The Times and Sunday Times Scotland: Future of Digital Tech Summit, delivered in partnership with Opportunity North East.

Step into the heart of Scotland’s digital evolution at The Future of Digital Tech, hosted in Aberdeen – home to a dynamic tech cluster developing solutions for global industries. Join a celebration of the founders and investors driving entrepreneurial growth. Take a deep dive into what makes globally competitive tech ventures thrive, and spotlight AI developments transforming key sectors and shaping tomorrow’s economy.

Powered by one of the UK’s fastest-growing tech clusters—and backed by a founder-focused private-sector-led entrepreneurial ecosystem —the Aberdeen city region is delivering scalable solutions across industrial AI, data, automation, and enterprise software, with deep roots in high-value industries including energy, agriculture, food and drink manufacturing and life sciences.

Hosted by The Times and Sunday Times Scotland, in partnership with Opportunity North East and the Scottish National Investment Bank, the agenda brings together founders, industry leaders, innovators and investors from across the UK to share experiences and practical insights on scaling innovation-led enterprises and shaping the digital industrial future. The event will examine what investors look for in industrial AI and B2B SaaS, and how founders fund and build strong teams and products for impactful returns.

Glasgow has long been a powerhouse of industrial ingenuity. Once dubbed the “Second City of the Empire,” it earned global recognition for engineering excellence—home to world-class shipyards, locomotive manufacturers, and heavy industries that shaped the modern age. The River Clyde launched some of the world’s most iconic vessels, while inventors like James Watt powered the Industrial Revolution and laid the foundations for global mobility.

Today, that same spirit of innovation is driving a new revolution—this time towards a cleaner, smarter, net-zero future. As part of the #Glasgow850 celebrations, this special edition of award-winning Art of Possible series will explore how Glasgow City Region’s legacy of industrial ingenuity is powering a new era of clean, smart and sustainable transport.

Join a panel of innovators to explore how emerging technologies are redefining mobility and logistics—making systems smarter and more sustainable. The event will spotlight cutting-edge innovations in green transport and delve into the infrastructure, investment and cross-sector collaboration needed to scale them.

Speakers Include:

• Dr. Stephen Breslin – Chief Executive, Glasgow Science Centre
• Dr. Duncan Booker – Group Manager (Green Economy, Innovation & International), Glasgow City Council (Chair)
• Dr. Mahmoud Wagih – University of Glasgow & Founder at RX Watt Ltd
• More speakers to be confirmed soon
  

Now in its 8th year, this award-winning series connects innovators, creatives, and industry leaders to explore how unexpected tech collaborations drive new ideas and solutions. It’s also an official primer for Scotland’s CAN DO Innovation Summit.

The Data Analytics Conference & Sandpit taking place at UHI Inverness on 25th August will provide an opportunity for students and academics from across Scotland to showcase their research, and for industry professionals to collaborate with academic experts to design innovative solutions for data problems in their businesses.

The programme will consist of in-person talks, poster presentations and sandpit sessions.

For students and academics

If you are a researcher based in Scotland and are interested in presenting your work through a poster presentation, please submit your details.

For businesses, industry and third sector professionals

If you have a business problem that requires a data-solution but you aren’t quite sure where to start, we would love to invite to you participate in a sandpit session. Please see the Sandpit overview, submit your details and we will contact you about next steps.

Organisers
The event is being organised by Dr Andrew Duncan at University of Highlands and Islands with support from SICSA.

Accelerate your HealthTech solution with University of Glasgow’s Evidence Generation Bootcamp!

Building on the success of the inaugural bootcamp last year, the Digital Health Validation Lab is hosting its second edition on Wednesday 1st and Thursday 2nd of October. This two-day, hands-on event is designed for HealthTech innovators who are ready to accelerate their solutions and drive real-world impact.

In today’s fast-moving and competitive HealthTech landscape, robust evidence is critical to achieving regulatory approval, adoption, scale, and long-term success. This bootcamp provides a practical framework to help you confidently navigate the complexities of evidence generation and build a clear, actionable strategy aligned with your innovation and route to market.

Through expert-led sessions, you’ll gain:

• Clarity on your evidence requirements and how to address them effectively
• Confidence to engage key stakeholders with timely, relevant evidence and navigate complex evidence demands
• A personalised roadmap for evidence generation, tailored to your solution and market strategy
• Improved understanding of approaches to: Patient and Public Involvement (PPI); concept validation; health economic modelling; simulation; technical feasibility and AI performance testing; clinical investigations for regulatory approval; and clinical and cost-effectiveness studies to support adoption.

Who should attend?

HealthTech startups, SMEs, innovation leads, and academic researchers ready to turn a great solution into an evidence-backed, scalable success.

Headline speakers include:

Professor Olivia Wu is a globally recognised authority in Health Technology Assessment (HTA). She holds the prestigious William R Lindsay Chair of Health Economics at the University of Glasgow’s HEHTA and serves as Adjunct Professor at the Faculty of Pharmacy at Mahidol University in Thailand.

Professor Neil Hawkins is a Professor of Health Technology Assessment (HTA) at the University of Glasgow, where he brings decades of cross-sector experience to advancing evidence-based healthcare decision-making. His career spans academia, industry, and consultancy, with contributions across pharmacology, clinical development, epidemiology, and HTA.

Professor David Lowe is an Emergency Consultant at Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH), Clinical Director of Innovation at the University of Glasgow, and Clinical Director for Health Innovation for the Scottish Government.

Ticket Price

£295.00 – Early Bird Rate (until 15 August 2025)

£350.00 – Standard Rate (from 16 August 2025)

Please note that registration will close on Friday 19 September.

Be part of the conversation at the Art of Possible session on 19th June at the Glasgow Science Centre.

As part of the #Glasgow 850 celebrations, this Art of Possible session will highlight Glasgow’s remarkable health and life sciences journey—a story that blends centuries of scientific discovery with today’s cutting-edge medical technologies. The Glasgow’s Innovation Journey campaign is a year-long initiative showcasing how Glasgow’s industrial past has laid the foundation for the high-tech advancements of today. This month, the focus is on the city’s thriving health and life sciences sector, from breakthroughs in biotechnology and medical research to pioneering technologies that enhance patient care. Glasgow continues to lead the way in global health innovation.

This Art of Possible session will explore how technology is transforming and democratising healthcare — making it more accessible, personalised, and efficient for all.

Join the panel of experts to examine how emerging technologies are transforming areas such as early disease detection, patient wellbeing, and precision medicine. From robot-assisted surgery and ultrasonic imaging to AI-powered diagnostics, the session will explore how Glasgow’s health tech innovators are tackling global health challenges while breaking down barriers to more personalised care.

Whether it’s through data-led approaches or immersive AR/VR tools for patient and clinician support, the region’s ecosystem is shaping a future where location and circumstance no longer determine access to high-quality healthcare.

Who is Speaking?

• Dr Stephen Breslin – Chief Executive, Glasgow Science Centre
• Janette Hughes – Director of Planning & Performance, The Digital Health & Care Innovation Centre (DHI) (Chair)Nico Fenu – CEO & Founder, Nami Surgical
• Dr Paul Chapman – Director of Emerging Technology, The Glasgow School of Art
• More speakers to be confirmed soon

This will be a valuable session for business leaders, researchers, technologists, innovators, and entrepreneurs.

Join Geovation Scotland and The Edinburgh University’s AI Accelerator for an insightful event focused on the future of infrastructure and data-led solutions. In this event we will hear from Professor Sean Smith, who is heads up the Centre for Future Infrastructure and the Centre for Net-Zero High Density Buildings at the Edinburgh Futures Institute and Gala Camacho, Data Scientist and Founder of Diagonal works, Gala is particularly interested in the intersection of data & analytics, community building and technical products that enhance equity in society.

This event will feature key discussions on opportunities for SMEs, community engagement, and the role of geospatial data and AI in building inclusive environments. Following short presentations from Professor Sean Smith and Gala Camacho, there will be a networking drinks reception and a chance to meet with others in the sector.

Louise Arnold of Interface attending.

Stimulating local tech ecosystems has never been more critical. With flagship national programmes designed to widen the funnel for startups and scale-up tech companies, Futurescot’s Glasgow Tech Ecosystem conference brings together industry, government, and academic expertise poised to turn that ambition into a reality.

As we move into the critical delivery phase for Glasgow’s digital economy, local and national government funders will join with the regional agencies whose job it is to support and strengthen the tech sector and, of course, the tech companies looking to transform industries old and new across the Glasgow City Region.

By bringing together all the key players, Futurescot will help supercharge the tech ecosystem in 2024, setting the stage for a future where tech drives societal and economic growth for all.

Learning objectives:

• Understand how to navigate and work with the entire tech ecosystem in Glasgow – from the funders to the national and regional support organisations
• Hear the latest policy directives affecting your organisation – and how to respond to them
• Take advantage of the ‘triple helix’ effect: work with government, industry and academia to collaborate and innovate
• Discover new funding opportunities and practical initiatives that can help build and scale a tech business
• Hear from pioneering and inspiring tech leaders who have built successful businesses – and want to share their insights with the next generation coming up.

Jackie Sanderson and Elaine Sneddon of Interface will attend this event.

Data and artificial intelligence has played an increasingly prominent role in elections in recent years. 2024 is packed with democratic elections, in countries including the UK, United States and India, but what impact will data and AI have – both positive and negative?

How are rogue actors spreading disinformation and deploying plausible deepfakes to influence elections – and undermine our trust in democracy more generally?

How can democratic societies counter those threats – and more importantly, how can we build better future democracies by regulating and controlling AI and data effectively?

Hear from experts on these and a range of other issues around the complex interplay between artificial intelligence, data and democracy.

Back as the headline event of Glasgow Tech Week, Glasgow Tech Fest is a must-attend event for the tech, digital, and creative communities in Glasgow and beyond. Glasgow Tech Fest will bring together visionary founders, seasoned leaders, insightful investors, ecosystem champions, and experts to connect, network, and share ideas and learnings in a day of keynotes, panels, and fireside chats.

Learn from industry experts and gain practical knowledge with this year’s themes:

• Investing in the future
• Developing inclusive and collaborative ecosystems
• Scale and Growth
• Entrepreneurial journeys
• Breaking barriers

Opening keynote launching Glasgow Tech Fest is the incredible Dame Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock from BBC’s The Sky at Night! Stay tuned as more additions to the agenda are announced, guaranteed to be the ultimate tech event in Scotland!