Edinburgh hailed as major technology start-up hub Published duration 24 August 2015

image copyright Edinburgh Research and Innovation image caption The Pufferfish digital display firm is among start-ups which have been attracting investment

Edinburgh is being hailed as a major technology hub as new figures show a record number of university start-ups.

The University of Edinburgh said it supported 44 start-ups and three spin-outs last year, taking the total to 184 in five years.

Investment in university-founded companies has also hit a record high - with backing of £237m in 2014/15.

The university said research innovation was helping the city become the UK's largest tech hub outside London.

Since Edinburgh's first recorded spin-out was established more than 40 years ago, the university said it had created a total of more than 400 start-up and spin-out companies.

Student entrepreneurs

Recent commercial successes include spin-out pureLiFi, whose light-enabled internet technology is being incorporated at the home of the Golden State Warriors basketball team in San Francisco.

Grant Wheeler, head of company formation at Edinburgh Research and Innovation, the university's commercialisation arm, said: "Whether it's from the world-class research base or from the student entrepreneurs, we're seeing new companies being formed here and in record numbers.

"And more and more have the potential to develop further."