talent across IT, digital and business change sectors.

Ritchie has more than ten years’ experience in IT, Digital & Change recruitment specialising in senior IT roles with a strong track record across a range of industries from financial services, FMCG, Consultancy, scaling businesses and the consumer motor trade.

Commenting on his appointment, Ritchie said: “Like many others in the sector, we have experienced the challenges of the fluctuating job market and recurring talent shortages in recent years. However, companies across a variety of sectors are increasing their search for specialist tech and digital roles, as everyone looks to technology to drive productivity, safety and efficiency in the blended work environment, so there has never been a more exciting time to work in this field.

“Having been a part of the Head Resourcing family for just over seven years, it is great to be stepping into this new senior role. As a people centric business, our focus will continue to be to work with both clients and candidates to strategically match top talent to the best market opportunities.”

Huw Martin, Managing Director of Head Resourcing, added: “Lyle is an expert in his field and is highly knowledgeable on all aspects of recruitment, particularly in the IT and digital sectors. Here at Head Resourcing, nurturing, and developing our own talent is just as important as sourcing top candidates for our clients.

“We have seen Lyle grow from strength to strength, and his track record of successful candidate placement and strong client relationships speaks for itself. His commercial mindset and analytical approach are excellent attributes to head up the Talent Solutions division within our business and to assist our clients through their digital and IT development strategies.”

Simple Online Healthcare

Simple Online Healthcare, the online pharmacy specialist, has appointed two former senior Skyscanner executives to its board as the company puts plans in place for further expansion in the UK and internationally.

Former Skyscanner executives Shane Corstorphine and Jules Pancholi have been appointed Non-executive Directors.

Corstorphine, who is also a Non-executive Director with social enterprise Brewgooder, began his career at PwC before taking up senior roles at Royal Bank of Scotland and Barclays.

In addition to his role at Skyscanner, Pancholi, who began his career as a commodity options trader at Credit Suisse, was part of the executive team that oversaw the travel search site’s international growth and expansion.

Addy Mohammed, co-founder of Simple Online Healthcare, said: “While our primary focus is currently around the UK and Australian markets, we have a European acquisition in the pipeline which we hope to announce over the next couple of months.

“Getting Shane and Jules on board to help guide us through our next phase of growth will be invaluable. They join at an exciting time for the company and the online healthcare market in general.

“The breadth of experience both bring will help us to further our ambition to deliver a world-class service to patients in the UK, Europe, and beyond.”

Cumulus Oncology

Cumulus Oncology announced the hiring of Ian Waddell as its Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) in March.

Dr Waddell, a biochemist with career-long expertise in oncology-focused drug discovery, was previously CSO (Early Discovery) at Nasdaq-listed global contract research group Charles River Laboratories.

At Cumulus, Waddell will help shape ongoing scientific strategy, scope new drug discovery opportunities in novel areas of oncology, and drive industry partnerships and alliances in the UK and internationally.

Clare Wareing, CEO and co-founder of Cumulus Oncology, said: “We are extremely fortunate to have attracted Ian to the Cumulus team. His scientific insights and track record in the oncology drug discovery and development area, coupled with his deep understanding of the relevant targets as well as his industry connections will be invaluable to our ability to scale the Cumulus business model.”

Waddell added: “Clare and the Cumulus team have gone from strength to strength in recent times, and I can’t wait to help lead the company’s drug discovery capability. I am also greatly looking forward to working in the emerging Scottish biotech sector.”

Cumulus also announced that Dr Russell Greig has joined the board as Chairman. Greig, a GlobalScot, spent much of his career working on both the drug development and investment sides of the business at GlaxoSmithKline.

Vidatec

Scottish software development company Vidatec has bolstered its senior leadership team with the appointment of Nick Welch as Chief Technology Officer.

Welch joins the Dundee-based tech firm as part of a strategic move to provide wider software development services across key sectors including retail, leisure tourism and travel, health, and finance.

He joins Vidatec with nearly 20 years’ experience, including roles at Progressive Content and GlobalData Plc, and project experience with blue chips including British Airways and Jaguar Land Rover.

Welch will head up Vidatec’s technical consultancy, digital strategy and software development services. As part of a restructure to the leadership team, Insights Group veteran, Ross Wilson, is also named as Client and Partnerships Director with a brief to bring more data analytics and insights into customer projects.

Vidatec CEO Greig Johnston commented: “Vidatec’s strength really is in our ability to form close relationships with our clients and to truly understand their digital vision so that together we can create exceptional end user experiences.

“With Nick we’re able to raise our game even further in this regard. Our new role for Ross as Client and Partnerships Director also brings fresh thinking to how we will drive even greater value for all of our customers. This is the strategy that will shape our future growth.”

On his appointment, Welch commented: “It was Vidatec’s ethos of creating technology to positively impact the lives of others that really resonated with my own values, as I have always been a firm believer in the power of digital technologies to affect positive change.

“I’m joining the company at such an exciting time and am looking forward to contributing my vision towards delivering exceptional end user experiences across mobile and web for our clients.”

Guiide

Scottish fintech Guiide has announced the appointment of Michael Power, former CEO of Delta Financial Systems Ltd, as their Non-Exec Chairman.

Having previously founded, grown, and scaled up Delta Financial Systems from a startup to its sale in 2020 to ASX-listed Bravura Solutions, Power’s expertise in the pensions tech arena will be invaluable to Guiide.

Power will be pivotal in helping scale the existing Guiide, Guiide.dc and Guiide.db product offerings, following their initial successes.

Additionally, he will steer the development of Guiide’s new expanded pension support proposition, Guiide+, and the new automated pension provider product, Guiide.auto – an automated drawdown capability which has already gained significant interest from Guiide’s rapidly growing user base.

Founder of Guiide, Kevin Hollister commented: “We are extremely fortunate to have someone with Michael’s experience join Guiide, and play a key role in our ongoing development as we move from startup to accelerating growth. We are very excited to have him on our team going forward”

Power added: “Guiide is a fascinating business with a growing suite of technology propositions which meet the clear and increasing need in the market for consumer guidance that simply the complexities of pension choices, above all in the drawdown space.

“I am delighted to be working with the experienced and capable management team who are leading it into its next phase of growth.”

Closed Door Security

Closed Door Security has announced it has been accredited by the internationally recognised professional certification board CREST, as being a trusted provider of cybersecurity penetration testing.

The stamp of approval shines a spotlight on the only cybersecurity company in the Outer Hebrides and signals an opportunity for growth and recruitment.

William Wright, CEO of Closed Door Security, commented: “We are delighted to receive this important stamp of approval as it provides independent validation of our skills and expertise.

“As the only cybersecurity company in the Outer Hebrides, we will use the accreditation to grow our business and reach more customers with our penetration testing services.

“A key part of this will involve a recruitment drive where we will be looking for technically minded locals to join our team and help protect our customers against the growing threat posed by cybercrime.”

Partnerships

Dunedin IT

Scottish tech and connectivity provider Dunedin IT has completed a project to improve connectivity at the 3,000-year-old Bamburgh Castle in Northumberland.

Dunedin IT worked with the estate to bring a reliable internet connection to its offices and visitor facilities, ensuring an improved guest experience.

The firm is on track for a record £2m turnover this fiscal year, showing significant year-on-year growth; the connectivity provider last year announced it had seen a 300% increase in demand for its voice and data solutions.

Dunedin IT Director Rory McEwan commented: “A reliable internet connection is vital is for all tourist destinations and we work in partnership with our customers to achieve their vision. For Bamburgh Castle we designed and delivered a digital future that will further enhance the visitor experience in future. We’re proud to play a role in helping Bamburgh Castle, and other leisure and tourist destinations, dream bigger.”

Will Douglas, Visitor Service Manager at Bamburgh Castle, noted: “Our internet infrastructure was about 25 years old, so you can imagine the challenges we had; it would regularly drop, and we couldn’t accept card payments in the shop, ticket office, or tea-room, which had a huge impact on the visitor experience.

“It was a constant uphill battle. However, the upgraded fibre internet and newly installed structured cabling is very reliable and has made a big difference already.”

CyberScotland Partnership

The CyberScotland Partnership has now supported 1,273 businesses to plan and recover from a cyber incident via its Incident Response plan.

The Partnership has grown from 10 to 16 organisations in that time and now includes CENSIS, YouthLink Scotland, and the IASME Consortium, as well as origin partners which include Scottish Government, Police Scotland, and the Scottish Business Resilience Centre (SBRC). The UK National Cyber Security Centre serves as technical advisor.

Over the past year, the Partnership has collaborated on cybersecurity campaigns for a range of audiences including raising awareness among students on how to stay secure online and providing advice to Glasgow businesses during COP26.

Jude McCorry, Chair of the CyberScotland Partnership, said: “We’ve seen the community spirit flourish in Scotland in recent years; the CyberScotland Partnership portal has built on that, relying on multiple organisations to share information so we all emerge stronger in the end.

“Looking ahead, we will continue to collaborate and focus our efforts on ensuring that businesses and individuals throughout the country are prepared to deal with cyber incidents.”

Mark Gallacher, Cybercrime Harm Prevention Inspector, Police Scotland, added: “Cyber crime has come to the fore in recent years, and it can truly devastate its victims.

“The CyberScotland Partnership is a vital collaboration, providing clear and coherent information to support individuals and organisations in their efforts to stay secure and resilient.”

FinTech Scotland and NCR Corporation

FinTech Scotland, the cluster management body, has announced a new strategic partnership with NCR Corporation, a leading enterprise technology provider to further advance innovation for financial institutions.

The partnership builds on NCR’s strong innovation track record as a software and services provider with a long-established heritage of applying new technology developed through its Dundee Discovery Centre.

The announcement follows the recent release of FinTech Scotland’s ground-breaking Research and Innovation (R&I) Roadmap which, developed in conjunction with key players in the financial industry, includes a key focus on the future of payments and transactions and financial regulation.

FinTech Scotland, the cluster management body for strategic partnerships within the country, will work closely with NCR, a major employer in Dundee, and its 600-strong financial experts in the region to develop innovation opportunities with fintech firms and financial institutions, plus the wider cluster stakeholders such as universities and innovation centres.

Nicola Anderson, Chief Executive, FinTech Scotland, said: “We are hugely excited about the strategic partnership with NCR and their dynamics and pioneering approach to developing technology will further accelerate innovation with fintech SMEs and large financial firms in the cluster. Our industry-driven, action-orientated R&I Roadmap will provide the ideal framework to advance new financial services innovations with NCR and we look forward to the collaboration with the NCR team in Dundee as well as the USA and across the globe.”

“In my experience the value of regional fintech powerhouses is undeniable, bringing raw talent and passion into the space and guiding the development of next-generation financial businesses,” said Colin Payne, corporate vice president, NCR Professional Services.

“In Scotland, this is particularly true given the rich engineering heritage, innovative mindset and history of outstanding customer-focused financial services – this unique combination brings us a new generation of powerful fintechs. We are delighted to partner with Fintech Scotland to support the scaling of these amazing new solutions.”

SBRC and the Royal Bank of Scotland

The SBRC and the Royal Bank of Scotland will work together to offer cyber training for banking customers.

Despite a record boost in cybersecurity investment in the UK over the last 12 months, the National Cybersecurity Centre identified an increase in cyber-related incidents over the period, highlighting the continued need for cyber-education.

Now, for the first time, local authority and commercial customers with the Royal Bank will gain access to additional value-added cyber training to boost cybersecurity skills.

The cyber training will include invitations to attend Exercise in a Box workshops taking place in June and Executive Scenario Planning sessions which will be adapted to suit each interested organisation.

Commenting on the news, Malcolm Buchanan, Managing Director, Corporate & Commercial Banking, Scotland at Royal Bank of Scotland said: “While all our customers have been impacted from the grips of the pandemic over the last two years, the everyday challenges we faced before it have not disappeared – including cyber hacks and scams.

“The threat of cybersecurity related incidents is higher than ever, and so where we can support a proportion of our customer base by providing guidance and access to education to ensure they don’t become the next victim – we will.

“By partnering with the SBRC, we will not only be able to directly introduce our customers to cyber experts but will be able to extend the education of so many of our local authority and higher education customers who want the skills and expertise to address the threat at hand.”

Want to find out more? Read the full story here.

SICSA and EIT Digital

The Saltire Emerging Researcher Scheme – part of a £6.75m Programme funded by the Scottish Government, will be delivered by a new partnership between SICSA and EIT Digital.

The scheme hopes to support international and EU activity and collaboration with Scotland, including boosting support for international research collaboration and talent attraction, increase scholarship offering to include EU students and support the effective use of alumni globally.

SICSA, in partnership with EIT Digital, has been awarded funding within the Saltire Scheme to reinforce and build new research partnerships while developing individual researchers’ networks with European partners across the Computer Science discipline.

The scheme will fully fund incoming and outgoing exchanges of up to six months to both enhance the training experience for PhD Students and support Early Career Researchers in developing their networks and collaborations across Scotland and Europe.

Morgan Gillis, EIT Digital’s UK director, commented that: “EIT Digital is very pleased with the take-up of its programs in Scotland and delighted to be deeply involved in the international development of Scotland’s digital economy across a range of sectors.

“We much appreciate our close collaboration with Scottish Enterprise and the Scottish Funding Council as strategic partners in making this success possible.”

Want to find out more? Read the full story here.

Lloyds Banking Group and FinTech Scotland

Lloyds Banking Group has announced three new strategic innovation challenges as it opens the next cohort of its Launch Innovation Programme.

Working in collaboration with FinTech Scotland, it follows the first programme, which saw 12 fintech firms selected from across Scotland and Europe.

The bank is using the programme as a platform to form partnerships with innovative fintechs that can help them achieve their sustainability goals, improve customers’ financial lives and support their colleagues in a post-Covid pandemic world.

“Lloyds Banking Group Launch Innovation Programme is a perfect example of how collaboration can deliver innovation and better outcomes for all,” said Nicola Anderson, CEO at FinTech Scotland.

She added: “Amongst other things I was delighted to see three innovation themes this year which demonstrate how fintech can help with financial matters, well-being and sustainability. I’m looking forward to reading the applications.”

Successful fintech applicants will have 10 weeks to refine and test their innovative solutions, working in collaboration with colleagues across the bank.

This will include direct access to challenge sponsors and mentors in the bank, as well as business development support, clinics and external business masterclasses.

Want to find out more? Read the full story here.

Beamable and Metanomic

Video game industry technology leaders Beamable and Metanomic are joining forces to build an ambitious and comprehensive end-to-end solution to make the creation, implementation, and management of in-game inventories and game economies of scale in one package for traditional premium, free-to-play and play-and-earn web3 games.

Commenting on the news, Theo Priestley, CEO of Metanomic, said: “Metanomic and Beamable both have a live service platform that complements one another for game developers to create a complete end-to-end solution to manage and run their online games.

“Beamable’s live service economy features, particularly its fully managed player inventory support, will natively integrate with Metanomic’s live service game economy platform, allowing game designers and developers to upload the game and player items from Beamable into Metanomic.

“This gives them the ability to BUILD, TEST and POWER, in run-time, fully balanced game economies in one seamless operation. All without ever using a spreadsheet again.”

Trapper Markelz, the Co-Founder and COO of Beamable, added: “At Beamable, our ethos is ‘We Fight For The Game Maker’ doing everything we can to streamline the creation, operation, and orchestration of game tech and live operations.

“Metanomic’s tool to eliminate spreadsheets from game design and bring economic simulation, AI, and sophisticated planning is a game-changer for game designers.

“Between the two of us, we focus on the technical director that has to make BUILD decisions and the LiveOps directors that have to make OPERATE decisions. You bring in technology that helps game designers make DESIGN decisions. We are talking to all the key stakeholders when they are making a build/buy/partner decision at the key prototype/pre-production phase.”

Chromacity and Tematys

Ultrafast laser manufacturer Chromacity announced an agreement with Tematys to develop new industrial opportunities for its lasers in France.

Located in Paris and Marseille, Tematys specialises in bridging the gap between photonics-enabled technologies and emerging industrial applications. The new partnership will see Tematys align the technological sourcing requirements for organisations based in France, with the technical capabilities of Chromacity’s ultrafast lasers.

“Our focus is shifting towards the industrial applications of our ultrafast lasers,” said Shahida Imani, CEO of Chromacity.

She added: “Given their technical expertise, track record, and an extensive industrial network in France, Tematys is the perfect partner in this key territory.”

The collaboration will facilitate the adoption of ultrafast lasers by industrial organisations seeking to develop new technologies which can accelerate innovation within life sciences, manufacturing and environmental sustainability.

Dr Dominique Bonnisseau, Associate – Partner, Business Development and Operational Sales at Tematys said: “We are delighted to develop opportunities for Chromacity’s lasers in France. Ultrafast lasers and OPO technology are very promising for environmental and industrial applications, as well as biotech and medical imaging.”

Want to find out more? Read the full story here.

Skills Development Scotland

Skills Development Scotland (SDS) has partnered with colleges across the country to launch a new initiative designed to help make Scotland one of the most cyber resilient nations in the world.

A cybersecurity module, developed in partnership with Dundee and Angus College, will be incorporated into a range of non-technology courses and rolled out to another nine colleges in the first year, leading to more than 500 students a year leaving further education with a recognised cybersecurity qualification.

By targeting students that study non-tech subjects, SDS and the Scottish Government hope to equip people with the cyber skills necessary to better protect themselves and their employers or businesses online.

“The pilot was delivered as part of the implementation of our Strategic Framework for a Cyber Resilient Scotland,” said Kate Forbes, Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy for the Scottish Government.

She added: “The fast-paced digital transformation of the world we live in means that cyber resilience is no longer just the responsibility of technology specialists or IT departments. And it’s not just big companies that get hacked. Any organisation that uses online digital technology can be at risk.

“We can never guarantee protection from all types of cyberattack, but this project will help to increase future workers’ knowledge and skills to withstand and reduce the risk and impact of security breaches.”

Want to find out more? Read the full story here.

University of Glasgow and SP Energy Networks

The University of Glasgow will lend its data and digitisation expertise to SP Energy Networks to help tackle the UK’s energy network challenges.

Researchers from the institution will support three of the energy provider’s projects. The company recently had nine of its initiatives funded for a combined £1.2 million as part of the Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF).

The projects aim to support the SIF’s goal to transition to the UK to net zero, with the early trial stage assessing the effectiveness of the solutions.

Vice Principal for Research at the University of Glasgow Professor Chris Pearce said: “We’re pleased to be partnering with SP Energy Networks to apply our expertise in energy engineering and data analysis to these projects, which aim to tackle some of the most important challenges we will face in the years to come.

“We have our own ambitious agenda to tackle climate change, including setting a target to achieve net-zero by 2030, and we have a broad range of research currently underway which will help find new ways to mitigate and adapt to our changing planet.

“These projects are a great example of how we are working to turn fundamental research into partnerships which have a real impact.”

Want to find out more? Read the full story here.

Awards

Startup Grind Scotland

Startup Grind Scotland has announced their 20-person cohort of Scottish firms as part of a new Silicon Valley programme.

Out of 178 applications from Scottish technology startups and scale-ups, an independent panel selected representatives from R3-IoT, HindSight, Bio Technical Scotland, Robotical, Coastr, Estendio, Hearing Diagnostics, Float, Yaldi Games, Lenz Labs, DragonflAI, Theo Health, Administrate, Liftango, PlayerData, Biscuit Tin Planning, BR-DGE, MoneyMatiX, TZAR! and Holoxica.

Supported by the Scottish Government’s Technology Ecosystem Fund, the cohort will enjoy a week as part of the Silicon Valley programme, involving meetings with investors and visits with global tech companies including Alchemist Accelerator, User Testing and Nvidia.

Support partner Scottish Development International will host a pitch party in Silicon Valley on the 14th of April where the cohort will have the opportunity to pitch their businesses to hand-picked US investors and meet Scottish success stories from the Global Scot network.

Commenting on the news, Startup Grind Scotland Co-Director Nick Murray said: “We’re honoured to bring together a richly diverse cohort, not only in the focus and stage of their businesses but also in age, ethnicity, gender and lived experience.

“Selected from 26 locations across the country, our delegates are a true illustration of Scotland’s eclectic entrepreneurial ecosystem.

“We know the trip will bring inspiration and professional opportunities, but we are also being very intentional about encouraging trust, openness and fostering peer relationships within the group. The cohort will return mid-April with invaluable experiences, new connections and a global mindset that we hope will benefit the Scottish tech ecosystem as a whole.”

Want to find out more? Read the full story here.

Kythera AI and Tech Nation

An Edinburgh-based AI startup has been named among the UK’s top early-stage startups in the Tech Nation ‘Rising Stars’ competition.

Kythera AI, which develops advanced tools for designing AI in 3D game engines, was selected as the Rising Stars 4.0 winner from Scotland.

The Edinburgh startup is one of just 10 winners chosen from regions across the UK.

Commenting on the award, Kythera AI Operations Coordinator, Joy Thurston, said: “Being recognised as a Rising Stars 4.0 Winner is a testament to the incredible work of everyone at Kythera AI.

“We’ve been on a mission to bring intelligent life to virtual worlds in games and beyond since 2012, and this competition has been a great way for us to share our story so far.

“This is an exciting time for Kythera AI, with a number of AAA contracts recently secured and our first round of seed investment successfully completed. We’re looking forward to the future.”

Want to find out more? Read the full story here.

The EIE Investor Readiness Programme

The EIE Investor Readiness Programme, delivered by the Bayes Centre at the University of Edinburgh, has announced a list of 36 high growth tech businesses selected for EIE22.

Energy, climate and clean tech is one of the most represented sectors in 2022, alongside companies specialising in AI and data science, while other selected companies include those from healthcare technology and fintech.

While the majority of this year’s companies are based in Scotland, there are also startups from other parts of the UK, including London and Manchester, and international locations like Hong Kong and Lithuania.

Karen Wood, Director of Enterprise at the Bayes Centre, commented: “We plan for EIE to be even bigger and better this year, through a mix of in-person and online events. EIE is an integral part of Scotland’s technology ecosystem, driving our International Market Square offering, and we remain on a mission to connect investors from across the world with our transformational companies in 2022.”

Danny Helson, Head of EIE Programme and Investor Relations, added: “Leading edge innovation runs through our company cohort again in 2022, from sectors of our digital economy that are now established as having globally leading credentials, and we look forward to working with their diverse teams in the run-up to the investor conference on 6th October.”

Want to find out more? Read the full story here.

Filament STAC

Filament STAC – the Scottish IoT accelerator aiming to produce scalable companies – added to its cohort, bringing the total to 14 in March.

Vanora Robots and Aquaponics Garden were the latest additions, with the former designing and manufacturing robots aimed at improving health and safety efficiencies including air and surface sanitation, while the latter is Scotland’s first aquaponic vertical farming technology company.

Filament STAC also strengthened its executive team with several key hires. Nick Noble, formerly a senior marketing executive at IBM Watson and Salesforce, has joined STAC as Business Development and Marketing Mentor.

Martin MacDonald, who previously held a series of senior positions in sales and business development at Honeywell and Dialog Semi, was hired as an Executive Mentor.

Finally, Aileen Biagi, a product development specialist and longstanding lecturer in Product Design Engineering at Glasgow School of Art, joined STAC as Product Development Mentor.

Filament STAC CEO Paul Wilson said: “It’s great to see STAC really take off as we move into the second quarter of our first year of operations. We are really pleased to have Vanora and Aquaponics Garden join the cohort, and it’s also great news to have Nick, Martin, and Aileen on board.”

The initiative is supported by Scottish Enterprise, CENSIS (Scotland’s Innovation Centre for sensing, imaging and IoT technologies), and Glasgow-headquartered product design firm Filament.

Want to find out more? Read the full story here.

Robotical

Created by Edinburgh-based Robotical, learning assistant Marty the Robot has won the Hardware/Robotics category at the 2022 BETT Awards.

Able to dance and play football, Marty is a small walking robot designed to introduce coding and robotics to young learners and their teachers.

Marty and Robotical beat out seven other finalists, with a team of 28 judges tasked with selecting the winners from all twenty-four categories among hundreds of entries.

Dr Sandy Enoch, founder and CEO of Robotical, said: “Seven years ago I came up with a rough prototype for Marty. During my PhD I saw just how engaging walking robots could be as tools for teaching coding and STEM subjects and I wanted to make a real walking robot that could be used in schools.

“In the years that have passed, we’ve been working a lot on Marty, adding loads of new features and functionality, releasing V2 and putting a lot of time into developing and testing complementary teaching resources across all primary year groups, and beyond.

“These enable Marty to be used as a STEM learning tool, but also integrated within other areas of the curriculum. All our lesson plans are fully linked to success criteria and align to regional and national curricula both here in the UK and in many other countries.”

Enoch added: “We have worked so hard to make Marty a stand-out STEM tool that is versatile enough to be used by complete beginners to advanced programmers, enabling educators all the while to equip themselves with the skills and knowledge to better understand and teach coding and robotics in a fun and engaging way.”

Want to find out more? Read the full story here.

Moves

Cyacomb

Cyan Forensics announced it has changed its name to Cyacomb Limited. The change was effective from Tuesday 1st March 2022.

Since its inception in 2016, the company has seen its technology have an ever-increasing impact in counter terror and child sexual abuse investigations, both in the UK and North America.

The new name ensures an identity and brand compatible with the company’s ambitious future growth plans, as it continues to expand into international territories and enter new product markets.

Cyacomb’s suite of products will adopt the new name, with Cyan Forensics becoming Cyacomb Forensics; and Cyan Protect becoming Cyacomb Safety.

Cyacomb is based in Edinburgh, Scotland.