Brendan Drain

Columnist

Brendan Drain,

Sync NI

Techie Talk Time

With the shock of Brexit slowing and and the business world now cautiously planning for the end of the pandemic, now could be the ideal time for US tech firms to invest in Northern Ireland.

Dual market access:

It seems as if there’s another US-based tech company opening an office in Northern Ireland every few months recently, and part of that is down to groups like Invest NI who attract investment into the region. Invest NI recently reported that it’s actually been seeing a lot of interest from several global tech firms in Northern Ireland’s unique post-Brexit situation.

While Brexit has negatively impacted thousands of businesses across the UK, the Northern Ireland protocol puts the region in an interesting position. A company set up in Northern Ireland would have access to freely export to both Great Britain and the EU single market. Tech companies here would have quick access to suppliers and contractors on the entire island of Ireland while being part of the UK’s tax regime and being able to access the UK’s R&D tax relief.

Top-tier universities:

Northern Ireland’s universities play an important role in the local tech industry, providing research facilities and qualified graduates in everything from business development to cybersecurity. Queen’s University Belfast is globally recognised for its research in MedTech and Telecoms technology and was recently named the number one UK university for generating successful spinout companies.

Ulster University has been investing heavily into emerging technologies in the creative and screen industries, having recently put a million pounds in the creation of a virtual production lab. The university has also now partnered with global games industry giant Epic Games to become the only Unreal Academic Partner on the entire island of Ireland.

All of our local universities and colleges have been developing more links with industry in recent years. Belfast Met provides training for a lot of our local apprenticeship schemes, and some of the larger tech firms have even worked with local universities to create entirely new degree-apprenticeship pathways. With heavy R&D investment on the way with the Belfast City Deal, the universities will be an essential link to the needs of the tech industry.

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Low-cost staff:

Tech salaries in major US cities are among the highest in the world for a given role, with software engineers sometimes earning over 60% more in the US than they can get in the UK. US companies frequently set up offices in major UK tech hubs such as London or Manchester to save money, but Northern Ireland is even cheaper than those locations.

Low-cost staff:

Tech salaries in major US cities are among the highest in the world for a given role, with software engineers sometimes earning over 60% more in the US than they can get in the UK. US companies frequently set up offices in major UK tech hubs such as London or Manchester to save money, but Northern Ireland is even cheaper than those locations.

Setting up shop in Northern Ireland makes even more sense now that most tech companies are offering full remote work for the foreseeable future. Companies that have now set up robust infrastructure to enable remote work will find it much easier to fill skilled roles if they can accept applicants from other cities or countries. Northern Ireland’s combination of low cost of living and highly skilled IT workers may make it the ideal place to source remote tech staff.

Setting up shop in Northern Ireland makes even more sense now that most tech companies are offering full remote work for the foreseeable future. Companies that have now set up robust infrastructure to enable remote work will find it much easier to fill skilled roles if they can accept applicants from other cities or countries. Northern Ireland’s combination of low cost of living and highly skilled IT workers may make it the ideal place to source remote tech staff.

Internet infrastructure:

The past few years have seen the rollout of some impressive new telecoms technology around the world, with 5G mobile towers going up in major cities and gigabit full-fibre lines being laid into business and home premises. Belfast was one of the first cities in the UK to get 5G, and over half of Northern Ireland now has access to ultra fast fibre to the premises broadband with speeds of over 800Mbps.

The region’s high internet connectivity proved essential during the early part of the pandemic when businesses were suddenly forced to switch to remote working. Something that may also be of particular interest to US tech firms working in data-heavy industries is that we actually have a low-latency transatlantic fibre cable link from Coleraine to several major cities in the US and Europe. The Atlantic Link Enterprise Campus in Coleraine is just 1km from the landing point of the cable and has already attracted the development of one major data centre.