Geovation Scotland to open in Edinburgh 

The creation of Geovation Scotland, a collaboration between Registers of Scotland (RoS) and Ordnance Survey (OS), has been announced by Kate Forbes, the Digital Economy Minister.

“It gives me great pleasure to announce Geovation Scotland,” said Forbes. “This will promote innovation, providing start-ups with access to public datasets, whilst harnessing the opportunities of working alongside tech and geospatial communities.

“With support from the Geospatial Commission, Geovation Scotland will provide a dedicated hub to incubate new start-ups in Scotland, and utilise digital data sources to benefit the Scottish economy.”

Geovation Scotland will consist of two elements; a funded accelerator programme offering up to 12 months of incubation for property and geospatial technology start-ups looking to develop their business, and the creation of the Geovation Scotland Hub. The hub, which will open in central Edinburgh later this year, will not only house those start-ups participating in the accelerator programme, but will also provide an environment aimed at fostering innovation and creativity for the broader UK geospatial community.

Geovation Scotland will look to build on the success of its sister organisation, Geovation London, which since being launched by Ordnance Survey has supported more than 70 companies, leveraged more than £20m in investment funding and created almost 200 jobs.

Commenting on the announcement, Jennifer Henderson, Keeper and chief executive of the Registers of Scotland said: “Registers of Scotland and Ordnance Survey each manage a wealth of land, property and geospatial data, and I’m delighted that we are building on our existing partnership to use that in order to support innovative business proposals.

“RoS and OS have over 600 years of collective experience working with data. I’m pleased that we aren’t only using that to support our customers, but to deliver a wider benefit to new businesses.

“The access to our combined data, will offer business start-ups a fresh opportunity to develop ideas, products, and services that will benefit the people of Scotland and the wider Scottish economy.”

Alex Wrottesley, head of geovation in London, added: “This is an exciting development for Ordnance Survey and Geovation. In an increasingly data driven world, the location and property industries are currently experiencing an evolution. Each are reacting and responding to new and emerging technologies, and the different demands and opportunities these bring.

“Start-ups have the potential to play a driving role in this evolution, but without nurturing, access to experience, expertise, and quality data, it is much harder for them to make an impact.

“This is what makes our collaboration with Registers of Scotland so exciting. We want to hear from anyone who has an idea that has potential in the GeoTech or PropTech world, and we want to help them break through.’”