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Unlocking the power of data 

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Data is vital for shaping our future and driving progress across various fields. The Data-Driven Innovation (DDI) initiative seeks to capitalise on big data to spur economic growth. By focusing on innovation, education, and skill development, we pave the way for a future optimized by data.

University of Edinburgh Provost Professor Kim Graham, who senior responsible officer for the Data-Driven Innovation initiative
The University of Edinburgh Provost Professor Kim Graham is senior responsible officer for the Data-Driven Innovation initiative

In 2018, the University of Edinburgh embarked on an ambitious plan to supercharge six new innovation hubs to unlock the power of data.  

The plan was to explore how large sets of data could be used to reveal new insights, create new products and companies, and transform businesses and services.  

And along the way we would train up people across our region with the skills to not just thrive in an economy and society saturated in data, but to shape it.  

We called this project the Data-Driven Innovation (DDI) initiative, and it is already living up to its name – using data to deliver many benefits to industry partners and citizens across South East Scotland. 

Regional collaboration and government support 

The catalyst was the signing of the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal. This was supported and invested in by both the UK and Scottish governments, with a stretching ambition to establish the region as the data capital of Europe. 

DDI is the main driver of that ambition. It is delivered by the University of Edinburgh and Heriot-Watt University in collaboration with local public, private, and third sector partners.  

We also work closely with other universities and colleges in the region through the multi award-winning Data Skills Gateway. This is another of the City Region Deal’s projects, which upskills local people – from children to adults changing jobs – in data literacy. 

The signing of the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal
The signing of the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal in 2018

Innovation hubs and sector engagement 

The DDI initiative is made up of a cluster of innovation hubs bringing academic disciplines and external partners together to solve some of the world’s most pressing challenges. DDI works in ten sectors critical to the local and Scottish economy, including financial services, health and social care, agritech, robotics and public services. 

Outside of University of Edinburgh's Bayes Centre
The University of Edinburgh’s Bayes Centre

Real world impact

DDI isn’t just something that happens within the walls of academia. It is using data to deliver real world impact for everyone with collaboration at the core of our work with colleagues from across the University ecosystem and a unique approach to external partnerships with organisations across our key sectors. These include Public Health Scotland, NatWest, Create Future, Codebase, abrdn, Research Data Scotland and many more.  

Educational programmes and economic growth

As we progress, it’s important to highlight the breadth of activities and benefits being delivered across our six innovation hubs and the industry sectors they target. 

There are some great examples; the Bayes Centre, our earliest innovation hub, is bringing together Police Scotland with students and academics to use data to plan the provision of officers in rural areas, identifying possible under-reporting in knife crime, and measuring officers’ physiological responses to incidents.    

Elsewhere, our supercomputing services are helping the National Collection of Aerial Photography in the digitisation programme of its vast collection of more than 30 million images from around the world.  

Driving a local economy where data innovation and entrepreneurship is key also requires upskilling of the local population to benefit from new job and business opportunities.  

To that end, in the academic year 2022-23 alone, the DDI saw 35,000 data skills training courses completed. Our data upskilling short courses at the Bayes Centre focus on job seekers and those already in employment who want to better use data in their roles. Bayes has already supported 3,000 participants since launch, and the City Region Deal’s Data Skills Gateway has reached 34,500 participants since 2018 and helped more than 1,600 people progress into jobs.  

Two students outside of Edinburgh Futures Institute
Students outside Edinburgh Futures Institute

Pioneering technical expansion

Boosting the local economy is also an ambition we are successfully delivering on. Some £127 million in research activity has been delivered, surpassing the planned £57 million by 125%. And 41 data technology companies were supported, bringing the total number of such businesses engaging with the initiative so far to 433. That’s more than 400 vibrant data-focused enterprises who are innovating and bringing fresh, exciting ideas to our region and beyond.  

We are rolling out Europe’s largest Internet of Things network, working with more than 500 schools in South East Scotland to provide pupils with unique data skills learning opportunities, including workshops where pupils analyse live data on the levels of light, heat, and Co2 in and around their schools. 

Forward-looking strategies and regional benefits

We are of course keen that these achievements translate into tangible benefits which add value to the city region, including new jobs, skills, and companies. To this end, we are working with our City Region Deal partners to monitor the delivery of impact across the region and identify new opportunities where data is key. 

We look forward to building on these successes with our partners, embedding DDI as a vital part of our regional economy. We also wish to use our experience with the City Region Deal to accelerate progress in other areas where regional collaboration is vital – such as tackling climate change and delivering on net zero ambitions – and where there are opportunities to enhance skills, create jobs and boost entrepreneurship, such as in health, social care and life sciences.  

Although we are not alone in aspiring to be recognised as a global data and tech destination, via the partnership enabled by DDI, we are taking great leaps in this area driving strong economic growth and benefit to businesses and communities. We look forward to the continuing success of the programme and unlocking other regional innovation opportunities.  

Image credits: Feature image: BlackJack3D/Getty; Professor Kim Graham, University of Edinburgh; The signing of the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal, David Cheskin; The University of Edinburgh’s Bayes Centre, Paul Dodds; Students outside Edinburgh Futures Institute, Sam Ingram-Sills.