Edinburgh is currently one of the UK’s most thriving tech hubs and is still continuing to grow. During Q1 2019 90 per cent of Grade A office deals within the city centre came from tech industries, resulting in tech being the most active sector in the Edinburgh office market during Q1. Key deals included Amazon signing for 30,000 sq ft at Exchange Crescent and Epic Games taking 10,000 sq ft at Quartermile 2 (pictured).

Amazon plans to use this space for its first research and development centre outside North America, creating around 250 highly skilled new jobs and further boosting Edinburgh’s tech economy.

Amazon’s decision to occupy space in Edinburgh demonstrates the level of skill available in Edinburgh and Scotland’s economy, with Graeme Smith, MD of Amazon Development Centre Scotland, saying in The Scotsman: 'The new roles are Silicon Valley jobs right here in the heart of Scotland and will join teams working on large-scale projects using cutting-edge technology, which helps benefit hundreds of millions of Amazon customers around the world.'

Edinburgh has a strong reputation for start-up success. Its high business survival rates and entrepreneurial culture led to it being named the UK’s best city outside London to launch a start-up by the Start-up Cities Index 2017.

The city is home to some of Europe’s most exciting new businesses, including Europe’s best-known unicorn Skyscanner which was founded in Edinburgh and acquired by the Chinese travel firm Ctrip in 2016 for £1.4 billion. More recently, at the start of 2018 the Edinburgh-based start-up gaming developer Cloudgine, which was founded in 2012, was acquired by Epic Games for an undisclosed price.

Start-ups in Edinburgh are supported by CodeBase, the UK’s largest tech incubator, which sits at the heart of the city’s tech scene and offers invaluable knowledge to local start-ups.

The 2018 UK Tech Nation Report stated that between 2014 and 2017 Edinburgh-based jobs in digital tech increased by over three times the national average. Furthermore, data from Oxford Economics shows that Edinburgh has seen employment growth of 7 per cent in the professional scientific and tech industries over the past five years and is forecast to see a further 11 per cent over the next five years.

This will result in a projected 3,800 net additional jobs in these industries, demonstrating that this trend is showing no signs of slowing.

Further information

Read more: Market in Minutes: Edinburgh Offices