CivTech 6: technology and data challenges from the Scottish Government

If you’re an innovator, entrepreneur, team, start-up or established company, CivTech offers an unrivalled opportunity to develop a product the public sector really needs — and rapidly grow your business. With problems framed as Open Challenges, application is easy and procurement streamlined; it’s a swift, secure and proven pathway for innovative teams to win public sector customers.

This year’s Challenges are intimately connected to that future. Some are quite specific and immediate, others are nothing short of an invitation to reinvent how we do things. They’re all part of the Scottish Government’s determination to build our nation, and to drive it forward.

Innovation — creating ever better products and services — is at the heart of this. And this leads to economic opportunity. CivTech has clear, compelling evidence that it’s delivering on both these things — with huge benefits delivered to public sector organisations, and a really high success rate for the companies involved.

Put those two things together and you have something compelling. An opportunity for all parts of society to work together to build the kind of world we want. For public services to become better and more efficient. For people to solve problems and build a business.

And this year, more than ever, we want to encourage the widest range of applicants and applications possible. Because it’s in the diversity of teams and solutions that we’ll develop really compelling propositions. The application process is a friendly one and you don’t need to be a company to apply.

You don’t have to be someone from a technical background, or an experienced business person, or an academic to come up with a brilliant solution to our Challenges. All you need is a great idea, and a determination to see it develop — we’ll help you do the rest.

This is about innovation for good, for everyone.

Please take a look at our latest set of Challenges. If you find one or more you’re interested in applying for you can see the CivTech 6 timeline below and find out about the application process here.

If the CivTech 6 Challenges aren’t quite right for you, don’t let us drop off your radar. We’re planning to launch a number of additional ‘Sprint’ Challenges later in the year across an exciting range of areas — follow us on Twitter for the latest news.

A complete list of the challenges can be seen here.

All of the challenges must be applied for via Public Contracts Scotland.

Challenge 1
How can technology help manufacturing businesses decarbonise while building resilience and strengthening competitive advantage? (£650k)

Challenge 2
How do we give the citizens of Scotland trust and agency over how AI and algorithms are used in the public sector? (£250k)

Challenge 3
How can technology help us identify peatland restoration sites that will optimise costs and benefits? (£650k)

Challenge 4
How can we use technology to help land managers make informed land-use decisions and increase carbon capture and storage? (£250k)

Challenge 5
How can tech help manage traffic and road infrastructure used by commercial operations in rural and remote communities? (£650k)

Challenge 6
How do we better understand supply and demand of school age childcare in communities? (£250k)

Challenge 7
How can tech help us understand how our school buildings are used, and help support asset performance, wellbeing and sustainability? (£250k)

Challenge 8
How do we better plan, manage and respond to the experiences of visitors and communities at visitor hotspots in rural and remote locations? (£650k)

Challenge 9
How can tech help people identify the care they need, and enable them to manage their own care services? (£250k)

Challenge 10
How can we help trainers assess the skills and practice competence of learners, using remote and online services? (£250k)

Challenge 11
How can we create the most local and best possible user experience for people engaging with the Citizens Advice Scotland network? (£250k)

Challenge 12
How can tech help make public sector data easy to find? (£250k)

Video briefings are available for each challenge: click here for the complete list (click through to each challenge to see its video briefing).