A new Glasgow City Council spotlight report has set out the rapid growth, rising value and global opportunity emerging across Glasgow City Region’s MedTech ecosystem, marking the third instalment in the Why Glasgow? series.
Published by the Council’s Digital Economy team, the report positions MedTech as a broad and increasingly convergent cluster spanning medical devices, digital health and in vitro diagnostics, all operating within medical device regulation. As boundaries blur between hardware and software, more products now combine physical devices with digital components, from wearable sensors linked to apps to AI-enabled diagnostic tools, enabling more personalised, data-driven and efficient care delivery.
The report highlights strong momentum across the cluster, with Glasgow’s venture capital-funded MedTech startups reported to have a combined enterprise value of £361m. Employment growth is described as startling: from a sector made up largely of small teams in 2018, the cluster expands significantly by 2026 across companies ranging from two to 200 employees. Dr Ruth McLaughlin, Programme Director of The Living Laboratory at the University of Glasgow, described “a really rich support environment” capable of supporting MedTech “at its broadest sense”.
Central to this is Glasgow’s health ecosystem, with the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital identified as one of Europe’s largest acute hospitals and a major differentiator. Its scale, clinical specialisms and large local population enable trials, evidence gathering and real-world validation at pace, supported by collaboration between clinicians and early-stage innovators.
The report also points to key innovation assets, including the University of Glasgow’s Living Laboratory and Digital Health Validation Lab, alongside Kadans Science Partners facilities at the West of Scotland Science Park and the new Health Innovation Hub. Access to patient populations through NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde is highlighted as a major strength, supporting inclusive clinical research and real-world evaluation across a large and diverse urban population. Professor Jesse Dawson said: “We have access to all patients groups, all clinical specialities – so there isn’t any health area we couldn’t help test and support developing MedTech solutions.”
University spin-outs are presented as a defining feature of the cluster and a major driver of value. Of around 47 core MedTech companies, 20 are university spin-outs, with spin-outs accounting for 66% of the cluster’s enterprise value. Nine MedTech spin-outs have secured £238m in VC funding. Dr Rebecca Cleary of Nami Surgical highlighted the strength of the research base between the Universities of Glasgow and Strathclyde, describing “the largest base of ultrasonic research in the world”.
Looking outward, the report frames Glasgow’s opportunity within a fast-growing global market, with medical technology projected to reach almost $887bn by 2032 and digital health expected to grow to $940bn. With Europe’s market characterised by SMEs and short product lifecycles, the report argues Glasgow City Region is well placed to support rapid iteration, clinical validation and early evidence generation. With £30m of UK Government funding available through the Local Innovation Partnerships Fund, it concludes Glasgow has a significant opportunity to scale its MedTech ambitions and build globally relevant, export-ready technologies.