The Smart Things Accelerator Centre (STAC) has lined up an investment fund for the next generation of “smart things” entrepreneurs in Scotland, and partnered with the National Robotarium to help support these founders.

The STAC Investment Syndicate—a platform to connect investors with ambitious, high-growth potential companies to release market opportunities in innovative technologies—will next make investments of around £150,000 each into a number of companies in STAC’s fifth cohort.

The cohort, STAC 5, commences in early December, with applications for entry to the latest cohort of 15 companies opening on the 14th of October.

“The investment fund, which will increase in size over time, is a significant step forward in our mission to develop scaled, internationally competitive startups,” said Paul Wilson, STAC CEO.

“When you look at the best accelerators around the globe—names such as Y Combinator, Techstars, Plug and Play—they recognise that investment is a key component of tech scaling, and that combining mentorship with investment leads to improved investor returns.”

“We are thrilled with the response of the investor community to get involved in STAC Invest Syndicate. With our international best practice mentorship programme and fully equipped co-working space we will fuel and equip our startups to create market-leading technology businesses.”

The partnership between STAC and the National Robotarium, the UK’s centre for robotics and AI, aims to combine resources to offer robotic and autonomous systems startups enhanced acceleration support across Scotland, and within the co-working spaces at STAC’s ‘thebeyond’ facility in Glasgow and the National Robotarium’s facility in Edinburgh.

“The National Robotarium will bring expert robotic engineering support to further boost STAC’s capabilities in smart and connected products,” added Wilson.

“The partnership made perfect sense, and at the core is our shared mission to position Scotland as a centre of excellence in smart things, IoT technologies, and robotics.”

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Stewart Miller, the CEO of the National Robotarium, also commented: “Our partnership with STAC represents a significant step forward in positioning Scotland as a centre of excellence in smart things, IoT technologies, and robotics.”

“This collaboration will not only drive economic growth but also address critical challenges in sectors like healthcare, energy, and manufacturing.

“Together, we’re ensuring that Scotland, and indeed the UK, becomes an active producer in the global robotics revolution, rather than just a passive bystander.”

Last month, STAC launched ‘thebeyond’ campus at Skypark in Glasgow, featuring cutting-edge product development labs and a 250-desk co-working space, which Wilson says will be Europe’s largest “smart things” hub.