AI maturity, meta-skills development, green data centres and stronger cyber resilience are all set to shape the next 12 months in Scottish tech. And, despite a challenging political and economic backdrop in 2025, Scotland’s tech leaders remain broadly optimistic about what the new year holds.
The senior team at ScotlandIS has provided its top predictions for 2026, taking a closer look at the sector’s biggest opportunities – and the factors that could slow momentum.
Scotland could be an AI powerhouse, but only if businesses move on from the hype cycle
Scotland has a long history of innovation, from steam engines to MRI scanners, and AI could be the next chapter in that story. But reaching that potential will depend on businesses looking past the hype and approaching the latest developments with a more strategic mindset.
Karen Meechan, CEO at ScotlandIS said: “Scotland has all the makings of a powerful AI leader. But right now, too many organisations still equate AI adoption with tools, not strategy. And with around 85% of AI implementations failing due to poor data foundations and unclear use cases, the risk – particularly for SMEs – is significant. The hype cycle is pushing businesses to move too fast and we’re starting to see that what we really need is clarity, strong governance and a focus on genuine value.
“Moving into the new year, the need for specialist knowledge will prompt a further rise in AI-specific roles. But, as an industry, we must always focus on the long-term solution and right now, that is getting over the hype cycle.
“In the next 12 months, I hope to see Scotland invest in the foundations that make AI possible. We talk about wanting to be a nation at the forefront of AI, but that requires far more compute capacity and sovereign data infrastructure so our data can stay securely within the UK, rather than being outsourced. This isn’t just a technical requirement, it’s a prerequisite for ethical, compliant and responsible AI at scale. Meaningful progress in 2026 will only come from strategies that are grounded in business outcomes, prioritise data quality and privacy and embed strong guardrails around ethics and security.
“Beyond infrastructure, reaching Scotland’s potential hinges massively on skills, particularly for new and emerging roles. We expect a bigger uptick in AI-specific jobs in the new year, but we need to make sure that we’re aligning the skills of our graduates and current employees with the sector as it’s moving. That doesn’t mean eliminating jobs, it means upskilling workers for a new age. AI won’t increase unemployment if we do it right, but that
means investing in supporting staff to develop new skills that enhance their existing skills and prepare them to make the most of emerging technologies, including but not limited to AI.
“If Scotland gets this right, AI could be transformative, not just for the tech sector but for the Scottish economy more broadly. But we will only unlock that potential if we move beyond the hype and focus on the skills and infrastructure needed for long term growth.”
Scotland’s tech skills crisis could shift up the pipeline
The skills shortage remained one of the biggest barriers to growth in 2025, but its impact is now moving further up the talent pipeline. Five years on from Covid, many junior hires from the remote-working era missed out on essential in-person learning and mentorship. As a result, businesses are noticing less developed skills relating to critical thinking, communication and self-management in some of their junior employees. All of which are crucial for anyone looking for progression into mid-level roles. This is creating a new bottleneck for employers looking to scale.
Nicola Taylor, chief operations officer at ScotlandIS said: “Scotland has a lot of potential when it comes to skills. We have strong universities creating graduates who are ready to work but, if junior staff don’t have the skills to progress to mid-tier roles, we’ll have little entry-level positions available for our graduates. This is obviously a problem given the ongoing skills crisis the sector is facing.
“In 2026, remote and hybrid working models won’t change, at least not for now. But in the next 12 months, I hope to see a recognition as an industry that there is a knowledge gap so we can focus on giving more junior staff the support and skills they need to move into more senior roles – regardless of where they are working from.
“We’re already working with universities to develop shorter, more focused qualifications to fill these gaps. But employers must also take responsibility for nurturing their own future leaders. Whether that’s through apprenticeships or more in-person training time, I hope to see a better balance in 2026 that gives them the flexibility of hybrid working without sacrificing the core skills needed for them to progress.”
Scotland’s opportunity to be a global leader in green data centres is still alive – but we can’t afford to lose sight of it
Scotland’s geography and renewable energy capacity gives it a rare advantage in the global race to be a green data centre leader. Projects like DataVita and CoreWeave’s £1.5 billion renewable AI infrastructure and ILI Group’s £15 billion green data centre network, are proof that its attractiveness to investors is gaining the right traction. But as international competition heats up, Scotland cannot afford to get distracted.
David Ferguson, cyber development lead and head of data at ScotlandIS said: “The data centre market is moving at an incredible pace, driven largely by the demand for AI and, as a result, the need for storage and processing power. While it’s moving quickly, Scotland still has a chance to lead but election-year uncertainty risks slowing momentum at the very moment the country needs to stand out. Nation’s with deeper pockets are aggressively courting tech giants and any delay in signalling Scotland’s readiness could see investors look elsewhere.
“The impact over the next 12 months could be a significant domino effect. Data centres are the engine room for advanced technologies so missing this opportunity would make it harder to attract future investment in biotech, photonics, quantum and other emerging sectors that rely on high-power computing. Scotland still has a credible path to leadership – but only if it keeps its focus sharp and moves decisively.”
Better cyber basics could narrow the threat gap and boost Scotland’s rising cybersecurity ecosystem
AI-enabled attacks continued to shape the cyber landscape in 2025, with the Jaguar Land Rover incident underscoring how quickly disruption can ripple through the entire supply chain – and not always in the top-down direction many assume. While advanced defences are becoming increasingly important, one of the biggest vulnerabilities remains the simplest: too many organisations still lack core cyber fundamentals.
Beverly Bowles, head of cyber at ScotlandIS said: “Regardless of how good our AI-driven defence techniques have gotten in 2025, if businesses continue to neglect the fundamentals, it could have a significant impact on Scotland as a whole.
“The Land Rover incident showed how cyber risk can move both up and down supply chains. Given Scotland’s size, all it takes is one large business to suffer a major attack to have a devastating ripple effect on the wider economy.
“While it might sound small, strengthening basic protections, like cyber essentials training, could dramatically reduce Scotland’s exposure risk in the coming year. And importantly, getting these fundamentals right creates the foundations for our wider ambition, building a thriving market of homegrown cybersecurity products and services.
“As we look to 2026, I hope to see Scottish businesses put strong cyber basics in place. Not only will it strengthen the resilience of our supply chain but also create the environment Scotland needs to stand out as a beacon of cyber strength and innovation.”