Exclusive: ‘I felt sorry for the people of Belgium,’ says Estonia’s Prime Minister September 14, 2021 An artificial intelligence assistant for every citizen? AI to help unemployed people back into work or to suggest a career change? Bots telling you when to visit your GP? All this may sound a tad futuristic, but not for the government of the tiny Baltic state of Estonia. In fact, the country has grand ambitions [...]
Exclusive: Rising fintech star and former PayPal tech lead on his new payments venture July 8, 2021 Wise £8bn launch on the London Stock Exchange yesterday underpins how the capital’s fintech scene is booming, with a clear investor appetite for payment platforms such as Wise. Another fintech company in this space that has flourished in the last twelve months is Osu, an instant payments app that was created specifically for the self-employed [...]
£700bn market: UK’s digital trade talks with Singapore underpin Britain’s role as a global tech exporter July 1, 2021 The UK and Singapore launched negotiations this week on a new ambitious digital trade agreement that could remove barriers and provide access to digital trade. Government statistics show this digital trading relationship was worth £3.2bn in 2019, out of Britain’s total tech exports of nearly £63bn globally. As the value of the entire digital global [...]
Unicorn nest: UK hits milestone of 100 $1bn tech companies, more than rest of Europe combined June 20, 2021 The UK tech sector has now 100 UK tech companies valued at $1bn or more, according to new data from Dealroom and Tech Nation, shared with City A.M. this weekend. The UK’s 100th tech unicorn, Tractable, an AI startup building computer vision tools, announced a $60m Series D raise, which takes the company’s valuation to [...]
Exclusive: In the office full-time? No thanks, say 86 per cent of tech professionals June 2, 2021 As restrictions continue to lift and companies prepare to bring employees back to the workplace, many workers don’t want to return to the office full-time. Technology professionals are no exception. In fact, 86 per cent of them want a work from home arrangement after the pandemic, according to a survey by tech job market platform [...]
Exclusive: 65 per cent of UK companies plan to increase investments in tech June 1, 2021 Just over 65 per cent of all UK companies plan to increase the amount they spend on IT and new technologies, according to new research, shared exclusively with City A.M. today. This follows a majority, or 56 per cent, of all UK businesses successfully adopting one or more new technologies since the beginning of the [...]
Evening Read: Investors sit on record levels of dry powder, says Silicon Valley Bank’s UK boss May 12, 2021 In recent months we have glimpsed potential opportunities for the post-Covid economy: the huge acceleration in technology adoption, both corporate and personal. And that’s good news for London’s technology and innovation space. But to get startups’ ambitious growth plans off the ground and put the pandemic recovery into motion, sources of capital are needed: financing [...]
Exclusive: The City’s hunger for success and willingness to push boundaries is infectious, says tech guru May 10, 2021 Since the start of the pandemic, the entire economy and its workforce have moved online, with technology and digital tools keeping many businesses going. Jeremy Silver, CEO of Digital Catapult, a digital technology innovation firm based in Camden Town, has helped UK businesses small and large and across various industries to be more competitive online [...]
Exclusive: Govt policy shows UK tech is ‘guiding light’ in pandemic recovery, says Beacon CEO March 30, 2021 Despite the upheaval that the pandemic has caused for many individuals and businesses across the UK, the tech sector has been relatively resilient over the past 12 months. The industry’s continued strong performance is reflected by recent data compiled by Tech Nation and the government’s Digital Economy Council, which shows that 10 per cent of [...]
Exclusive: ‘We must be brave and move away from the EU’s way of thinking’, says Tech Nation chair January 7, 2021 After what was a difficult year for tech firms, City A.M. sat down with Stephen Kelly, chairman of Tech Nation, the industry body that represents UK startups and runs Britain’s Tech Nation visa scheme for foreign entrepreneurs. Brexit has just taken place, how will this impact London’s startup space? Brexit is the UK’s opportunity to [...]