Supporting data partners for the Tech Nation project will include AngelList, Crunchbase, dealroom.co, f6s, Geektalent, InvestNI and Leeds Data City. Hasan Bakhshi, Director, Creative Economy in Policy & Research will lead Nesta’s research on Tech Nation 2015. Marketing and Big Data specialists, Growth Intelligence, have been recruited as the core data partner for Tech Nation 2016, which will be published early next year.
To coincide with today’s partnership announcement, Tech City UK is issuing a call out to digital businesses across the UK to complete the Tech Nation 2016 survey, the results of which will form the backbone of the research. Last year over 2,700 digital technology companies were canvassed.
The aim is to increase substantially on that number to get an even more in depth picture of how the UK digital economy has developed over the last 12 months. Companies can complete the survey now at Tech Nation 2016.
Gerard Grech, CEO, Tech City UK, commented: “Tech Nation 2015 was a landmark project which delivered the first data deep dive into the UK’s digital economy. For 2016, we want to go even further to understand the growth drivers, challenges, and opportunities to propel the UK to the centre of global digital innovation. Our partners Nesta and Growth Intelligence will be vital to the evolution of the project. Whether you’re a seed stage company or listed on the London Stock Exchange, we want to hear from you. Tech Nation is about providing every digital business with the ability to make their voice heard nationally and internationally.”
Geoff Mulgan, CEO, Nesta, commented: “This is a fantastic partnership which will help investors, entrepreneurs and policy makers understand Britain’s fast-growing tech economy, using cutting edge digital tools to map where and how it’s growing. We’re delighted to be able to contribute some of Nesta’s analytical firepower to make this a reference for anyone interested in where future jobs and wealth will come from.”
Tom Gatten, CEO, Growth Intelligence, commented: “We’re so pleased to be working with Tech City UK and Nesta on this brilliant study. This work is critical to ensuring that the UK’s tech firms remain at the forefront of the global digital economy. As evangelists of unstructured data, we’re really looking forward to both the project and its results.”
First launched by Prime Minister David Cameron and Chancellor George Osborne in February 2015, Tech Nation is an interactive data project that demonstrates the growth of digital clusters across the UK. Most significantly, it was the first community-driven research providing a holistic snapshot of the UK digital economy. Tech Nation 2015 revealed significant insights on the growth of technology clusters since 2008. Featuring data on clusters from Edinburgh to Bournemouth, Tech Nation 2015 demonstrated the depth of digital innovation, with entrepreneurial spirit existing in towns and cities across the UK.
