Scottish tech accelerator that’s helped create 400 jobs backs three new ventures

Scotland’s Smart Things Accelerator Centre (Stac) is backing three Scottish “deep tech” companies spanning quantum computing, social housing and clean energy infrastructure.

The tech accelerator’s second investment round, amounting to £772,000 and co-invested by the Stac Invest syndicate, brings funding to Quantcore Technologies, Vuabl and Airspection. All three ventures have completed the centre’s “intensive” 18-month accelerator programme with Vuabl and Airspection establishing their headquarters at “thebeyond”, Stac’s 22,000-square-foot technology hub at Skypark in Glasgow.

The announcement comes as the accelerator centre begins fundraising for its first dedicated deep tech fund, targeting between £15 million and £30m to significantly scale its capacity to back Scottish founders.

Paul Wilson is chief executive and co-founder of Stac. Picture: Stewart Attwood

Quantcore Technologies receives £250,000 from Stac Invest in a £2.5m co-investment round. A spin-out from the University of Glasgow, the venture is the only company in the UK manufacturing niobium-based superconducting circuits, operating from the James Watt Nanofabrication Centre. Its technology is central to the quantum hardware supply chain that UK government strategy now explicitly depends upon.

Vuabl receives £222,000, co-invested by Stac Invest. The company has developed software that uses the sensors built into modern smartphones to scan properties and generate comprehensive condition reports, covering 3D modelling, energy performance ratings, structural condition and early detection of damp or mould.

Airspection, meanwhile, gains £300,000 of investment. The company has developed an autonomous drone that harnesses wind as energy to fly in extreme weather conditions, hovering with precision over offshore wind turbines to carry out structural inspection and maintenance surveys.

Beyond offshore wind, the technology is seen as having clear applications in surveying critical national infrastructure, power lines, railway networks and coastal assets, immediately following extreme weather events, enabling faster damage assessment.

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Paul Wilson, chief executive and co-founder of Stac, said: “These three companies show exactly what Stac is for. One is helping redefine the future of computing. One is giving people in social housing the right to a healthy, sustainable home. One is making Scotland’s clean energy infrastructure safer and more efficient.

“Each is a strong story in its own right. Together, they demonstrate the breadth and ambition of what is being built here in Glasgow. Local and global impact at scale.

“Stac’s model is simple: we find the talent and partner with universities, we nurture companies through our programme, we provide world class technology access, we invest in them, and we connect them to corporate partners and contracts that transform promising technology into a globally competitive business, without them having to leave Scotland to do it.”

Stac has now supported more than 120 start-ups, facilitated in excess of £50m in investment into its portfolio, and helped create some 400 jobs.

Head of investment, Angus Macfadyen, added: “What makes Stac Invest distinctive is not only the significance of first check confidence, but the value that comes with it. We have built relationships with major corporates across technology, energy and critical services, and we use those relationships to open doors for our portfolio companies.

“We have now begun fundraising for our first institutional fund, targeting between £15m and £30m.”