Swindon & Wiltshire News
Bristol named as one of UK’s fastest-growing tech cities
Bristol has been named as one of the UK’s fastest-growing tech cities.
The city was ranked fifth in the New Levelling Up Tech Power League of fast-growing tech cities following analysis completed for the UK’s Digital Economy Council by Dealroom and job search engine Adzuna.
The league was topped by Cambridge, followed by Manchester, Oxford, and Edinburgh.
The analysis found that Bristol had more than 3,000 tech job opportunities, a more than 50 per cent rise since November 2020, and some of the highest outside of London, with an average advertised salary of £50,404.
Tech firms in Bristol collectively raised £111 million in venture capital funding.
The city is home to three unicorns – startups worth more than $1 billion – with zero carbon air travel startup Vertical Aerospace joining Graphcore and OVO Energy.
The study highlighted a further three tech companies expected to reach this valuation in the next few years: e-commerce fulfilment service Huboo, 3D printing company Open Bionics and advanced haptics company Ultraleap.
Nigel Toon, co-founder and CEO at Bristol-based Graphcore, said: “There is no longer any debate over whether you can build a multi-billion dollar tech business in the UK.
“The investments made over the past few years into startups and scaleups across the country are producing outstanding results and I look forward to seeing how ecosystems like Bristol’s grow and thrive over many years to come.”
Chris Philp, the government’s digital minister, said: “It’s been another record-breaking year for UK tech with innovative British startups helping solve some of the world’s biggest challenges.
“Capitalising on this fantastic investment across the country is a crucial part of our mission to level up, so we are supporting businesses with pro-innovation policies and helping people to get the skills they need to thrive in this dynamic industry.”
