Notable Universities
Notable Companies
Notable Workspaces
Notable Meetups
What's there
Once an industrial powerhouse, Scotland’s largest city is now a digital tech heavyweight where business, trade and investment flourish.
Glasgow’s universities, and the University of Strathclyde in particular, provide a rich seam of talent. Strathclyde has formed more than 50 spinout companies with annual sales of £80 million.
A wide range of digital tech sectors are represented in the city, from fintech and e-commerce, to social networking and enterprise software. Space technology is also taking off, as evidenced by Alba Orbital, Spire and Clyde Space.
The city’s startups and entrepreneurs are well supported by co-working spaces such as RookieOven, meet-ups including Glasgow PHP, and organisations like Creative Clyde, which aims to promote Glasgow’s creative industries.
What's new
During its tenure as the official European Entrepreneurial Region of 2016, Glasgow witnessed the establishment of new tech festival Techaus and new co-working space Think Tank. What’s more, CodeClan, Scotland’s digital skills academy also expanded into the city.
Meanwhile, iconic building the Tontine has been reinvented as a centre for technological innovation, as part of a £1.13 billion Glasgow infrastructure deal. The Tontine is expected to support the development of 134 high-growth companies over five years.
What's up next
Glasgow city centre will be home to Scotland’s first city Innovation District. Bringing business, academia and government together to grow the health, life sciences and engineering sectors. The district will be co-located at Strathclyde University’s Technology & Innovation Centre, Scottish Enterprise’s Innovation Building and the Tontine Building.
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Dr Graeme Malcom
CEO & Founder, M Squared Lasers
What we do
Fast growth photonics technology company M Squared designs precision lasers for scientific and commercial applications. The company also undertakes extensive R&D into future technologies in areas such as quantum computing, medical research and the detection of chemical warfare agents.
Why Glasgow?
M squared lasers are produced at our Glasgow headquarters and shipped all over the world.
Since the invention of the first rangefinder during WW1, Glasgow has been a centre of excellence for optical imaging and lasers. M Squared benefits from the region's wealth of experienced scientists
and partners. -
Tom Walkinshaw
CEO & Founder, Alba Orbital Ltd
What we do
Alba Orbital design and build PocketQubes - the smallest satellites in the world. Even smaller than the more widely available CubeSats, these reduce the cost of access to space for companies and academia alike.
Why Glasgow?
Glasgow has an abundance of skilled graduates and professionals, which has led to three satellite companies being located here. Having the right people on your doorstep is a key competitive advantage.