Scotland’s Innovation Week 2025: Building on a Legacy, Accelerating the Future

Innovation is part of Scotland’s DNA. From penicillin to the ATM, from colour photography to cloning, Scottish ingenuity has shaped industries and transformed lives across the world. That spirit of bold ideas and real-world impact remains as vital as ever, and it’s being celebrated at Scotland’s National Innovation Week 2025, taking place from 22–26 September.

At CodeBase, through our delivery of Techscaler, we continuously see tangible proof that innovation doesn’t happen in isolation. It’s about people, networks, and the right conditions that allow ambitious founders to thrive. Scotland’s Innovation Week is a chance to showcase not only the world-leading research and talent emerging from this country, but also the collaborative infrastructure that makes scaling innovation possible.

This is where Techscaler by CodeBase steps in: creating the pathways, communities, and opportunities for startups to move from ideas to impact, and from Scotland to the world. During Innovation Week, we’re proud to put efforts behind a lineup of activities with our partners to actively shape Scotland’s future economy.

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Founders at the Heart of ScotSoft

One of the highlights of the week will be ScotSoft (25 September, Edinburgh), Scotland’s biggest software conference, now in its 26th year. Thanks to our partner ScotlandIS, Techscaler by CodeBase is taking five brilliant startups to ScotSoft.

These founders reflect the ambition, imagination, and problem-solving spirit driving Scotland’s next wave of innovation:

• Sooz Young, Technology Coaching – helping business leaders develop a complete digital mindset through her Tekunoji Method.
• Shuli Yu, Yush – building a platform to transform live event sentiment into real insights and social proof.
• Douglas Boler, Fennex – building AI systems that deliver real-time insights and decision support for high-risk industries.
• Matthew Cairns, Reactions – developing an AI-driven platform for people living with moderate to severe allergies.
• Bayile Adeoti, BobbAI – co-founding an AI startup supporting inclusive entrepreneurship and accessible growth tools.

ScotSoft brings together software leaders, engineers, policymakers, and innovators, with the National Innovation Summit running alongside. By giving founders a platform here, we’re ensuring their voices contribute directly to shaping Scotland’s innovation economy.

Find out more about ScotSoft >

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Digital in the Wild with SWiT

Inclusive innovation is non-negotiable. That belief drives Techscaler Highlands & Islands to partner with Scotland Women in Technology (SWiT) for the online session Digital in the Wild: Stories from the Edge of Innovation (25 September, 6 PM BST).

This event celebrates women applying digital skills in rural and nature-connected contexts — from conservationists using mapping tools to founders building products on crofts. Speakers include Lynne Maciver (Creative Ecosystems) and Penelope Whitehorn (Highlands Rewilding Ltd), who will share stories of innovation far from the urban centres.

By connecting women in tech across the Highlands and Islands, this series strengthens visibility, builds confidence, and ensures that innovation thrives everywhere in Scotland.

Register for Digital in the Wild >

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Driving MedTech Innovation with NHS Scotland

Healthcare innovation has long been a strength of Scotland. During Innovation Week, we’re co-hosting the Techscaler x NHS Innovation Hubs Webinar (22 September, 12–1 PM BST). This session introduces NHS Scotland’s three Innovation Hubs and explores how startups can collaborate with them.

Founders will hear directly from NHS leaders about the pathways for engagement, the kinds of projects being developed, and success stories that show how innovation can scale impact in the healthcare system. For medtech and healthtech startups, this is a vital opportunity to understand how to bring solutions into one of Scotland’s most critical public services.

Register for NHS Innovation Hubs Webinar >

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Growing With Purpose: ESG and Impact

For founders, growth and impact are no longer separate conversations. The most resilient companies are those that weave Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) principles into their DNA from the start. During Innovation Week, Techscaler is partnering with The Ventures Lab to deliver the webinar Grow Your Business Through Impact (25 September, 2–3 PM BST).

This session is designed to give founders practical tools for thinking about impact early:

• Why considering impact early helps attract talent, customers, and investors.
• How to embed purpose and culture into your strategy.
• Simple steps to get ahead on inclusion and sustainability.

The session will be led by Sarah Frame, Venture Support Manager at The Ventures Lab. With a background in healthcare, education, and business innovation, Sarah specialises in helping organisations embed impact into their strategy in commercially effective ways. She brings hands-on experience of supporting mission-driven ventures to grow with purpose, ensuring founders walk away with practical frameworks, not just theory.

She’ll be joined by Megan Graham (CodeBase), who will connect the conversation to Scotland’s startup ecosystem and share how impact-led thinking is shaping the future of tech ventures here.

Register for Grow Your Business Through Impact >

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Why This Matters

Scotland’s Innovation Week is a reflection of the nation’s growing ambition to lead in the industries of the future. From AI to medtech, inclusive entrepreneurship to ESG-driven growth, the conversations happening this week show the breadth of Scotland’s innovation economy and the strength of the people driving it.

For us at CodeBase, through Techscaler, the message is clear: Scotland has the talent, the ideas, and the ambition. What founders need, and what we are committed to building, are the networks, pathways, and partnerships that turn ambition into global opportunity.

By connecting startups with investors, corporates, government, academia, and international markets, we are helping ensure that Scotland is not only a birthplace of innovation but also a launchpad for scaling it worldwide.

The innovation-driven legacy shows what Scottish ingenuity can achieve. The work we are doing today with Techscaler is about writing the next chapter of that story: one where innovation drives sustainable growth, creates opportunities for all, and cements Scotland’s place on the global stage.