Glasgow’s tech sector is now worth £5.6 billion to the national economy according to a new report which shows half the value is being driven by startups established in the last 10 years.

The city region’s tech and innovation economy has expanded 2.4x since 2020, with more than £300 million in venture capital investment secured since 2025, per the new report commissioned by Glasgow City Council.

Produced in association with Dealroom, the global market data platform founded in Amsterdam, it shows Glasgow is among the UK’s top 10 hubs in the 2026 Tech Ecosystem Index by scale, growing faster than London and Oxford.

More than 130 university spinouts have been produced with 112 still active and headquartered in the region, valued collectively at £1.1 billion, the report shows.

Health remains the city’s leading sector for investment and startup activity, while AI and deep tech (notably quantum, semiconductors, medtech and space technologies) continue to gain momentum.

Gavin Smyth, tech ecosystem manager and digital economy lead at Glasgow City Council, said in a foreword for the report: “Glasgow’s tech ecosystem is entering a new phase of maturity: a £5 billion innovation economy built on world-leading research, a strong startup pipeline and growing investor confidence.

“With particular strengths in health, deep tech and AI, a thriving university spinout community, and one of the UK’s fastest-growing technology ecosystems, Glasgow is increasingly translating innovation excellence into commercial success and global impact.”

The report shows 2025 was the second-best year for venture capital (VC) funding raised, behind only 2023. Based on current projections, 2026 could become one of the strongest years on record.

Glasgow occupies 10th position in the UK hubs by scale in the Global Champions category of the 2026 Tech Ecosystem Index. According to the report, London, Cambridge, Oxford and Manchester are the top four, with Edinburgh listed at five, and Bristol at sixth. Leeds and Bradford represent seventh position on the list, with York and Nottingham at eight and nine respectively.

However, when it comes to the combined enterprise value growth in selected UK Hubs since 2020, Glasgow is fourth in the UK behind Cambridge, Newcastle and Edinburgh, growing at a rate of 2.4 times.

Among the high-growth companies name-checked in the report include the raw materials direct buying platformBLK Global, which raised £50 million in a series A round last year, Chemify, the AI-enabled molecule manufacturer, which raised £37.9 million in October last year and the small molecule therapeutics firm Mironid, which raised £34.8 million last month.

In terms of early stage companies, health occupied top spot, with 49 firms, deep tech at second with 33 companies and AI and energy in third, with 24 each. For venture capital overall, health came top, with the sector raising £148 million since 2025 and AI second with £87 million. Glasgow was second in the UK overall for total share of funding received by the health sector (at 50 per cent), beaten only by Cardiff and Newport (at 85 per cent).

The report was published at the beginning of Glasgow Tech Week, which is back for its third year, and runs from today until Friday.