News
Funding gap widens as investors become more selective
Scotland's early-stage investment market remains active, but raising capital is becoming more difficult for ambitious growth companies.
While investors continue to back innovative businesses with strong growth prospects, fundraising rounds are taking longer to complete, investors are carrying out more detailed due diligence and capital is becoming increasingly selective.
Source: The Scotsman
Life Sciences Accommodation Programme
Scottish Enterprise has launched a £35.3 million Life Sciences Accommodation Programme (LSAP) which aims to address this – supporting with new and refurbished spaces, where market conditions make development difficult.
The Life Sciences Accommodation Programme (LSAP) has been designed to help address short to medium-term gaps and support commercially viable developments - including the construction and fit-out of new life sciences laboratory and manufacturing spaces in Scotland.
Scottish Gov bets £328m to turn innovation into industry
A new report details the Scottish Government’s progress so far in transforming breakthrough research into commercial success, and outlines big plans for the future. The Scottish Government has pledged to invest more than £328 million to transform the country’s bleeding-edge research into commercial success, a huge cash outlay which the SNP hopes can power new businesses, products and services – making the country an “innovation nation”.
Source: DIGIT NEWS
Scottish Enterprise launches £35m Life Sciences drive
Scottish Enterprise is backing ambitious life sciences companies to succeed in Scotland, helping to improve the availability of affordable premises for high-growth businesses in the sector as they commercialise and expand. The new £35 million Life Sciences Accommodation Programme has been announced by Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes, and will launch later this year.
Source: DIGIT NEWS
Scottish Enterprise appoints Nicola Anderson as Director of Scaling Innovation
Scottish Enterprise has appointed Nicola Anderson as its new Director of Scaling Innovation, strengthening Scotland’s ambition to build and scale world-leading businesses in high-growth sectors.
Nicola will lead Scottish Enterprise’s Scaling Innovation Mission, focused on helping ambitious Scottish companies grow faster and translate cutting-edge research and development into globally competitive businesses of scale.
Biotech firm raises £4.5M for North American expansion
Rhizocore Technologies, a biotechnology company which uses fungi to improve tree growth and survival rates, has secured £4.5 million in investment to scale its innovative approach to forestry and woodland restoration. This investment comes after surging demand for Rhizocore’s fungal tree health pellets.
MI:RNA secures funding for AI tool to diagnose osteoarthritis earlier in dogs
Veterinary diagnostics company, MI:RNA, has secured funding from Scottish Enterprise to support its research and development project to create a simple, non-invasive test that uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) and a type of biological marker (an indicator of biological conditions), called microRNA, to help diagnose diseases to offer more accurate, accessible, and cost-effective methods of early detection of OA in dogs.
New innovation framework launched to drive Scotland’s bold vision
The Innovation Collaboration Framework, published by Innovate UK, in partnership with Scottish Enterprise, South of Scotland Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise, aims to help Scotland realise its bold vision to become one of the most innovative small nations in the world.
Edinburgh spin-out SeaWarm secures funding
University of Edinburgh spin-out SeaWarm has secured £550,000 to roll out its renewable heating system across Scottish communities.
The investment includes £250,000 from angel investment syndicate Equity Gap, £250,000 from development agency Scottish Enterprise and £50,000 from University of Edinburgh in-house venture fund Old College Capital.
Source: Business Insider
Edinburgh research organisation receives £3.6 million for AI health project
An Edinburgh-based research organisation has been awarded £3.6m from Scottish Enterprise for a project that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to improve medical scans and speed up data analysis.
Canon Medical Research Europe’s (CMRE) new project will cost around £14m in total, and is expected to benefit both patients and health services.
Source: Business Insider