Software & Technology

Edinburgh is a world leader in artificial intelligence (AI). In 2025, Deloitte named Edinburgh the UK's leading city for AI in an assessment of "AI-powered cities of the future".

The University of Edinburgh has been at the forefront of AI development since the 1960s, when its Experimental Programming Unit and Department of Machine Intelligence and Perception were founded. Today, the University's School of Informatics continues to carry out groundbreaking research on AI and its applications.

The University of Edinburgh hosts the AI Hub for Productive Research and Innovation in Electronics (APRIL) and the AI Hub for Causality in Healthcare AI with Real Data (CHAI). Edinburgh further hosts "The New Real", a partnership between the University of Edinburgh, The Alan Turing Institute, and Edinburgh’s Festivals which studies experiential AI. 

The Generative AI Laboratory (GAIL) harnesses the University of Edinburgh’s world-leading research and innovation in artificial intelligence to develop safe solutions for both industry and government to benefit society. GAIL unites the diverse research expertise across the University with generative AI at its core - a powerful form of machine learning capable of producing text, images, video, audio, computer code, and even predict protein structures.

The Edinburgh International Data Facility features four CS-3 systems fitted with WSE-3 processors (the world's largest and most powerful AI chip), making it the largest system of its kind in Europe. The system is available for use by researcher's as part of Edinburgh's Data-Driven Innovation programme.

Companies based in Edinburgh who have gone on to success in AI include the life sciences firm bioXcelerate AI (which has developed a AI tool for accelerating drug discovery) and the "lawtech" firm Valla (which has developed an AI-based legal advice platform). The city has also attracted investments from firms such as the American AI and robotics firm launchpad.build (which has a research and development centre in Edinburgh) and the Japanese technology firm Canon (which has a subsidary in Edinburgh, Canon Medical Research Europe, carrying out research and development around medical imaging and artificial intelligence in medicine).

“We have a strong focus on AI and automation with the goal of helping clinicians to diagnose and treat more patients. It makes me very proud to think that the innovation we create here is Scotland can benefit the people of Scotland and, through our parent company, the rest of the world.”

- Dr, Ken Sutherland, President, Canon Medical Research Europe

The AI Accelerator programme run by the Bayes Centre of the University of Edinburgh mentors AI-driven businesses to help them expand.

Education

The University of Edinbugh offers bachelor's degree and master's degree courses in AI, while Edinburgh Napier University offers a bachelor's degree in Computer Science (Artificial Intelligence). Heriot-Watt University offers a bachelor's degree in Computer Science (Artificial Intelligence) and a master's degree in AI.