Data Lab doubles up with £70m boost to economy

Scotland's publicly funded innovation centre for data science is set to double its annual contribution to the economy to £70 million after ramping up the number of research projects it supports.

Data Lab's Gillian Docherty was last week named CEO of the year at the annual ScotlandIS Digital Tech awards. Picture: Contributed

Data Lab, launched in 2014 and headed by chief executive Gillian Docherty, also said that the 52 initiatives it is backing will create some 250 jobs across the country, of which 190 are described as “high value” positions.

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Docherty, who was last week named CEO of the year at the ScotlandIS Digital Tech Awards said: “There is no doubt, Scotland is seizing the data opportunity. The rate of growth we’ve seen over the past year is testament to burgeoning demand from across the public and private sector to leverage insight from data. It’s encouraging to see so many seeking innovative data led solutions to their challenges.”

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She added that increasing numbers of overseas organisations were being drawn to Scotland’s “world-class academic institutions and inspiring landscape of start-ups and entrepreneurialism”.

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