OS grid reference TQ325825 Dialling code 020 | London borough HackneyIslington | |
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UK parliament constituency Hackney South and Shoreditch | ||
East london tech city
East London Tech City (also known as Tech City and Silicon Roundabout) is a technology district located in East London. It broadly occupies the area between Old Street and Shoreditch areas. It is the third-largest technology startup cluster in the world after San Francisco and New York City.
Contents
- East london tech city
- History
- Investment
- Technology companies
- Educational institutions
- Financial and professional services providers
- Community organisations
- Public sector organisations
- Responses
- London Buses
- National Rail and London Underground
- References
A cluster of web businesses initially developed around the Old Street Roundabout in 2009. The area had historically been relatively run down compared to the City, and the closure of numerous firms during the 2008-09 recession had further suppressed rents making it affordable to technology start-ups..
Later, as the cluster developed, both local and national government supported its growth, with the goal of creating a cluster comparable to Silicon Valley in the United States. Cisco, Facebook, Google, Intel and McKinsey & Company are among the companies that have invested in the area. City, University of London, London Metropolitan University, Imperial College London, Queen Mary University of London and University College London are all academic partners in projects based in the cluster.
History
Amongst the first technology companies located in the area were Dopplr, Last.fm, Consolidated Independent, Tinker.it, flubit, TweetDeck, Berg, Trampoline Systems, AMEE, Skimbit (now Skimlinks), Fotango, weartical.com, Rummble, Songkick, Squiz, Techlightenment, Poke London, Kizoom, BrightLemon, Redmonk, MOO, Believe.in, LShift, Livemusic and WAYN.
Plans to help accelerate the growth of the cluster were announced by Prime Minister David Cameron in a speech given in east London on 4 November 2010. A year later, Cameron announced that he was appointing entrepreneur Eric van der Kleij to lead the initiative. In 2010 there were 85 startup companies in the area. By 2011, approximately 200 firms were occupying the area, signifying a rapid increase in interest. Wired magazine updated this figure in 2012 and suggested some 5,000 tech companies were located in the wider area centred on the Old Street roundabout. Wired maintains a topic on the area.
On 28 September 2011 it was announced that Google had acquired a seven-storey building near Old Street roundabout. Google said that the building, in Bonhill Street, would host "a range of activities, such as speaker series, hackathons, training workshops and product demonstrations" in addition to providing workspace for new companies. The building, known as Campus London, opened in March 2012.
In 2013 the Nominet Trust selected "5 startups making positive social change" which are based in the cluster: Streetbank, Give What You’re Good At, Videre Est Credere, Buddy App and PaveGen.
A report by EY published in 2016 highlighted the importance of London to the UK's FinTech industry in terms of availability of expertise and demand for services.
Investment
Investment in London's technology sector was $2.28 billion in 2015, 69 per cent higher than the $1.3 billion raised in 2014. Since 2010, London-based technology companies have collectively raised $5.2 billion of venture capital funding.
Technology companies
Notable technology companies active in the cluster include:
Educational institutions
Educational institutions active in the cluster include:
Financial and professional services providers
Financial and professional services providers active in the cluster include:
Community organisations
A number of not-for-profit organisations have created a sense of community in the area including Independent Shoreditch, a business alliance, and Digital Shoreditch, which organises monthly meet-ups plus an annual festival of the same name.
Public sector organisations
Public sector organisations active in the cluster include:
Responses
The rapid growth of the cluster has met with some criticism. Think tank 'Centre for London' said the development had little focus and could be counter-productive. The think tank also raised concerns over a skills shortage, connectivity, lack of mentoring and rising costs. Tech City has been called a "marketing gimmick" on the wrong side of London (away from Heathrow Airport) which is still over 30% more expensive than any city outside London. James Dyson criticised the government for spending money on the scheme to attract international companies who drive up rents instead of helping start-up and hardware companies who he argues have greater potential than software and internet companies.
London Buses
Tech City is well served by a number of London Buses services.
National Rail and London Underground
London Underground Northern line (Bank branch) and National Rail Great Northern services at Old Street serve the area at Old Street. With the increase in passenger numbers using the station, in 2014 Transport for London announced that it was to offer pop-up retail space at Old Street station as part of a drive to increase its revenue.