Dozen winners chosen to take part in ScotGov’s CivTech Accelerator programme

Twelve winning teams have been selected to take part in the Scottish Government’s CivTech Accelerator programme after tech entrepreneurs and companies from across the UK and beyond competed to win a place.

CivTech is described as the world’s first government-run accelerator for digital public services, and it was launched in 2016 to inject innovation into how the public sector uses technology to improve the lives of Scots.

The dozen winning teams proposed innovative digital offerings such as how to tackle climate change, improve social care services, and upgrade educational facilities.

They will join CivTech’s “world-beating” Accelerator programme, and together will work to solve a wide range of challenges set by various public sector bodies.

The news follows the announcement by the Scottish Government of investment of £13.5 million to scale CivTech. Picture: Oli Scarff/AFP via Getty Images.

This year’s programme saw more than 130 applications, an increase from 2020. Successful companies include iSumio, which has developed a way to measure indirect company emissions that will help decarbonise Scottish manufacturing; Matter Of Focus, which has created an app that allows care practitioners to speak directly with people about the services best aligned to their personal care needs; and Buro Happold, which has produced a data-driven platform that will improve learning environments across Scotland.

The announcement follows the recent news of investment of £13.5 million to scale Edinburgh-based CivTech over the lifetime of this parliament, with a further £46m to fund the delivery of innovative products and services across the public sector.

This funding will also help to expand the CivTech Programme, which is sponsored by Harvey Nash and Sopra Steria, and will provide the winning teams with an “intense” programme of workshops and other support as they develop their products and businesses over a 15-week period.

There is up to £250,000 funding available for each challenge, and the Accelerator will culminate in a Demo Day on February 8. Further guidance and support has also been provided by CivTech’s partners South of Scotland Enterprise (SOSE), Interface, Scottish Business Network and Censis.

Ivan McKee, minister for business, trade, tourism and enterprise for Scotland, said: “Our investment in the CivTech Accelerator programme is already delivering on our ambition for new digital solutions to challenges faced by our community.

“It is great to see CivTech using innovation to tackle the climate emergency and ecological decline, with one particular challenge sponsored by the Scottish Government aiming to help manufacturers decarbonise.”

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