The CBI and Cheltenham’s cyber cluster, CyNam, have launched Cyber Tech West, a new demonstrator cluster which will include BT, Intel, Airbus and Raytheon.
Speaking at the CBI conference earlier this week, the CBI President, Brian McBride, said: “Tech is a national success story, built on regional collaboration. There are huge prizes to be had from fostering more collaboration between business and universities – as well as innovation centers.
“We need a culture that fosters firms to learn from each other’s innovations. And that encourages partnerships between big firms and small – locally, nationally, and also globally. Because in an ever more connected and complex world, to stay ahead of the curve we must work and partner with the best international innovators.”
CyNam (Cyber Cheltenham) was launched as a modest networking group in 2015 for those working in cyber security in and around Cheltenham and Gloucestershire. From the outset it proved one of the most successful networking groups around, regularly attracting more than 150 attendees at its regular events.
As a key partner in Cyber Tech West, CyNam will work with CBI and regional stakeholders from across the public and private sectors to establish a cluster of both national and global significance, anchored in the West and underpinned by values of collaboration, innovation, and entrepreneurship .
As a key partner in Cyber Tech West, CyNam will work with CBI and regional stakeholders from across the public and private sectors to establish a cluster of both national and global significance, anchored in the West and underpinned by values of collaboration, innovation, and entrepreneurship .
This geography boasts a rich concentration of anchor institutions, as well as a density of cyber expertise. The broader region is home to universities with world-leading expertise in cyber and related fields: University of Bristol, UWE, University of Gloucestershire, University of Bath, University of Wolverhampton, University of Cardiff, University of Oxford. DSTL & MOD in Wiltshire and GCHQ / NCSC in Cheltenham, key government institutions, are based in the regionwith many primes and Tier 1s also having a strong presence, including Raytheon, BAE, Northrop Grumman, BT, CGI, Atkins, Sopra Steria, Deloitte, CACI, Roke, Airbus, Leonardo, and Qinetiq.
The West is also home to a thriving Cyber Tech Start-up, Scale-up & SME community with over 75 companies actively growing in the region with
the NCSC for Start-ups program supporting the growth and development of over 20 Cyber tech start-ups each year.
CyNam Managing Director, Rich Yorke said:Since 2016 CyNam have been on a mission to grow the Cyber ecosystem by being the catalyst for cross sector collaboration, innovation, and skills development.
“We believe the conditions for long term, sustainable growth is in place with an extensive range of infrastructure and innovation assets, an amazing and growing talent pool, leading edge research & technological capability and investor engagement. Cyber Tech West aims to build on this to activate greater innovation and investment.
“Cyber Tech West represents a clear opportunity to join up across the cyber, defense and national security communities to further establish the region and the wider UK as a global technology super-power and in doing so, drive meaningful economic growth that will engage and benefit the whole of society. “
Earlier this year, Gloucestershire was chosen by the Department for International Trade to be showcased as a world-leading cyber cluster through the High Potential Opportunities (HPO) program.
DIT’s High Potential Opportunities program was launched in 2018 to encourage and accelerate foreign direct investment into the UK’s key growth sectors, in line with Government’s Industrial Strategy.
Home to GCHQ and the National Cyber Security Center (NCSC), Gloucestershire has the largest cluster of cyber related businesses outside of London. With a rising number of cyber-attacks and the increasing vulnerabilities with the growing adoption of the Internet of Things, the UK’s cyber security industry is accelerating and growing rapidly.
Gloucestershire is building an impressive reputation for high growth cyber and digital business and innovation, especially now with the county earmarked for strong economic growth and many new infrastructure and development projects such as the Forum in Gloucester and the Golden Valley development in West Cheltenham.
Total annual revenue within the UK’s cyber security industry is worth an estimated £10.1 billion, up 14 percent on the previous year, supporting 52,700 employees. In Gloucestershire there are more than 1,000 cyber security professionals and more than 120 firms involved in cyber related activities, helping to boost the local economy.