Tech City CEO Gerard Grech on Britain’s digital ambitions
The internet of things, the importance of digital skills and hopes for the tech industry under the new UK government were just some of the themes Tech City chief execituve Gerard Grech discussed with The Drum following his recent talk at Digital Shoreditch.
Grech, who joined Tech City last February from Blackberry, said that while the Coalition government “did a lot” for technology such as introducing policies to ensure growth, he has even greater hopes for the industry under the Conservatives.
“I want to see even more companies grow and scale and become international superstars and I think this government is very much focussed on the creation of new businesses but also on the growth of scale up businesses and it’s something that I’m very much looking forward to,” he said.
In terms of innovation Grech is most excited about the internet of things, which he said has “huge transformative power” in the way services are delivered to consumers as well as citizens.
The future for Britain’s tech industry is bright according to Grech who said that while the country has seen great growth in London, cities outside the capital are also proving their worth in a variety of areas.
“Perception is rapidly changing and we are seeing emerging tech expertise and critical masses of expertise right across the country,” he said. “Cambridge is doing very well in hardware, Bristol is doing extremely well in robotics and automotive tech, Greater Manchester in data science, Belfast in cyber security, and Edinburgh fintech. It’s just mushrooming right across the country.”
To address the digital skills gap Tech City launched the Digital Business Academy four months ago to help those interested in the sector learn the latest digital marketing and digital developments and to help them connect in to digital companies. So far over 12,000 UK residents have signed up to the scheme.
Check out the full interview with Grech in the video above.