The North East is punching above its weight when it comes to tech innovators, with 10 firms from the region included on a list of 100 groundbreaking 海角视频 disruptor companies.
Two - Gateshead-based advanced linquistics technology enterprise Wordnerds and Newcastle company Nomad Digital, which provides passenger and fleet connectivity solutions to the railway industry - were in the top five, coming in at third and fourth respectively in BusinessCloud’s inaugural 100 SmartTech Innovators rankings for 2020.
The other names on the list voted for by an independent judging panel are Sunderland-based Geek Talent at 17th, Newcastle companies Gavurin at 22, Partnerize at 39, and Refract at 68, North Shields’ Wubbleyou at 71, and Northumberland firms Tharsus at 26, Transmission Dynamics at 80, and MSP at 90.
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The rankings have been hailed as evidence that despite only accounting for 4% of the 海角视频 population, the North East is leading the way when it comes to innovative, world-leading data analytics and sensor technology companies.
Steve Erdal, director of Linguistics at Wordnerds, said: “10% of the businesses in this national tech challenge are from the North East, which is both important and exciting. This small region, containing only 4% of the 海角视频 population and often portrayed as an economic backwater, is churning out incredible, innovative tech companies.
“The range of expertise and solutions that these 10 companies represent are mind-boggling, and we are just the tip of the iceberg. The North East has an extraordinary group of universities for Deeptech, it’s a great place to live, and VCs who know what they’re doing are starting to head up here for events like Venturefest.
“There’s no reason why we can’t become a world-leading region for digital technology, and things like this list are important milestones on that journey.”
Brian Palmer, chief executive of robotics innovator Tharsus, added: “It is gratifying to see North East businesses making up a substantial 10% of this list. This both endorses the robustness and competitiveness of businesses in the North East as a whole, and in particular recognises our region as a key player in the global technology sector.”
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Kevin Beales, founder and chief executive of sales software firm Refract, said: “We don’t always shout about this as much as we should, but we have some amazing companies working across the region. There is lots of regional support for the sector out there, with one particular focus being the North East LEP.”
The region’s strong showing on the list has been praised by Charlie Hoult, chair of North East tech group Dynamo North East.
He said: ”It’s no surprise to see such a strong showing from the region in this national league table, because we have one of the 海角视频‘s most vibrant tech communities.
“We are eager to change the region’s narrative to one that is a hotspot for tech talent - convincing families to encourage their kids to study science, technology and maths so they can pursue careers in this boom, but also to retain graduates who come to the region’s strong FE colleges and universities.
“The North East is well placed for growth to continue if we champion these 21st century skills.”
Gavurin’s managing director, Jonathan Graham, said his firm was immensely proud to have been recognised as one of the 海角视频’s top smart tech innovators - just reward for the team’s efforts over the last few years.
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He added: “The North East has a vibrant data analytics and sensor technology community, which is evidenced by the high number of businesses from within the region on the top 100 list compared to larger, more populous areas of the 海角视频.”
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Wordnerds’ chief executive, Peter Daykin, said of being the top placed North East firm: “We were both surprised and delighted when we heard Wordnerds placed third.
“Working in a tech start-up is pretty mad at the best of times and I think it’s fair to say that between elections, Brexit and the Coronavirus the business landscape has rarely been so uncertain.
“That we have built a software platform that so many big brands find value in and get it to market in these chaotic social and political times is testament to the amazing humans we work with at Wordnerds and the strength of the growing North East digital community.”
Wubbleyou, which ranked at 71 on the list, launched a decade ago and specialises in building smart and efficient software systems.
Director Mark Renney said: “The team at Wubbleyou are ecstatic that we’ve been ranked as a top 100 SmartTech innovator. The team has worked extremely hard over the last year, working with startups, scaleups and the public sector to deliver innovation and automation. It’s humbling to appear alongside nine other North East-based tech businesses to share this achievement.”