A partnership between the UK Government, Glasgow City Council, and the Smart Things Accelerator Centre (STAC) has been launched with the aim of transforming Glasgow into Europe’s largest smart things and IoT innovation hub.  

The partnership will centre around a £2.5 million public and private sector investment into a 250-desk facility named “thebeyond” at SkyPark, Finnieston in Glasgow.

Glasgow aims to become a frontrunner in technologies such as drones, robots, AI, IoT, nanotech, medtech and cleantech.

Projections are for Glasgow to evolve into an innovation leader with a focus on industrial, lifestyle, health, and sustainability technologies by the end of 2024. As many as 100 companies are anticipated being established in the city through the new funding. Through the partnership, Glasgow City Council and the city, the third largest in the UK, will become a test bed for homegrown innovations via STAC, which was launched in 2021.  

The initiative is supported by industry executives from organisations including Dyson, Plexus, Meta, Blackberry, Motorola, and Volvo Cars. 

Paul Wilson, CEO, and co-founder of STAC, and driving force behind the partnership, said: “Glasgow can be a powerhouse in the key technologies that will enhance life and industry for the next decades. As we build the leading tech cluster around STAC’s thebeyond we will gain a reputation and attract international investment. That’s the goal, ambitious and realisable. We believe thebeyond will be Europe’s largest Smart Things and IoT space.”

“We have the talent and innovation from our universities, now we are boosting entrepreneurship and increasing the ambition to position Glasgow as a leader in the development and application of key future technologies that will allow it to compete on the global stage,” said Volvo Cars CEO and STAC Advisory member Jim Rowan.

“Technology innovation being driven through STAC’s accelerator programme can provide companies like Meta a vital source of “first of kind” technologies, that will change how people live, communicate, and play in future. That’s the play here at thebeyond” said Sean Murphy VP, Global Supply Chain at Meta and STAC Advisory member.