Scotland is preparing to celebrate its proud legacy of creativity and invention with the launch of the first ever National Innovation Week, a landmark event designed to showcase the nation’s global leadership in the industries of the future.
The week‑long celebration will run from Monday 22 to Friday 26 September and will bring together innovators from across the country and beyond to share knowledge, forge partnerships and highlight Scotland’s strengths in the technologies shaping the modern world.
Centrepiece of the programme will be a major summit in Edinburgh on Thursday 25 September, where leading voices from business, academia and government will meet to accelerate progress in four key areas of Scotland’s National Innovation Strategy, advanced manufacturing, energy transition, health and life sciences, and data and digital technologies.
The announcement came as Business Minister Richard Lochhead visited ONE BioHub in Aberdeen, a thriving centre for life sciences, where he met with industry leaders to explore how new breakthroughs can drive growth and tackle global challenges.
“Scotland is a nation of inventors, creators and problem solvers,” Mr Lochhead said.
“We invented the steam engine and the television and discovered penicillin.
“Today we stand at the forefront of the next wave of transformative technologies which not only offer immense potential for economic growth but also powerful tools to tackle the global challenges of our time, from healthcare and energy to climate change.”
Across the country, Scottish companies are already making headlines for their groundbreaking work.
From automating the development of new medicines to designing the energy systems of the future and pioneering satellite technology to help combat climate change, they are proving that innovation runs deep in Scotland’s DNA.
The minister said National Innovation Week would be a pivotal moment to build momentum, inspire collaboration and cement Scotland’s place on the global stage.
“It is essential that we seize these opportunities to benefit both our economy and society,” he added.
“National Innovation Week marks the point where we turn ambition into action and strengthen our reputation as a truly global innovation nation.”
