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DIGIT’s Movers and Shakers | June 2023
Catch up on June 2023’s partnership, recruitment, and expansion news from the Scottish digital technology sector.
Welcome to DIGIT’s Movers and Shakers for June 2023.
Here, we’ll go through some of the major partnerships, recruitments, appointments, and expansions seen in the Scottish Tech ecosystem throughout the month of June.
This month’s issue features some standout organisations partnering up, as well as some major appointments within the Scottish tech scene.
Partnerships
University of Edinburgh and NatWest
The University of Edinburgh and NatWest Group (NWG) have announced the launch of a new data-oriented banking innovation centre — The Centre for Purpose-Driven Innovation in Banking.
The new innovation centre is set to combine business insights from the banking group with the university’s research, data, and social science expertise, to co-create data-driven solutions for the future of banking.
The Centre aims to bring the latest academic developments and thinking in data science and Artificial Intelligence (AI), climate change, business, and the social sciences to tackle issues in the banking sector.
Dame Alison Rose, CEO of NatWest Group, said: “This, once again, shows that through the power of partnerships, we can support the people, families and business[es] we serve and help them thrive.”
Good-Loop and Captify
London-founded and Edinburgh-headquartered global purpose-led ad platform Good-Loop strikes a partnership with Captify to track the environmental impact of online ads.
Through this partnership, Captify will gain access to Good-Loop‘s proprietary Green Media technology, enabling brands and agencies to measure the carbon emissions generated by their digital ads in real time.
According to Good-Loop’s carbon calculator, the average online ad campaign emits 5.4 tons of carbon dioxide, half of the annual impact of one person in the UK. This happens through ad serving infrastructure, real-time bidding, data centres and data transmission, all of which use large amounts of energy.
“I’m really excited to be partnering with Captify and helping them to deliver more carbon-efficient campaigns for their clients. Their commitment to decarbonisation and driving down emissions will help to create a more positive, sustainable ad ecosystem,” said Claire Gleeson-Landry, head of investment and sustainable media at Good-Loop.
UK and US
A UK-US data bridge could be well on the way as the Prime Minister and US President Joe Biden announced a commitment in principle.
The agreement could lead to the establishment of a UK Extension to the Data Privacy Framework, which would see the creation of a new ‘data bridge’ between the two countries.
US companies who are approved to join the framework would be able to receive UK personal data under the new data bridge.
Techscaler and STAC
Techscaler and Smart Things Accelerator Centre (STAC) have announced a new partnership, aiming to further grow and support Scotland’s Internet of Things (IoT) and software startups.
Techscaler is a tech startup support programme — backed by a £42 million contract from the Scottish Government, and delivered by Edinburgh-headquartered CodeBase — aiming to deliver on the key priorities outlined in the Scottish Tech Ecosystem Review (STER) report.
STAC, meanwhile — which is supported by Scottish Enterprise, CENSIS (Scotland’s Innovation Centre for sensing, imaging, and IoT technologies), and Glasgow-based product design firm Filament — is an accelerator helping scaling Scottish IoT startups to be globally competitive.
On the announcement, CodeBase’s Chief Strategy Officer, Steven Drost, said: “I am excited about this partnership, because it signals a moment of maturity for the ecosystem.
“The partnership brings together two different strands of startup building — software and hardware. Combining those strands enables both to learn and build and grow faster — this can only be a good thing for Scottish tech.”
BR-DGE and Hands In
Edinburgh-based BR-DGE has partnered with Hands In, a plug-and-play payment solution for the travel and hospitality sectors.
BR-DGE is a merchant centric payment technology startup, has brought together more than 300 payment providers and technology solutions startups through its partnership program.
Under its partnership with Hands In, BR-DGE merchants gain access to a cost-splitting solution which could address the high failed payment rates in the travel, leisure, and hospitality sectors.
According to data from the Office for National statistics, failed transactions were projected to lose airlines £5.45 billion from UK consumer sales.
Vodafone and Three UK
Vodafone and Three have struck a deal to merge their UK operations, creating the UK’s largest mobile network with a combined customer base of 27 million.
Three is a unit of CK Hutchison, a Hong Kong based company, which would own 49% of the new company, while Vodafone would take the majority stake of 51%.
The deal would leave only three mobile networks available in the UK, and mean all three would be combined networks.
The CMA said, as reported by the BBC: “Both Vodafone and Three are key players in the UK communications market – with millions of consumers and many businesses relying on their services – so it’s right that the CMA reviews the impact this deal could have on competition.”
UK and Singapore
Cyber chiefs from the UK and Singapore have come together to strengthen cyber collaborations with the new UK-Singapore Cyber Dialogue improving collaboration around the Internet of Things (IoT) security, app security and cyber skills development.
The countries have discussed the cyber threat landscape, deterrence strategies against, international cyber capacity building, international cyber policy issues including in the UN, and the role of public-private partnerships in cybersecurity.
The collaboration comes after The National Cyber Security Centre, alongside international partners such as the US, warned that Lockbit was the most deployed ransomware variant across the world in 2022, as organisations of all sizes across a wide range of critical infrastructure sectors have faced serious disruptions.
Jadu, CGI and Edinburgh Council
Jadu, a web experience management software company, has partnered with global IT and business consulting services firm CGI and the City of Edinburgh Council to develop ‘Jadu Central Gateway’, a new Intranet publishing platform that provides secure access to the Council’s Intranet to frontline workers.
The platform addresses an issue faced by frontline employees who don’t have regular access to the Council’s Intranet, which limits their ability to access important internal communications, policies, guidance, and support, as well as information on pay, benefits, and wellbeing initiatives.
Cammie Day, council leader of the City of Edinburgh Council, said: “This platform will provide access to a host of support documentation and guidance to all of our previously digitally excluded frontline employees. By creating a secure gateway to the intranet, Jadu Central Gateway ensures that all colleagues have access to the same information at the same time and is a significant step in our digital and accessibility ambitions. The platform reinforces our commitments to engagement and empowerment of colleagues, and to continue transforming services.”
AND Digital and the Cabinet Office
AND Digital has announced the start of a second engagement with the UK Cabinet Office to enhance its Find a Grant service for both users and administrators. The Glasgow-based Cabinet Office team will work closely with AND Digital on the implementation of the project.
The agreement comes after AND Digital built the first phase of the Find a Grant service for Cabinet Office in 2022.
Since then, over 85,000 citizens have successfully used the new service to find and apply for government grants in the first 12 months after the initial beta launch.
Peter Dale, Club Executive at AND Digital’s Glasgow club, comments: “Cabinet Office set out an ambitious goal of creating a single online access point for all eligible UK Government grant opportunities with improved efficiency, accessibility and transparency of government grants.
CodeClan and Flatiron School
Scottish digital skills academy CodeClan has partnered with New York-based Flatiron School to deliver on demand, self-paced digital courses as an alternative to full-time immersive courses in software development and data science.
Globally, self-paced learning is becoming increasingly popular, enabling people to study around work and other commitments.
Loral Quinn, CodeClan’s CEO, said: “The Flatiron team are at the front of the field in this area, and we’re excited to partner with them with a view to appealing to a more diverse range of students and making CodeClan more accessible to a bigger audience.”
Esports Scotland and Deep Green
Esports Scotland, the country’s grassroots to professional event organiser, esports in education leader, and white label solutions provider is to work closely with Deep Green, a pioneer of climate and society friendly compute, on a range of initiatives to help the Scottish gaming community reduce the carbon impact of their activities.
In an era marked by rapid growth in the esports and gaming industry, it is imperative to address the significant energy consumption and environmental footprint associated with these sectors. Esports Scotland and Deep Green will develop a range of educational resources for the industry, sponsor esports events and make carbon positive compute available to gamers, event organisers and games developers.
James Hood, CEO of Esports Scotland said: “It has been an exhilarating six months for us at Esports Scotland, as we have solidified our direction and made sustainable practices a central part of our mission. With the work we will do with Deep Green, we can combine the immense influence of the esports community with their cutting-edge technology to drive positive change and contribute to a greener future.”
Mark Bjornsgaard for Deep Green Energy said: “Given the unprecedented growth in high performance and data-intensive computing across all sectors, it is imperative that we continue to find ways to be ever more energy-efficient and sustainable. Re-purposing, what would be, waste heat is central to this.
“The work we will do with Esports Scotland validates the demand for energy-efficient compute that also provides a societal good – supporting local businesses in reducing their reliance on carbon-intensive fossil fuelled boilers.”
Spire Global and OroraTech
Spire Global, Inc., a global provider of space-based data, analytics and space services, has signed an agreement with OroraTech, the global leader in space-based thermal intelligence, to build, launch and operate an eight-satellite constellation dedicated to global temperature monitoring. Once operational, it will represent the first and largest constellation of satellites dedicated to tracking and monitoring wildfires.
Each spacecraft in the eight-satellite constellation, which will be launched in mid-2024, will carry OroraTech’s proprietary thermal-infrared optical payload and data processing unit with on-orbit fire detection capability. The urgent data collected by the satellites will be downlinked via Spire’s ground station network and delivered to OroraTech through an API. The satellites will help identify and monitor areas at risk of wildfires as well as enable early detection of wildfire hot spots, which are increasing rapidly as a result of climate change.
OroraTech has successfully operated a precursor sensor in orbit on a satellite designed, built and operated by Spire for 15 months. Initially intended as a technology demonstration, it exceeded expectations and is now serving as an active fire monitoring instrument for customers across the globe. Currently, the sensor is actively assisting SOPFEU, the fire agency of the province of Quebec, Canada. Earlier this month, another Spire satellite carrying payloads for OroraTech, was successfully launched on SpaceX Transporter-8.
Recruitment and Appointments
UK Government’s Foundation Model Taskforce
Ian Hogarth, the tech entrepreneur, investor, and artificial intelligence (AI) specialist, has been announced as the chair of the UK Government’s Foundation Model Taskforce.
The Foundation Model Taskforce was first announced earlier this year, with the UK Government backing it with an initial £100 million to build sovereign capabilities in foundation models — the tech underpinning generative artificial intelligence — as well as helping guide AI safety, research, and development.
The newly announced chair is the founder of Songkick, the concert directory website, as well as venture capital firm Plural. He has co-authored the State of AI report since 2018, and is also a visiting professor at University College London’s Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose.
Skills Development Scotland
Skills Development Scotland (SDS), the country’s skills agency, has appointed Cameron Lepper as the new chair of its Digital Economy Skills Group (DESG).
The Digital Economy Skills Group is the industry and public sector partnership aiming to enhance the country’s digital capabilities.
As the new chair, Lepper, who’s Head of Cloud Commercial and Optimisation at education software company Tribal, takes over from Ross Tuffee.
Tuffee has spent the last three years at the head of DESG, working with 25 other members to influence the delivery of the vital digital skills that are needed in Scotland.
FinTech Scotland
FinTech Scotland Chairman, Stephen Ingledew OBE, has been appointed to the board of the newly formed Centre for Finance, Innovation and Technology (CFIT).
Ingledew will join CFIT as an independent non-executive director, alongside Alex Marsh, the former head of Klarna UK. The appointments aim to bolster CFITs governance structure while it starts bringing together time-limited ‘coalitions’ of experts.
The aim of the coalitions are to bring better outcomes for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in spaces like academia, technology, and policy. The first coalition will consider opportunities in Open Finance, according to CFIT.
“Stephen’s experience in setting up and driving national fintech coalitions is invaluable to us. His four-decade long career facilitating collaborations across all UK regional fintech clusters will be instrumental in shaping our operating model going forward,” said the chair of CFIT, Charlotte Crosswell OBE.
Cyber and Fraud Centre – Scotland
The Cyber and Fraud Centre – Scotland has brough on four new trustees, each bringing key areas of expertise to the board and supporting Scotland’s businesses to be resilient against the growing threat of cyber and fraud crime.
Scotland’s support organisation for cyber and fraud crime, the Cyber and Fraud Centre – Scotland, has announced the appointments of four new trustees.
DCC Jane Connors was sworn in as Deputy Chief Constable of Police Scotland, with executive responsibility for Crime and Operational Support, in February 2023.
She brings to the board a wealth of knowledge in policing, including 30 years of service within the Metropolitan Police Service. She was Gold Commander for Operation London Bridge, the policing operation for arrangements in London following the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
The Data Lab
The Data Lab — which is Scotland’s innovation centre for AI and data science — has appointed 20 new members across its three advisory boards of Governance, Innovation, and Education.
Established in 2014, the centre — which is a part of the University of Edinburgh — helps companies, organisations, and individuals to grow operations, develop new projects, and ensure they have the data skills needed to move forward in a world that’s becoming more and more AI- and data-led.
The Data Lab’s advisory boards each has its own scope: the Governance Advisory Board’s responsibilities, for instance, include setting the centre’s strategic, compliance, and finance direction.
The Innovation Advisory Board, meanwhile, consists of data leaders providing direction for the centre’s innovation-oriented activities and approach to project investment.
Workpro
Technology company Workpro has strengthened its project and systems teams with new appointments which will help to maintain and accelerate the speed of its current remarkable growth phase.
The three new hires boost the headcount to 33 at Workpro, which is the market-facing brand of Edinburgh-based Computer Application Services Ltd (CAS), and is another milestone on the way to the target of 40 within the next 15 months.
Jacob Wall has been taken on as a Systems Analyst, after working elsewhere as a business analyst in systems development.
Farhat Sameja has joined the company as a Project Team Leader after being a project manager for an engineering company.
Aju Jose is now an Infrastructure Engineer with Workpro, having worked in Dubai for seven years and having recently completed a Masters in Cybersecurity.
Celestia UK
Edinburgh’s Celestia UK has strengthened its management team with the appointment of Chartered Management Institute Awarded Walce Horvath as Office & HR Manager.
Walce joins the growing team at the Edinburgh based satellite communications company with a remit to support its HQ in the UK as well as its teams located in Lisbon, Portugal and Santander, Spain. She will also oversee training, development and recruitment for the highly specialised team.
She brings extensive experience of working with established as well as growing business support teams, in both the private and public sector, people management and development as well as in-depth knowledge of legislative and employment matters.
Having also worked with companies focussed on research and development in several different technical fields, she also understands the challenges and opportunities involved in bringing new products to market, a road Celestia UK is currently travelling.
Scotcoin
Technology and professional services entrepreneur Nikola Kelly has joined the advisory panel of The Scotcoin Project Community Interest Company (CIC) to support its growth and connections within Scotland’s digital ecosystem.
Nikola has nearly 20 years’ experience within the Scottish tech sector and is currently CEO of Be-IT Group, leading the company to a turnover of £14 million. She completed a management buy-out of its businesses in March 2023, which include Scotland’s largest independently owned IT recruitment specialist Be-IT Resourcing and IT consultancy Be-IT Projects.
Also sitting on the advisory panel for Career Ready, a national social mobility charity, Nikola is one of the main proponents of diversity and inclusion in the Scottish tech sector, often speaking on topics such as female and neurodiverse representation in the industry.
Nikola has been recognised as a Scottish Women in Business awards ‘young star’ and for her outstanding contribution as a young business leader.
Skylark Lasers
Skylark Lasers, the agile photonics company that specialises in the design and manufacture of ultra-reliable, high-performance, single-frequency DPSS lasers, has appointed a new CEO, to lead the business and guide its long-term growth vision.
Dr. Ben Szutor has been appointed as company CEO and will lead the business in the global roll-out of its unique technology and precision lasers. His focus will be to scale up its product ranges based on Skylark’s monolithic compact DPSS (C-DPSS) laser technology that delivers a ready-to-operate laser solution, with increased lifetime and enhanced performance over a wide range of wavelengths.
The company’s world-leading laser products are manufactured at its Edinburgh HQ by a skilled workforce of 30 people. The ambition is to drive this to over 50 during the next 18 months. The lasers have multiple applications across manufacturing and research with around 95 per cent produced for export.
Commenting on his appointment, Dr. Ben Szutor, said: “It’s an exciting time for the photonics industry and I’m ready to lead Skylark Lasers in its global expansion and pursuit of enhancing the technical capabilities of the country.
“Innovation is at my core and it’s something we’re continuing to put at the heart of Skylark too. The applications for precision lasers with longer lifespans and greater performance are growing, and playing a leading role in their commercialisation and is an exciting prospect.
Hanya Partners
Hanya Partners, the management consultancy specialising in IT, organisation development and supplier performance, part of the Taranata Group, announces the promotion of Philip White to Managing Partner and the appointment of Eyrun Bernhardsdottir as Senior Client Executive.
Eyrun brings extensive knowledge of the IT & Business Change space from her previous role as a Principal Consultant at sister company Head Resourcing.
Having joined Head Resourcing in 2014 as a Resource Consultant, Eyrun was initially involved in some of their largest corporate accounts, developing into an accomplished Account Manager and Delivery Consultant, managing a range of key accounts across various sectors, including Financial Services, Technology, Consultancy, and the Public Sector.
In addition to building strong client relationships based on both results and a consultative, honest, and trustworthy approach, she has also developed her role within Head Resourcing, becoming a Principal Consultant within the Head Contractor Solutions team and working on a number of internal projects to ensure continuous improvement.
White has been with Hanya Partners Ltd. since January 2020, as Consulting Director within the Sourcing and Supplier Management division and has been a huge part of the success in recent years.
In his new role, White will step up to a management role and also join the Hanya Partners board, he will be responsible for leading the company’s strategic direction and overseeing its day-to-day operations. He will also continue to develop and implement new business initiatives and to grow the company’s client base.
“We are thrilled to promote Philip to Managing Partner,” said Martin Ewart, CEO of Hanya Partners Ltd. “He is a highly skilled and experienced procurement professional with a proven track record of success across our clients. I am confident that he will continue to be a valuable asset to our company and will help us achieve our long-term goals.”
Expansions and Relocations
ClearSky Logic
Edinburgh-based ClearSky Logic is set to expand its operations by targeting hub openings in London and Manchester within the next twelve months.
Founded in 2018, the Scottish digital transformation company provides guidance and consultation to help companies grow and scale.
“We are reducing business risk for companies when it comes to implementing tech and software, and with an agile group of highly specialised people in place we liken ourselves to a special ops team.” said Darren Auld, ClearSky Logic CEO and Co-founder. “Working on a project basis following a thorough preparation phase, we can deliver software much quicker than the competition.”
The company says it is seeing an increased demand to help companies implement technologies like ChatGPT, Blockchain technology, and carbon emission reductions.
National Manufacturing Institute Scotland
The National Manufacturing Institute Scotland (NMIS), operated by the University of Strathclyde, has now opened its new flagship facility at the heart of the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District Scotland (AMIDS) in Renfrewshire.
Acting as a magnet for advanced manufacturing in Scotland and across the globe, the heather coloured, 11,500m2 operationally carbon neutral campus next to Glasgow Airport will support manufacturing, engineering and associated technology businesses of all sizes.
Innovative R&D aims to help them become more productive, tap into emerging markets, embrace new technologies, and achieve net-zero targets.
ZipZero
UK fintech start-up ZIPZERO has relocated its head offices from London to Aberdeen, Scotland, in a bid to accelerate its growth.
ZIPZERO is spearheading an AI-driven consumer-and-advertiser platform revolution – bringing together both groups for a financially empowering relationship. By crowdsourcing paper and digital receipts directly from consenting consumers, ZIPZERO not only helps consumers optimise their spending and lower their household bills but also offers marketers an advanced AI tool that identifies target consumers and informs marketing strategy.
The company has over 200,000 app users in the UK and has been prolific in shaping discussions on the cost-of-living crisis.
Commenting on the reasons behind the move, ZIPZERO’s CEO, Mohsin Rashid, said: “Scotland is the most fertile land for UK tech. There are a number of programmes driving growth in the tech sector, and the connection between industry innovators and academia is particularly strong. This has all helped to create a thriving tech community; ideas are easy to share, inspiration is readily found, and people are excited by the prospects of innovation – we’re very excited to be here.”
Awards
Scottish Cyber Awards
Scotland’s cyber security community is preparing to recognise the contributions of companies, individuals, and academics as the Scottish Cyber Awards open for their seventh round.
The awards – run by the Cyber and Fraud Centre – Scotland – highlight the Scottish cyber security calendar, providing an opportunity for networking as well as a celebration of achievements in the industry.
Hosted by comedian Fred MacAulay on 30 November, the awards will for the first time be taking place at the Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh.
This year’s awards will also see the introduction of the Financial Fraud Team of the Year award, which will recognise a team that has demonstrated exceptional innovation, dedication, and expertise in the fight against financial fraud, a rapidly growing crime in Scotland.
