FILAMENT STAC has secured backing from some of the US’s largest tech companies for its Internet of Things (IoT) accelerator programme that launched at Skypark in Glasgow in October. San Francisco HQ-ed customer engagement platform Twilio, design, global manufacturing, supply chain and aftermarket services specialist Plexus Corp., Intel Corporation, the semiconductor chip manufacturer who are enabling a more intelligent Internet of Things (IoT), Keysight the world’s leading test and measurement company for IoT devices, and Fortune 500, Colorado HQ-ed US electronics group Arrow Electronics are among the global tech brands supporting STAC.
Paul Wilson, CEO of Filament STAC, said: “It is a testament not only to our own ambitions for STAC, but more importantly for tech groups of the stature of Twilio, Plexus Corp, Intel, Keysight and Arrow to believe in our mission and get behind the plan to build globally competitive IoT companies from a base in Scotland. Companies whose products are engineered and made in Scotland, with access to industry leaders’ support from individuals and companies alike. Essentially, we are creating a IoT tech cluster here in Scotland.”
Commenting on securing Twilio as a corporate partner, Paul Wilson added: “Having Twilio as a Filament STAC partner will support our cohort to develop industry-leading products. Twilio provides platforms and services to build innovative IoT solutions, connecting them to reliable cellular networks, ensuring our STAC companies connect creatively and reliably to their devices and customers.”
Angela Forbes, IoT Account Executive, UK and Ireland, Twilio, a global leader in IoT service provision and enablement, counting Uber, Lime, Lyft, Airbnb, Peloton, and Netflix among its customer base, said: “We are really looking forward to supporting all the great work Filament STAC is doing to support local startups on their journey to becoming tomorrow’s best known brands.”
Ronnie Darroch, Executive Vice President and Regional President for EMEA at Plexus Corp, and Non-executive Chair of STAC, said: “We are delighted to be involved in STAC as Scotland is renowned for its contributions to entrepreneurialism and innovation. We look forward to providing support for the next generation of innovators and disruptors that will create the products that build a better world.”
Filament STAC is a pioneering industry-government partnership aimed at producing Scottish IoT companies capable of scaling and competing on a global level, with a 3-year target to create more than 25 IoT companies supporting around 750 jobs, reporting revenue in the region of £750 million, and cohort companies raising investment in excess of £100 million.
