Startup guidance more accelerative than capital alone, by Nick Freer

Having been ensconced in the world of corporate PR for more years than I’d care to admit, including during the dotcom era where I advised tech startups as a consultant with an agency in London, I take a keen interest in how press announcements resonate after hitting the headlines.

In March, one such announcement around the launch of a new tech founder fund caught my attention, in no small part because of the mixed reception it received across the startup and investor scene.

“Project Europe”, a €10m fund backed by Berlin and New York VC firms and over 120 founders who have ‘been there, done that’ (essentially built and exited startups), was heralded in the tech press and as one leading publication framed it at the time, had the “European VC set buzzing”.

The Project Europe fund aims to help entrepreneurs under the age of 25 by providing mentorship and investing in up to 20 of them, offering €200,000 in exchange for 6.66 per cent of equity.

While there were many plaudits for the initiative, particularly around the involvement of so many successful founders, there was also a good helping of  naysayers; some termed the age limit shortsighted, others took issue with the level of equity being taken, and an overriding criticism was over the size of the fund itself.

According to those behind the fund, the rationale for its creation stemmed from a less supportive US vis-a-vis Europe in current political times and a collective desire to create more tech titans in the region.

Bringing things back to the Scottish startup scene, much respected scaleup C-suite Richard Lennox says the fund raises some interesting questions for ambitious founders based here: “Everyone recognises that the angel and syndicate network in Scotland is good for early stage, but Scottish companies need to leave Scotland for the next rounds.”

Richard’s point was best illustrated earlier this month, when Edinburgh-headquartered Wordsmith AI announced a $25m series A investment led by global venture capital firm Index Ventures, which itself has backed other storied startups including $45bn fintech Revolut and Mistral,  Europe’s most valuable AI startup.  As an agency, we worked with Wordsmith CEO and founder Ross McNairn, like Richard Lennox a former Skyscanner executive, and Index on the announcement.

On the flip side, as Aberdeen-based CCU International CEO and co-founder Beena Sharma wrote in a LinkedIn post this week, not all success stories come with a funding announcement.  As Sharma put it: “Sometimes, choosing not to raise, or walking away from a term sheet is the bravest and most values-driven decision a founder can make”.

Supporting Glasgow-headquartered Simple Online Healthcare, one the UK’s fastest-growing digital healthcare scaleups, around its annual results announcement this week, CEO Addy Mohammed drew attention to how the decade-old company remains self-funded, while reporting revenue tripling to £66 million.

Like many of Scotland’s most successful startups, it’s no surprise that Simple Online has a Skycanner connection of its own, with former CFO Shane Corstorphine sitting on its board.  Further demonstration that experienced guidance and support is significantly more accelerative than capital alone.

What could digital reforms mean for Scotland’s legal sector? Guest blog by Legado CEO and founder Josif Grace

The Law Commission of England and Wales recently published final recommendations to modernise the Wills Act, including proposals to allow for the digital signing and witnessing of wills. While these changes do not apply in Scotland, they raise timely and relevant questions for legal professionals north of the border.

Scotland’s succession law operates within a distinct legal framework, with its own rules around capacity, witnessing and execution. At present, there is no indication that equivalent reforms are imminent. However, the broader momentum around digital transformation in legal processes, particularly where client engagement and accessibility are concerned, is hard to ignore.

These proposals are not simply about introducing new technology. They reflect a growing drive to reduce friction, simplify legacy planning, and align legal services with how people increasingly manage their affairs — securely, remotely, and on their own terms.

Changing Client Expectations

Despite the fundamental importance of will-making, more than half of UK adults still do not have a will. The reasons vary, but a consistent barrier is the perception that the process is too formal, too complex, or not designed with modern life in mind. While legal reform in Scotland may not be imminent, client expectations are shifting across the UK.

This presents a challenge as well as an opportunity for Scottish firms. Individuals increasingly expect the same clarity, flexibility and security from legal services that they experience in banking, healthcare and financial planning. Firms that can deliver that while still upholding legal rigour will be well placed to meet demand.

Kirsten Leckie, a director and a knowledge and development lawyer in Burness Paull’s private client team, said: “In Scotland, we are watching with interest to see how the proposed reforms from the Law Commission to making a will unfold in England and Wales, particularly regarding electronic wills.

“Across the legal profession, there is recognition that we must modernise – changing generations interact with their personal affairs differently now than even a generation ago. Making a will and passing estate on death is fundamental.

“Changes which make this process easier and more accessible are to be welcomed, but must ensure the right protections are in place to protect the gravitas and integrity of wills as well as vulnerable individuals.”

Strengthening the Experience with Digital Infrastructure

Even without legislative change, Scottish firms are already improving the client journey by adopting digital infrastructure.

Platforms like Legado are being used by firms across the UK – including by Co-Op Legal Services, one of the largest providers of estate planning and probate services in the UK – to securely store and share documents, support encrypted client communications, and facilitate digital signing where appropriate.

The use of electronic signatures is already well established in many areas of legal practice. As Walter Clark, partner at Pinsent Masons LLP, observes: “COVID significantly accelerated the use of digital signatures across the legal profession, although some Scots law documents still require wet ink. 

“There are clear advantages to the digital route, particularly around verifying identities, time stamping, and protecting the overall integrity of what’s been signed. It may take time for the law to catch up in Scotland, but it absolutely makes sense for it to do so.”

This infrastructure is not about replacing legal processes but reinforcing them. It gives professionals the ability to manage documents securely, trace actions clearly, and offer clients long-term visibility over their affairs. By embedding tools such as digital vaults, audit logs and identity verification into workflows, firms can increase both efficiency and trust.

These enhancements support better client engagement and reduce the administrative burden, while maintaining the core legal safeguards that underpin the process of will-making.

Looking Ahead

Scotland may not yet be pursuing the same legislative path as England and Wales, but the profession is still part of a wider shift in how legal services are delivered. The question is no longer just about legal reform. It is also about operational readiness and the experience clients receive.

This moment provides space to reflect. Are our systems and processes keeping pace with the expectations of the people we serve? Firms that take steps now to modernise their approach will be better prepared to lead if and when the legal landscape shifts, and will deliver greater value to their clients in the meantime.

How Scotland’s remote digital innovators are competing globally, guest blog by Elevator CEO Rachel Ross

We often hear the same story: tech startups thrive in cities, in coworking spaces near capital and innovation. But this is no longer the full picture – and increasingly, it’s out of date. 

At Elevator, we’ve worked with over 9,000 startups and 3,500 established SMEs across Scotland over the last five years. What we’re seeing — and what we believe the country must now fully embrace — is that rural entrepreneurs are not just keeping pace with their urban peers; they’re pushing boundaries in ways that reflect resilience, creativity, and innovation at the very edge.

And they’re not alone. Around the world, rural regions are fast becoming crucibles of cutting-edge innovation. From geothermal biotech in Iceland to agritech in New Zealand, digital platforms in Indigenous Canada to AI-powered craft in rural Japan, we are witnessing a global trend: innovation is no longer geographically confined. It’s culturally and contextually driven — and rurality is emerging as an asset, not a liability.

So, where does Scotland fit in?

Rethinking “Remote”

The word “remote” means different things to different people.

Located near Oban and co-owning a business there, I often find people slightly incredulous that I manage to be a CEO based from a Head Office in Dundee, with frequent meetings in Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Glasgow to get to – yes, the road and rail infrastructure is poor and I need to plan where to stop to answer emails or take work calls en route. No, there is no such thing as a consistent signal on any of the routes I journey along.

Yet from my superfast connected house overlooking Jura, I have no problem dialling in to meetings and thanks to frequent EV charge points, can easily take my car to a meeting in Edinburgh by lunchtime and be back in Argyll that evening.

Mainland Argyll is pretty accessible compared to the islands and whilst we may be considered remote if you live in the central belt, we are on the urban fringe by many highland travel standards. 

Perspective on distance shifts mindsets. Rurality in Scotland is not a barrier. It’s a context — one that comes with challenges, yes, but also with strengths: close ties to natural resources, tight-knit communities, and a mindset that naturally leans toward sustainability and adaptation.

And these are precisely the conditions in which innovation thrives.

HerdAdvance: From Farm to Cloud in Aberdeenshire

Take HerdAdvance, founded by Jilly Duncan-Grant in Aberdeenshire, who has just won a National Women in Agriculture Award Combining deep farming expertise with cutting-edge digital tools, Jilly has developed a platform that transforms how livestock health and performance is tracked and managed — reducing antibiotics use, improving welfare, and boosting farm productivity.

HerdAdvance isn’t just a tech company; it’s a rural impact business. Jilly’s lived experience of farming, and her embeddedness in her community, allow her to design for real-world complexity — something that can’t be easily replicated in a city lab.

But make no mistake: HerdAdvance is also globally relevant. The future of food security, ethical farming, and sustainable land use depends on innovations like this. That it’s being built in rural Scotland is not a curiosity — it’s a strategic advantage. 

AgriAudit: Growth, Trust, and Data in Angus

Another example is AgriAudit, a Scottish EDGE winner based in Angus. Led by founder Tom Porter AgriAudit helps farmers and food producers simplify and digitise compliance processes, making food assurance easier and more trustworthy.

AgriAudit is particularly exciting because it bridges two critical issues for rural innovators: trust and digital transformation. In sectors where trust and reputation are everything, AgriAudit helps business streamline the painful paper audit process that is the thorn in every farmer’s side, and what used to take days is now less than a few hours. 

As with many rural ventures, the innovation here is not just in technology — it’s in business model, access, and empathy. And again, this insight was born of place. Rural founders design from the inside out.

Digital Barriers Are Real — But Not Defining

This is not to suggest that rural innovators don’t face real challenges — especially when it comes to digital infrastructure. We often hear from business owners across rural Scotland who are navigating inconsistent broadband, poor mobile signals, and the cost of cloud services at scale.

But what’s interesting is that these challenges have become part of the innovation process itself.

Take the recent ScotRail pilot, using low-orbit satellites to provide uninterrupted internet to train passengers — a brilliant example of how rural and mobile connectivity problems are spurring advanced solutions. Richard Lochhead can now travel and work along with the rest of the Inverness population, saving time and improving productivity on his route south to Edinburgh. 

The truth is, rural entrepreneurs are not waiting for perfect infrastructure. They’re innovating around it — designing lighter systems, storing data offline, collaborating asynchronously, and building resilient, flexible tools.

In a way, their constraint is their creativity.

Programmes Driving Change in rural Scotland

At Elevator, we’re proud to be delivering several rural-focused programmes funded by Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) — each one geared toward supporting businesses to grow through innovation and change.

The Digital Innovation for Tourism Businesses programme offers the opportunity to support rural tourism SMEs in leveraging tech — from digital booking systems to immersive visitor experiences. It’s not just about modernisation; it’s about storytelling, reach, and resilience in a sector central to Scotland’s rural economy.

Meanwhile, our new Gaelic Business Change Programme – launching  on 13 June in Portree – supports Gaelic-first enterprises to innovate, adapt and grow — combining cultural preservation with business development. The programme is almost entirely delivered on-line, with businesses spanning the whole of the highlands. 

These are not fringe initiatives. They reflect a serious, system-wide commitment to rural-led growth and impressively show how improved digital connection can lead to reinvigoration and innovation in our cultural heritage businesses 

What Rural Entrepreneurs Teach Us About Innovation

There’s a misconception that innovation means disruption — a word associated with high-speed change and Silicon Valley swagger. But rural innovation in Scotland tends to look different. It’s quieter, more deliberate, more interdependent. As Professor Donald MacLean at Glasgow University often states ‘ Our rural businesses follow an emergent strategy. They think like red squirrels and not grey’. And often, it’s a more sustainable and impact-led approach too.

Rural innovators design for complexity. They are deeply embedded in systems — environmental, social, economic. They don’t build to flip. They build to last.

And this ethos — one of regeneration, long-termism, and circular thinking — is exactly what the global economy now needs.

So, What Needs to Happen Next?

If we want to unlock the full potential of digital innovation in rural Scotland, as a country we need to take a few bold steps:

• Invest in infrastructure: Not just broadband, but also logistics, workspace, and training capacity and rural leadership skills – that are founded on innovation and creativity.

• Shift the narrative: Recognise rural founders as national assets, not edge cases.

• Design policy that fits: Support for startups and SMEs must consider rural timelines, markets, and modes of working.

• Celebrate success: Awards like the King’s Award and Scottish EDGE are great — but let’s tell these stories louder, in more places, and more often. The move to the Regional EDGE awards this year has been a real testament to this and it is great to see how digital transformation is featuring so strongly in applications. 

Because when rural businesses win, Scotland wins. These enterprises bring jobs, pride, sustainability, and international reach — all rooted in place.

Final Thought: The Edge Is Where Innovation Happens

The world doesn’t need more of the same. It needs different perspectives, deeper thinking, and solutions that work not just in labs, but on land. And often, that means looking to the places furthest from the capital — where innovation is driven not by need, care, and courage.

At Elevator, we’ll continue to champion Scotland’s rural digital innovators — because they’re not behind. They’re ahead, in ways that truly matter.

Cracking the code of global-scale businesses, by Nick Freer

Glasgow Tech Week took place this week in the metropolis once known as the Second City of the Empire.  At the stunning Barclays campus with incredible views over the Clyde, the river that runs through the story of Glasgow’s industrial revolution, today’s business leaders gathered to discuss taking Scotland’s tech and entrepreneurial scene to the next level.

The ‘Scaling in Sync - C-suite strategies for Unified Growth’ event featured scaleup leaders from Deliveroo, ENOUGH, Firstbase, and Malted AI, and thanks to the Innovation Banking team at Barclays, Cooper Parry, and Burness Paull for inviting me along to chair the panel on the night.

Andy Robinson was the commercial director at software development firm Cultivate when Deliveroo made the company its first ever UK acquisition in 2019, with Robinson joining a tech juggernaut which was hiring up to one hundred people every week - which sounded like scaling on steroids.

As chief financial officer at ENOUGH, chief financial officer Elaine Ferguson has overseen funding rounds totalling over 100 million Euros from global investors as the food tech company innovates towards its mission around sustainable food transition.  Headquartered in Glasgow, ENOUGH recently opened the world’s largest non-animal protein facility, based in the Netherlands.

After leaving the oil and gas industry in Aberdeen, Chris Herd built IT asset management platform Firstbase that was acquired by San Francisco-headquartered AppDirect last year.  So the maxim, “If you build it, they will come”, from the Eighties movie Field of Dreams rings true - you don’t have to be in Silicon Valley to scale amazing tech startups.

Having said that, in spite of a catalogue of individual company success stories like Cultivate, ENOUGH, and Firstbase, as a nation we are still seeing relatively few scaleups going on to achieve truly global success.   

In this column only a few weeks ago, prominent tech C-suite Richard Lennox put it like this: “We haven’t yet cracked the code of creating global-scale businesses” in an op-ed headlined, “How Can We Fix Scotland’s Big Scaleup Problem?”.

Artificial intelligence is enabling some tech startups to gain traction much quicker than ever before, so for example a small AI-enabled tech team can be ten times more productive.  So, it was interesting to hear from Laura Bernal Vergara, chief of staff at Edinburgh-based Malted AI, about the work they are doing around small language models (SLMs).

We covered so much at Barclays the other night that it would be hard to faithfully digest that here, but I hope that each of the panelists will take the opportunity to write for this column in the weeks and months ahead.

What is clear is that we need more of the kind of interaction that took place at Glasgow Tech Week, and very probably on a more regular basis, so that founders can continually learn from other peers, and share playbooks on how we can succeed together - faster and stronger.

Lastly, a shout out to Alisdair Gunn, the director of the Glasgow City Innovation District and the chief architect of Glasgow Tech Week.  Bravo!

Putting AI power into the hands of postgrads, by Nick Freer

It was good to see international press coverage last month for a CodeBase-run deep tech initiative aimed at bridging the innovation gap between university postgraduates and NHS Scotland.

AI Discovery, delivered by CodeBase via its Techscaler programme in collaboration with the University of Edinburgh, University of Glasgow, and NHS Scotland, will help postgrads harness the latest AI technologies and build AI-enabled startups that can address some of the greatest challenges faced by the NHS.

As Yaheya Shafti, a University of Glasgow research assistant working on radar and machine learning for healthcare applications, puts it: “AI is unlocking new possibilities that will transform healthcare.  In my work, I see researchers developing a wide range of AI-driven innovations, each with unique potential to improve healthcare delivery.”

In my own spheres, I’ve seen firsthand the growing success of AI-enabled startups like Infix Support, led by consultant anaesthetist Dr Matthew Freer, who also happens to be one of younger brothers, as the company rolls out its operating theatre efficiency software across Scotland’s NHS Health Boards.

The equation starts to get even more interesting for startups like Infix when they begin to gain international traction, and Infix has some exciting news along these lines in the pipeline.

As David Lowe, DIrector of Clinical Innovation at the University of Glasgow and Clinical Lead Health CSO at The Scottish Government, framed things when commenting on the recent NHS Scotland AI initiative: “We believe that by empowering innovative minds with the tools, resources, and support they need, we can accelerate the development of transformative technologies that will address some of the most pressing challenges facing the NHS and global healthcare systems today.”

Of course, in addition to healthcare, AI is empowering every other sector of business and the economy.  While no one could doubt Scotland’s impressive credentials in AI research and academia, we are never going to be a superpower in artificial intelligence.  However, there’s no reason we can’t be part of the global conversation.   

One pathway to AI success for Scotland is via VC-backed startups that can scale, providing future economy jobs and economic value for the nation.  As sagely pointed out by Wordsmith AI CEO and founder Ross McNairn in this column a few weeks’ back, there are certain pieces that need to be put in place to position Scotland to reach its potential, not least around the people talent required to fuel an AI economy here.

“AI is a talent game”, wrote McNairn, “and its most critical asset is its people.  The best AI engineers, researchers and entrepreneurs are highly mobile, well paid, and in global demand.  Countries that understand this are creating the most favourable conditions to attract talent.”

Lawyer turned coder and tech founder, Ross McNairn is a voice that should be listened to in this area, having previously helped to scale three tech unicorns - TravelPerk, letgo, and Skyscaner.  And backed by Silicon Valley venture capital firm Index Ventures, Wordsmith’s AI platform for in-house lawyers is set to make a big impact in the world of corporate law.

From Oban to 6th Avenue: what our young people can teach us about the future of trade, guest blog by Elevator CEO Rachel Ross

Last week, I had the privilege of witnessing the New York Tartan Day Parade - a spectacular procession of hundreds of bands from around the world marching down 6th Avenue.  But none stood out more than the 60 young pipers and drummers from my local Oban High School Pipe Band.

For some, it was their first time leaving Scotland.  And yet, standing tall in the typically Scottish rain, kilts pressed and chanters poised, they weren’t just representing Oban, they were representing Scotland itself.

First Minister John Swinney made a point of meeting them in the city’s Bryant Park, recognising what these young people embodied: talent, discipline, cultural pride, and indeed, the future of our nation.  By evening, they were on stage at Carnegie Hall, performing alongside Dougie MacLean, Julie Fowlis and Mànran - earning rapturous applause, and in some cases tears.

From a remote coastal town where the wind howls in from the sea and community raffles fund big dreams, to the grandeur and neon glow of Manhattan, it was a journey of both miles and meaning.

Many of the Americans attending Tartan Day traced their roots back to the Highlands and Islands, and the warmth they showed towards Scotland was profound.  Our culture, and the products woven into it, from Harris Tweed to Scottish salmon, is held in deep emotional regard on the other side of the pond.

Just like our piping, Scotland is famous the world over for the exceptional quality of our indigenous products.  Which is why, as we consider the future of Brand Scotland, and the impact of trade tariffs on our indigenous industries, now is the time for bold, imaginative thinking.

At Elevator, we witness the power of courageous ideas every day.  Through our Shell LiveWIRE programme, three Scottish businesses - Energy Mutual, Dekmar, and Fennex -  have just reached the global final of the competition, proof that innovation thrives in our most remote rural communities.

Talking to Bruce Hare, founder of innovative seaweed company Kaly Group on Skye, last week, Bruce outlined an ingenious way of approaching tariffs vis-a-vis the U.S.  Taking inspiration from the very roots of Scottish life, the croft, could a tariff-neutral trading system for indigenous products present one solution to Trump tariffs?  A new kind of international bartering system, rooted in heritage, fairness, and place-based authenticity that stretches back to the Highland Clearances.

So, Harris Tweed for Montana leather, or salmon for Navajo blue corn.  There is a compelling economic case in its simplicity.  These goods are uniquely place-based, culturally rich, and require skilled labour.  A protected, tariff-neutral framework for their exchange could safeguard livelihoods and preserve centuries old trade relationships - not just for Scotland, but in equally fragile rural economies across the U.S.

Yes, Scotland is a small player in global trading, but it also holds some particularly strong and exceptional cards.  Brand Scotland isn’t just about bagpipes, though they were pitch perfect last week on the streets of New York, and we should take inspiration from our young people, who continue to show the world what they’re capable of.

Perhaps it’s time that our trading systems, and our economic leadership, find ways to give our traditional businesses a different framework in which to thrive.

Putting people first: the rise of employee ownership in Scotland, guest blog by Vicky Hope, co-founder of LOOP Agencies

When a business considers its future, growth and succession aren't always about maximising the sale price. While traditional routes like trade sales and mergers exist, an increasing number of companies are exploring alternative models - paths that deliberately prioritise the preservation of company culture and the wellbeing of their employees over simply chasing the highest  valuation.   

When my co-founder Ed Vickers and I started LOOP Agencies, a marketing firm headquartered in Edinburgh and working with leading financial services brands across the UK, we had a vision from the beginning to create something different in the industry.   

While our success over a relatively short period of time has drawn interest from investors and acquirers, which could have significantly benefited us as co-founders, we were clear that in order to be a genuine employer of choice for top talent in the market, we wanted all our people to be part of the growth and to share in the resulting gains.   

So, with this vision in hand, we converted to become an Employee Owned Trust (EOT) at the end of March, the earliest ever conversion to EOT status in Scotland.  And we’re not alone, this people-first approach to growth is gaining traction, with employee ownership emerging as a compelling structure for businesses committed to their values and their team.  In fact, it is estimated that over 200 Scottish businesses are now EOTs, and the growth trajectory is speeding up.    

The EOT model, where businesses are held in trust for their staff, is rapidly becoming a preferred path, embedding a people-first ethos into Scotland's economy. While supportive government measures exist, the motivations often run deeper, rooted in a desire to build a different kind of legacy.   

For many, transitioning to an EOT is about preserving the company's culture and independence, ensuring the business remains true to its founding principles. It's a natural step for businesses built from day one on people-first values, where wellbeing is a principle, not just a perk.  It reflects a belief that a truly successful business doesn't just deliver great work; it creates the conditions for people to thrive together.  

Research consistently links employee ownership to improved productivity, innovation, and resilience.  And in Scotland, thousands of people are now employed across Scottish-registered EOTs.  More importantly, collectively these EOTs are estimated to contribute over £1 billion to Scotland’s economy.    

Found across Scotland, with notable clusters in Glasgow and Strathclyde, Tayside, Central Scotland and Fife, and Edinburgh and the Lothians, and prominent in sectors like professional services, manufacturing, and construction, EOTs are proving adaptable.  

While challenges exist, particularly around funding the transition, the EOT model offers a compelling vision for the future of Scottish business: one that's more inclusive, resilient, and rooted in shared success. It's more than an exit strategy for founders; it's an investment in people and a potentially transformative force for Scotland's economy.  

The brainchild of my co-founder Ed and I over a coffee in Edinburgh in late 2022, it is now a case of the whole team at LOOP sharing the growth during our next chapter.   

Selling Scotland to America still valid amid Trump turmoil, by Jeremy Grant

As the kilts sway down New York’s Fifth Avenue today amid a skirl of bagpipes to mark Tartan Week, it will be a welcome distraction from the policy mayhem from Trump’s White House. 

Now in its 26th year, the cultural event is a good excuse to bang the drum for Scotland as a destination for investment from the US, which is already the largest foreign investor in Scotland. 

About 700 US companies employ more than 115,000 people here, among them Wall Street titans JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley, Citi, which have around 6,500 staff in Glasgow and Edinburgh. Amazon operates its largest UK fulfilment centre at a site the size of 14 football pitches at Dunfermline. Last week, Los Angeles-based film company Halo Entertainment said it would invest £28m opening an animation studio in Glasgow.

Yet as shock ripples out globally from Trump’s “America First” trade policy, some may start to question whether the US can be seen as a reliable investment partner – just as Europe is painfully re-assessing America’s role in underpinning western security and defence.

Emotions are running high. French president Emmanuel Macron has even suggested that French companies should pause investments in the US.

But it’s worth keeping in mind that the US has made critical investments in Scotland, including in renewable energy infrastructure. This is the kind of commitment that Kate Forbes, deputy first minister, calls “strategic investment that matters for our national economy”. 

One example is Ardesier on the Moray Firth. This brownfield site is being redeveloped into the largest dedicated offshore wind deployment port facility in Scotland through a £300 million investment from Texas-based private equity firm Quantum Capital Group.

Financial firm BlackRock, busy expanding a presence that’s been in Edinburgh for 25 years, also owns almost half of the city’s airport through its Global Infrastructure Partners subsidiary. 

Clearly, neither the UK nor Scottish governments believe that Trump’s brutal undoing of the global trade order through tariffs should halt efforts to sell Scotland to the US. 

The scale of what’s needed in, say, renewable infrastructure investment will not be met through domestic sources alone. There is probably scope for more US financial institutions to “re-shore” back-office functions to Scotland, harnessing data analytics talent streaming out of Scotland’s universities.

Engagement is thus sensible. Ian Murray, Scottish secretary, was joined in meetings last week in Washington, DC and New York by the Lord Mayor of London and Scottish Financial Enterprise chief executive Sandy Begbie. Murray said this was “laying the groundwork” for a global investment summit in Edinburgh in October. John Swinney, first minister, will have similar meetings in New York on Monday.

Meanwhile, both governments have been fine-tuning the machinery of investment promotion. The Department for Business and Trade this year appointed its first “inward investment lead” for Scotland. Forbes, who meets with Murray monthly, is setting up a new “gateway” for investment enquiries designed to speed things up. 

Still, it would help if they were seen to be more joined up. Unhelpfully, both use their own versions of a “Brand Scotland” promotional tagline. The one place you need to get your sales pitch right is America.

Why ecosystems matter in the drive for digital growth, guest blog by Jon Hope, SVP of Ecosystems, CodeBase

At an event I attended last year, a panel discussion explored the dynamic between competition and cooperation among market makers. The key takeaway? In emerging or fragile markets, a winner-takes-all mentality is rarely productive. Instead, collaboration—even among competitors—can help establish and grow a sustainable market. The logic is simple: a significant share of a thriving market is far more valuable than complete control over something that doesn’t exist.  

This perspective is central to why CodeBase played a key role in launching Ecosystem Exchange.  

Held last November at the Edinburgh Futures Institute (EFI), Ecosystem Exchange was co-founded and co-produced by CodeBase, Barclays, and the University of Edinburgh. The event brought together around 150 attendees from across the UK — including universities, government agencies, incubators, investors, and banks — who share a common mission: driving economic growth. We call them ‘ecosystem builders’ — organisations that connect, support, and foster collaboration among key stakeholders to create a thriving innovation landscape.  

Some of the UK-level examples of ecosystem builders include the likes of CodeBase itself as well as Plexal, based in London, Belfast’s Ormeau Baths and Cardiff’s TramShed.

One common characteristic among these organisations is their reliance on state funding to support their initiatives. As a result, the event functioned as a quasi-industry conference, focused on the future of UK ecosystems, and specifically how we could share perspectives, learning, and find ways to do things better.

Despite being over a decade old, CodeBase has had to continuously evolve to earn the credibility needed to run high-impact programs like Techscaler (a £42 million Scottish Government programme), LawTech UK (for the Ministry of Justice), and AI Discovery (with the Universities of Glasgow and Edinburgh). When we first started, funding for initiatives like these simply didn’t exist — it has only materialised over time as governments grew confident of the value of tech ecosystems and of a strong return on investment.  

However, ecosystem building in the UK is still in its early stages. With state funding under increasing pressure, there is a real risk that the momentum built over the past decade could stall—or worse, be lost. Without government confidence in the impact of these initiatives, economic growth through innovation could slow significantly.  

That’s why Ecosystem Exchange was created: to strengthen collaboration among the UK’s leading ecosystem builders. Because only by improving the quality and connectivity of these ecosystems can we:  

• Increase the number of high-quality businesses;  

• Drive innovation in technology and intellectual property;  

• Attract global investment;  

• Generate economic growth through high-calibre job creation, taxable revenues, and asset creation. 

The UK needs this growth more than ever, and a thriving tech ecosystem is key to achieving it. 

The event highlighted several challenges and opportunities within the UK’s innovation ecosystem, with key themes including:  

• The need for a structured yet flexible approach to ecosystem development  

• The importance of competitor collaboration  

• The role of gender diversity in driving innovation 

• The underutilisation of university-driven entrepreneurship 

There was strong enthusiasm for continuing these discussions, with many calling for events beyond London. Edinburgh emerged as a preferred venue, reinforcing Scotland’s role as a key hub for innovation.  

In ecosystem building, connectivity is the primary currency—and it’s one of CodeBase’s strongest capabilities. As we plan the next Ecosystem Exchange in late 2025, we aim to expand its reach by welcoming international attendees.  

Economic development is not a zero-sum game. By improving connectivity, we can help ecosystem builders unlock capital, expertise, and new customers. Taking this conversation to an international level will broaden our perspectives, partnerships, and opportunities.  

Ecosystem Exchange is just beginning and at CodeBase we’re excited for what this can mean for UK Tech.

Investors plot Scotland’s place in global financial landscape, by Nick Freer

At The Scotsman’s annual investment conference at the Kimpton Charlotte Square Hotel in Edinburgh on Wednesday, attendees got to hear from top executives in the financial services industry on the global investment landscape and how Scotland fits into the equation.

Leading off, Scottish Financial Enterprise’s chief executive Sandy Begbie, comparing Scotland and the UK’s investor attractiveness to a school report card, said we “could do better”.  While there are a number of barriers to investment in investors’ minds, said Begbie, Scotland’s “soft power” is regarded highly by many of the world’s largest economies including North America and China.

What can we do better?  A good start, according to Begbie, would be to “do things at greater pace, get things done quicker”.  We will have a gilt-edged opportunity to improve our report card when an international investment summit in Edinburgh this October, supported by both the Scottish and UK governments, will see over 100 global investors jet into the capital.

So, what did some of the investors at Wednesday’s conference think?  In the first panel of the day, RBC Brewin Dolphin senior investment manager John Moore discussed how stock markets are traditionally “very narrative driven”, but that these narratives can change.

So, remarked Moore, think about the so-called Magnificent Seven tech stocks (Apple, Microsoft, Nvidia, Amazon, Tesla, Alphabet, and Meta), which after two years of leading stocks’ rallies worldwide, are currently tracking for their worst performance since 2022.

Another narrative is around the perceived “uninvestable” nature of Chinese stocks, a perception that has been turned on its head in 2025 to the tune of an over $400 billion upturn in Chinese tech “mega caps” which has left their once dominant US counterparts trailing.

Coutts’ chief investment officer Fahad Kamal concurred to the narrative shifting in global markets, saying “our job [as investors] is to take a step back and put perspective on things”, but that even in the face of a faltering US stock market, “the US still seems pretty exceptional to me”.

When asked about where the UK sits, and Scotland within that, Kamal said that with so much political noise around the world, the UK is a relative “island of calm,  a government with a big mandate, and serenely mature, which contrasts with other global equivalents.  That’s quite a sea change, and that helps”.

Zehrid Osmani, head of global equities at Martin Currie, told the conference that we are now in the most disruptive decade ever when it comes to innovation, with “revolutions” taking place in AI, energy transition, and healthcare infrastructure.   

Chloé Darling-Stewart, an investment manager with Baillie Gifford, asked the conference, “what if I said that some of the world’s most innovative companies are not in Silicon Valley, but here in the UK”?  Somewhat against the grain, Baillie Gifford sees the UK equity market as a great hunting ground for growth investors.

So, Benjamin Franklin was right when he said that, “an investment in knowledge pays the best interest”, and it was good to wind down with a glass of sauvignon blanc with renowned financial journalist Mark McSherry at a local watering hole when the conference came to a close.

Can Scotland keep up in the AI race? By Nick Freer

In the recently published Techscaler annual report, charting the second year of the Scottish Government’s support programme for Scottish startups, it doesn’t take long to get to a section titled “AI, AI, AI”.  Chiming with what I wrote here at the end of last year, the only tech trend that really matters in 2025 is artificial intelligence and the “machine-assisted writing is clearly on the wall”.

CodeBase, which runs Techscaler, notes that “the real opportunity for Scotland lies in fostering startups powered by AI”, and is now working with an increasing number of AI-first companies, with other ventures pivoting to AI-focused strategies.

I think there’s also a third way, which might be described as layering AI into your product, so that could be a software tool like the one being developed by my youngest brother, Dr Matthew Freer, whose health technology startup Infix has developed software to improve operating theatre efficiencies,helping to ease hospital waiting lists across Scotland’s NHS health boards.

As Matthew, the brother at the front of the queue when the brains got handed out, put it in a recent press announcement: “With the vast quantities of data and use cases we’ve gathered over the last few years, we have been able to target the precise areas where AI can add even more value”

Infix was one of the fast-growth SMEs to take part in tech group ClearSky Logic’s AI survey, the findings of which were released earlier this week.  The survey, which our agency co-developed with ClearSky, revealed that 57 per cent of companies have already invested in AI, while approximately 90 per cent are planning to do so.

Ed Vickers, co-founder of Edinburgh-headquartered marketing firm LOOP Agencies and one of the business leaders to take part in the survey, said: “The fear that AI will replace jobs is changing to ‘AI won’t take my job, but someone who knows how to will’.

Aakanksha Sadekar, CEO and Founder of Aberdeen-headquartered digital health technology startup Tracker.Health, another survey participant, said: “AI is being rapidly adopted into digital health solutions worldwide, we have been spending time out in Asia and are now working with commercial partners in Singapore, China, and Japan, so we’re seeing firsthand how Scotland must keep pace with the fast-moving evolution of AI.”

Of course, we need to be cognizant of the challenges we face as a nation around AI, as expertly articulated by Ross McNairn, the CEO of legal tech startup Wordsmith, when he wrote for this column a fortnight ago.

“AI is a talent game”, wrote McNairn, “and its most critical asset is people. The best AI engineers, researchers, and entrepreneurs are highly mobile, well paid, and in global demand. Countries that understand this are creating the most favourable conditions possible to attract talent. Scotland must do the same, or it will be left behind.”

AI is a race, the starting gun has been fired and the runners are off. The collective hope is that our runner is in good enough shape to keep up with the competition.

The AI 'bucket list', guest blog by Steven Drost, chief strategy officer at CodeBase and professor at the University of Edinburgh

AI is the latest technology paradigm to impact society at a large scale, and there is a lot of conversation around what AI is, what it is not, what it can do, can’t do, what it means for society, jobs, productivity, and more.  At the same time, the conversation around AI can be confusing.  

I often talk about AI as being in one of three “buckets” - bucket one being “the unknown”, bucket two “the familiar”, and bucket three “the commodity”. 

Bucket one (“the unknown”) is AI that is going to create brand new life realities, create new unfathomable paradigms that we cannot really articulate. This kind of AI conversation will often invoke sci-fi descriptions, both on the dystopian side, think AI doomsayers’ visions of Skynet-powered robot overlords primed to kill us in the movie Terminator.  

Or, we invoke utopian thoughts of robots doing all the work, helping humans to live their best lives, unencumbered by the need for labour. This level of AI innovation is not just about the current breakthroughs such as large language models, but anticipates deep, sweeping, disruptive phenomena that would see AI building AI - artificial general Intelligence (AGI) - and completely change life as we know it. 

Bucket two (“the familiar”) is AI that’s already here.   It presents itself to you in the shape of new features in your productivity tools you have been using on your computer or smartphone. To give an example,  you can now record a Microsoft Teams call, have an AI feature transcribe the conversation into text, have that text translated and then push the translation out as a podcast with an AI-enabled voice.

This AI is not really disruptive, but rather it sustains existing work and life flows by supercharging them. It’s the basis of the promise that efficiency gains can be made, that we can make our economy more productive. In this version of AI, AI will act as an agent, a co-pilot for existing jobs. Yes, some low level jobs will disappear, but others will be retained, and new ones will appear.  So, hospital waiting lists will go down through better bed allocation.

Bucket three (“the commodity”) contains developments around AI that are moving so fast that they are almost invisible. To illustrate, consider the iPhone: the changes between iPhone 3 and iPhone 4 were huge: and were obvious to even the most casual user. But the change delta from iPhone 15 to iPhone 16 is much harder to see and experience. 

AI is going through that process much faster. This means that AI will become a commodity very quickly, inserted into many human endeavours, in the way that electricity is omnipresent. We will be able to buy ‘intelligence’ cheaply via new vehicles and methods, and this will have a huge impact on how we work, live, and interact with the world around us.

The first bucket will be created by the brightest people at the best universities. The second bucket already belongs to big tech companies, and the third bucket belongs to new ventures, including startups that can be built by non-technical people.

At CodeBase, we are at the intersection of this paradigm as an AI enabler in the Scottish technology ecosystem.  

Scotland's AI future depends on talent that builds (not talks), guest blog by Ross McNairn, CEO and co-founder of Wordsmith AI

AI is a talent game, and its most critical asset is people. The best AI engineers, researchers, and entrepreneurs are highly mobile, well paid, and in global demand. Countries that understand this are creating the most favourable conditions possible to attract talent. 

Scotland must do the same, or it will be left behind. As a place to live, Scotland offers incredible advantages but we must dramatically increase our attractiveness relative to the aggressive efforts of other nations. Scotland must become an obvious choice, not a hard sell. 

Once the ecosystem is built and gains momentum, more options will open up. For now, we must actively court this talent, making it easy to bring back those who have left and encouraging high-end professionals to relocate here.

Currently, Scotland isn’t a natural destination for top-tier software executives or AI talent. Moving an AI engineer earning hundreds of thousands in San Francisco or London to Scotland is difficult under current conditions. The tax regime is punishing at the top end, relocation is complex, and our equity and options system is far less attractive than competitors like the U.S. or Singapore. 

If Scotland is serious about AI, we need a far more compelling proposition. That means streamlining immigration for high-value workers, ensuring it’s easy and advantageous for them to be paid here, and overhauling tax treatment of stock options to encourage AI startups to headquarter and scale in Scotland.

Beyond attracting talent, we must build a pipeline of AI expertise. The best way to do that is to bring in world-class professionals who can train and upskill our workforce. There’s no point investing in education if we lack educators with real industry experience who can share cutting-edge AI knowledge across Scotland’s universities, businesses, and public institutions. 

Spain’s Beckham Law, which provides favourable tax treatment to high-earning foreign executives, has been crucial in attracting global talent. Scotland needs a similarly bold approach to AI talent acquisition. We should explore more radical examples, such as industrial zones with favourable income tax treatment for businesses that relocate a high percentage of their talent workforce to Scotland.

Once we attract top talent, we’ll need a highly skilled domestic workforce capable of absorbing and applying their knowledge. That means doubling down on STEM education, particularly maths and science, from primary school through university. We should also bias education subsidies towards these disciplines to align our workforce with the technical demands of the AI era. This isn’t just an economic opportunity – it’s a necessity. The countries that dominate AI will shape the future, and Scotland has the potential to lead. 

Scotland boasts world-class universities, a growing startup ecosystem, and an ambitious tech sector. However, without a deliberate and aggressive push to make Scotland a magnet for AI talent, we’ll remain on the sidelines, watching as others seize the opportunity.

Scotland must act now. We need to create an environment that attracts and retains the world’s best AI minds, cementing our position as a leader in the most transformative industry of our time. It’s time to move away from being a nation of talkers and back to being a nation of builders.

Paris summit brings AI focus back to Europe, by Nick Freer

American computer scientist John McCarthy and colleagues from Dartmouth College are credited with coining the term “artificial intelligence” at a small conference in 1956.  Fast forward seventy years and AI is ubiquitous in the news.

This week, French President Emmanuel Macron announced over 100 billion Euros of investments into artificial intelligence at the AI Action Summit in Paris, bringing some of the media focus back to Europe at a time when the US and China dominate the headlines.

In tandem with the United Arab Emirates who are helping to fund the deal via Abu Dhabi’s MGX fund, investments will be made into both French and Emirati AI - via the acquisition of cutting-edge chips, data centres, talent development, the establishment of “virtual data embassies”, and cloud infrastructure in both territories.

Everywhere you look, the UAE is all over AI, and no great surprise when you consider they have had an artificial intelligence minister in place since 2017.  Oh, and pockets that are deeper than an Arabian oil well.

In situ in the French capital was OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who will be spearheading the world’s largest AI infrastructure project, dubbed “Stargate” and totalling around $500 billion including involvement from MGX, in the US alongside Oracle and Japan’s SoftBank.

With such big ticket projects and eye watering valuations, it can be difficult to see where the opportunities lie for Scottish tech.  However, we only have to look a few hundred miles south to see that UK startups can have a seat at AI’s top table.

Fluidstack, a startup founded at the University of Oxford in 2017, is to build the 1 gigawatt AI supercomputer in France that is integral to Macron’s AI plan, a decarbonised energy-powered data centre that will leverage the nation’s predominantly nuclear energy.

As we know, innovation and the universities go hand in hand, and in 2024 the UK ranked fourth globally for research and innovation around AI, with high-performing universities and innovative businesses attracting significant investment, with the UK also home to approximately a third of Europe’s AI startups.

The latest figures from analytics firm Dealroom reveal the appetite of venture capitalists for artificial intelligence, with AI startups raising $110 billion worldwide in 2024, up by over 60 per cent against 2023, while the year-on-year overall funding for technology startups and scale-ups actually went down by over 10 per cent.

At the Edinburgh Futures Institute last week, Techscaler, the Scottish Government’s tech startup support initiative run by CodeBase, reported on its second year of operation, recording an increasing number of “AI-first” Techscaler companies, with many others pivoting to “AI-focused strategies”.

There is growing sentiment that we can harness the value of AI in new business creation here, in large part by connecting cutting-edge research with our startup ecosystem.

And if we can align with global platforms and tap into international investors whose hunger for AI talent is unlikely to abate, perhaps Scotland can genuinely position itself towards the fore of AI-driven innovation.

Where is housing market headed in 2025? Guest blog by John Boyle, director of research at Rettie

As we move into 2025, many housing market commentators make forecasts (or, more accurately, intelligent guesses) of what lies ahead.

Housing is pro-cyclical, so will tend to match changes in the wider economy.

Bank of England forecasts suggest that the economy will remain subdued this year as a period of relatively high interest rates has weighed down on growth. However, the anticipated modest cuts in interest rates this year have started to happen, with the current market consensus suggesting a drop of 0.75 percentage points over the course of the year to bring the base rate down to 4% for the first time since early 2023.

This has already been at least partly reflected in reduced mortgage rates, but these will remain above historic levels for a time, which will mean that the market will still face a headwind as many households will have to remortgage at higher rates. This is likely to exert continued downward pressure on the overall average price across Scotland.

On the positive side, the UK Government is talking about loosening mortgage regulation, which may make it easier for more people, particularly younger people, to get on the housing ladder. However, this will require action by the regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, which will have to keep a careful eye on limiting risky lending given the impact that lax lending policies had on the housing market when it crashed in 2008/09.

In our current central forecast, we expect the average house price in Scotland to rise this year by around 3%. In subsequent years, we think that growth will move back closer to the long-term trend (of around 4%) – if the economy recovers as anticipated. Sales activity is stabilising and starting to recover, albeit slowly. 

Transactions were around 93,000 in 2023 and climbed to just over 98,000 in 2024. We think there may be some very modest improvement in 2025 and perhaps we will again hit the 10-year average of c.100,000 sales per year. However, this will vary across geographies and property types. To give some context, Scotland achieved 154,000 sales in 2007 at the market peak, a level that we are unlikely to return to anytime soon.

In the rental market, we think that some of the pressures on the private rented sector (PRS) will continue to ease as demand dampens a little. This is already being seen in the main cities, although sharper reductions in supply may increase pressures again, especially if the problems presented by the new Housing Bill are not addressed. 

Much of this Bill, e.g. on keeping pets and being able to more easily end joint tenancies, is welcomed by the housing sector, but provisions for rent control (especially between tenancies) is causing consternation, despite a link to inflation now being included, which the sector lobbied for. 

When the legislation is settled, landlords will be doing their sums and it seems likely that there will be some exodus from those who believe that they can no longer make an acceptable return. Caps on rents may also create caps on supply.

Making hybrid work work, guest blog by Lisa Thomson, Chief People Officer at ClearSky Logic, Board member at Entrepreneurial Scotland, and an Ambassador at Women’s Enterprise Scotland

As I write this, a red weather warning is in place across the central belt due to Storm Eowyn - schools are closed, and there is widespread disruption. Our offices are closed to prioritise the safety of our valued team - and as a hybrid and flexible technology business we are all enabled to work seamlessly from anywhere.

And having just watched the BBC Panorama documentary, “Should we still be working from home”, it feels very timely to share my own views on flexible and hybrid working.

In the technology sector, working from home and flexible working was not a new concept by the time the COVID pandemic hit. It had tended to be a perk offered, an option for team members to accommodate ad hoc personal needs.

Thankfully, the days of lockdown and isolation are now long behind us, but the world of work has been significantly changed by its impact.  Almost five years on from the start of the pandemic, the Office for National Statistics says hybrid working - part travelling to work, and part at home - is “here to stay”.

Hybrid working enables employers to attract a wider pool of talent, and employees to cut travel time and cost.  Recent findings from a study by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) suggest that hybrid working can lead to higher employee engagement and motivation, enhancing productivity, job satisfaction, and work-life balance.

In the survey, 71 per cent of employers noted that adopting hybrid working models boosted or maintained productivity levels. Additionally, 66 per cent reported improvements in employee job satisfaction. The same report notes that 75 per cent of employees experienced a better work-life balance due to hybrid working, contributing to increased motivation and engagement.

Hybrid and flexible working arrangements enable a wider range of people to access work balanced with their needs and commitments, such as caring responsibilities, disabilities or health conditions, and neurodivergent characteristics. We should see this as an opportunity for forward thinking and progressive businesses to engage with a more diverse workforce, leading to a more inclusive culture.

Just this week, research by the Global Payroll Association (GPA) revealed that 74 per cent of UK office workers either work entirely remotely, or split their time between working from home and the office, with only 26 per cent working from the office full-time.

However, we have seen a widely reported backlash against home working and flexibility recently, with some companies increasing the expected ‘in office’ ratio days and others, like Amazon and JP Morgan, moving away entirely from a hybrid strategy.

We increasingly hear from high profile business leaders, tech mogul Jeff Bezos among them, that working from home can lead to decreasing productivity, although the GPA survey found that less than 10 per cent of workers believe that working from home makes them less productive.

While it is clear that the debate will go on across boardrooms and ways of working will continue to shift, it is integral that employers put in place best practice policies that demonstrate a duty of care to their team wherever they happen to be based.

Lesson from Asian ecosystem builders, guest blog by Sally Dale, Programme Manager, CodeBase

At the Singapore Week of Innovation and Technology (SWITCH) at the end of October, I had the chance to speak with technology ecosystem builders from Singapore, Malaysia, Japan, and Taiwan, gaining a better understanding of their strategies and comparing them to what we know here in Scotland and the UK.

While there are plenty of similarities between countries, the differences offer valuable lessons for how we might refine and expand our approaches at home.

Across the board, ecosystem builders in Asia prioritise community and mentorship, echoing many of the initiatives we’ve championed here at CodeBase.  In Singapore, this focus is particularly pronounced, with founders actively encouraged to give back through structured mentorship programmes.

Similarly, Malaysia focuses on cultivating partnerships, supporting product testing, and helping startups achieve ‘product market fit’ (PMF) - crucial for any startup aiming at commercialisation.   

The challenges faced by Taiwan’s early stage ventures also struck a chord.  Founders there often grapple with pitching skills and next-step navigation, problems we frequently encounter in early stage startups in Scotland.

An interesting parallel is how ecosystems in both Singapore and the UK treat failure as an opportunity to learn. Gabrielle Tan from Singapore Management University described how their entrepreneurial training involves students evaluating hundreds of pitch decks in their first year, analysing what works and what doesn’t. This aligns with our efforts to normalise failure as part of growth, a lesson reinforced through programmes we run like Techscaler, where founders learn by dissecting real-world successes and failures.

Alongside these similarities and common ground, we also encountered differences that highlight the unique strengths and approaches of Asian ecosystems.

Singapore’s tech ecosystem, for example, is extremely outward-looking, a necessity given the country's small domestic market. Local startups are encouraged to engage in immersion programmes, spending time in international startups to gain global perspectives and build networks.  This “global-first mindset” is a striking contrast to the UK, where many startups initially focus on scaling nationally before eyeing international opportunities.

Breaking into Japan, according to people we met, presents unique challenges, particularly around language and cultural nuances. Having a local partner is not just a recommendation but a necessity for startups to navigate this market effectively.

Overall, our key takeaways for the UK ecosystem were around adopting a global mindset, strengthening cultural fluency, learning from failure at scale, fostering more immersive partnerships, and expanding entrepreneurial training.

We think the UK startup ecosystem has much to gain from the insights of Asian ecosystem builders, helping us to refine our own ecosystem and ensure our startups are prepared for both local and international growth and success.

As these conversations at SWITCH revealed, ecosystems are only as strong as the communities they nurture. Whether in Scotland or Singapore, the emphasis on collaboration, mentorship, and learning from failure remains universal - and continues to drive innovation and economic growth forward.

Scotland's offshore wind plans grind on amid Trump headwinds, by Jeremy Grant

For offshore wind in Scotland last week was as tempestuous as it gets. And I don’t just mean the battering from Storm Eowyn. 

Donald Trump banned any further offshore wind projects in the US, declaring: “We’re not going to do the wind thing”. The ripple effect was felt in Europe as shares in two of the region’s largest wind businesses, Orsted and Vestas, tumbled. 

Undeterred, industry body Scottish Renewables hosted an offshore wind conference in Glasgow on how to deliver the vast North Sea wind farms that are to help the UK start delivering clean power by 2030.  

Trump’s distaste for offshore wind has been known in Scotland since he launched a series of legal challenges a decade ago against a wind farm planned off the Aberdeenshire coast, complaining it would spoil the view from his golf course at the Menie Estate. 

“So far, so unsurprising”, Kate Forbes, deputy first minister, said of his latest salvo. She also told the conference the picture for Scottish offshore wind was “more complex and muddier than it’s ever been”.

That’s down to years of inflation-related cost pressures and, in the UK, glacial progress on grid connections and transmission upgrades. Industry also has been puzzling over supply chains, especially for the floating wind farms that are the next frontier in technology and make up 60 per cent of planned capacity under the ScotWind seabed leases awarded three years ago.

Yet Forbes and others also struck an optimistic tone, citing a “once in a lifetime economic opportunity for Scotland”. This is not hyperbole. The build-out of offshore wind represents nothing less than the re-industrialisation of Scotland, as Scottish Renewables chief executive Claire Mack noted. 

And it is starting to happen, even though little is yet visible off the Aberdeenshire coast. Digging and dredging are underway at Ardesier Port near Inverness to develop a quayside capable of accommodating offshore wind component assembly at a site the size of 22 football fields. Last week, developer Cerulean Winds picked Ardesier for development of one of its wind farms that should be operational by 2029. 

Up the road at Nigg, 5,000 tonnes of steel are being sourced for a 10-acre factory underway by Japan’s Sumitomo Electric to make subsea cables. Scottish National Investment Bank this month pledged to invest £20 million in XLCC, another subsea cable company that will use Chinese technology to make cables at an expanded Hunterston marine yard. 

Offshore wind’s problem is partly one of expectations and optics. A wind farm won’t be real to the public until Eiffel Tower-sized turbines are dotting the horizon. Progress on the unglamorous behind-the scenes building blocks tends to be invisible.  

Chris Stark, the UK government’s head of “mission control” at the department for energy security and net zero, explained that work is underway on 80 UK transmission projects. Westminster intends the next renewable energy subsidy auction to be record-breaking. The goal is engineering a switch in the energy mix to renewables from gas. 

“Why are we doing this? It’s very good for the climate, but more important is the huge energy security and economic return we get, particularly in Scotland,” Stark said. “The next 12 months are absolutely critical.”

AI is eating the world - can Scotland lead? Guest blog by Richard Lennox, a scaleup adviser who previously held leadership roles at Skyscanner and Current Health

In 2011, Marc Andreessen suggested that “Software Is Eating the World”. And mostly, it has – with software affecting every aspect of our lives. As we begin 2025, we are at the start of a new epoch, with Artificial Intelligence reaching critical mass. The rise of generative AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, et al. are pushing AI into being a fundamental part of how we all work and innovate.

Contrary to some, I do not think we will see Artificial General Intelligence in 2025. What we will see is increasingly mature and sophisticated AI models capable of tackling significantly more complex tasks, faster. Every significant breakthrough going forward — in medicine, climate solutions, and realistically every other field — will leverage AI to a greater or lesser extent.

Scotland is well-placed to be on the front foot in this new epoch. AI has been a focus in our universities for decades, and with many emerging AI startups, like Malted.AI and Wordsmith AI, there is already momentum.

However, a fundamental opportunity is going under-addressed amidst the hype. AI progress will continue to depend on two critical factors: data and computational power.

AI is energy-intensive; data centres require enormous power supplies to fulfil its computational demands. Globally, data centre innovators are exploring nuclear power to provide the clean energy necessary. The national experience and regulatory landscape mean that this is unlikely to gain traction in the UK quickly enough to be significant. This is where Scotland has a distinct advantage. With the growing renewable energy sector, we can position ourselves as a leader in sustainable AI infrastructure. We already have increasing renewable energy capacity, often with surplus power the National Grid cannot handle, and the necessary capability to create sustainable data centres.

Data is one of our most valuable resources, beyond the AI need for it. Control and ownership will be essential over the next few years. We cannot rely on external nations or organisations to manage this critical resource. By building locally operated data centres, we can secure our data, safeguarding individual and national interests.

The idea is not new. In 2021, the Scottish Government highlighted the potential for green data centres. Yet, while 20 potential strategic data centre sites have been identified, none have progressed to the point of operation and overall progress is glacial. By contrast, since 2021, several new data centres in south west England are becoming operational.

As we start the new year, I suggest a bold yet achievable vision: Scotland should build at least five new AI data centres by the end of 2026 and a further twenty over the next 5 years. These data centres should be powered with renewable energy, directly partnering with power producers for a sustainable energy supply. I am not suggesting that this would be easy. It would require significant public-private commitments to overcome challenges. Yet I see nothing intractable.

AI is already reshaping the world. Investing in AI computational capacity alongside renewable energy infrastructure is an economic necessity. Such infrastructure has the potential to position Scotland as the UK leader in AI development, data management, and green technology, with much broader economic benefits. We have the resources, expertise, and opportunity. However, leadership in this area requires the will to act.

Building stronger startup communities with AI, guest blog by Barry McDonald, VP of Community, CodeBase

Remember the early days of startup communities? They were all about coffee meetups, business card exchanges, and hoping you'd bump into the right mentor, peer, or investor. While that human touch remains irreplaceable, artificial intelligence is revolutionising how startup communities connect, learn, and grow together.

Perhaps we should start to think of AI as your community's silent partner, working behind the scenes to make magic happen. Here’s how I think these smart tools are transforming startup ecosystems and making entrepreneurship more accessible than ever.

Almost gone are the days of random networking, although I still fly the flag for serendipitous encounters. AI-powered platforms like LinkedIn's advanced algorithms and Wellfound are now like skilled matchmakers, analysing profiles and interests to connect founders with exactly the right mentors, investors, or partners.  Imagine walking into a startup event where an AI has already identified the three people you absolutely need to meet – that's the future we're living in.

Every founder's journey is unique, and AI understands that. Platforms like Feedly AI and Udacity's personalised learning paths can curate content specific to each startup's needs. Tools like Maven and Coursera's AI-powered recommendation systems serve up relevant articles, courses, and webinars tailored to specific challenges, whether that's a fundraising strategy or product development.

Remember when market research meant endless hours of Google searches? AI tools like CB Insights and Crunchbase now act like your personal research assistant, analysing market trends, tracking competitors, and identifying opportunities in real-time. For customer insights, tools like Google Analytics with AI insights and Mixpanel can help predict which features your customers will love next.

Running a startup community is like juggling while riding a unicycle – there's always too much to do. AI helps by taking care of the routine stuff: Zapier's AI automations handle workflows, while Notion AI streamlines documentation and planning. Community management platforms like Commsor use AI to track engagement and identify members who might need extra attention.

Some of the most exciting AI applications are in collaborative innovation. Platforms like IdeaScale use AI to enhance brainstorming and problem-solving sessions. For product development, tools like ProductBoard's AI features help teams make data-driven decisions about feature prioritisation.

Understanding community sentiment is crucial. Tools like MonkeyLearn and Brandwatch help monitor what people are saying about your startup or community across social media and forums. For gathering direct feedback, platforms like Typeform's AI analysis features can help make sense of survey responses and identify trends.

When it's time to scale, AI tools like HubSpot's AI features and GrowthBot can optimise marketing campaigns and identify new growth opportunities. For financial planning, platforms like QuickBooks AI and Xero's analytics help startups make smarter decisions about their resources.

Here's the beautiful thing about AI in startup communities: it's not about replacing human connections – it's about enhancing them.

The key is finding the right balance – using AI to handle the mechanical aspects of community building while preserving the warmth and authenticity that make startup communities special. When we get this balance right, we create spaces where innovation thrives and entrepreneurs can focus on what they do best: building amazing things.