From attracting tourism from the UK to “stealing” its startups

Malaga It has long been one of the favorite holiday destinations for British tourists. Now the city has also become a technology hub that attracts its entrepreneurs. It is the startup state black dicewhich was founded by the entrepreneurOr Englishman Paul Hague, who moved from Leeds to Malaga in August, drawn in by its thriving digital ecosystem.

“We were looking for a European city to expand our business. We knew we had to be there to start the business, so it had to be not only business-friendly, but family-friendly as well. A colleague was in Malaga and suggested we go see it, we did and signed on.” In love with the city. The tech ecosystem is thriving and with VirusTotal/Google here everything falls into placehe explains.

Indeed, Haig acknowledges, it was the opening of Google’s new Center of Excellence in Cybersecurity, which will start operating this year, that tipped the scales in Malaga’s favor after visiting several European cities. Google is what we decided. “It made the rest of the decisions a lot easier for us,” said BlackDice CEO.

The startup, which develops cyber defense software for telecommunications operators, is one of four Spanish companies selected to be part of the program. Google for Startups Growth Academy: Cyber ​​Securitythat started last April.

technology center

In recent years, the capital of the Costa del Sol has become a hub for innovation on an international level. In addition to Google, there are other technology groups such as Globant, Hitachi, Oracle, or NTTData They announced the opening of technology centers in the Andalusian city.

“I think it’s increasingly clear to people outside of Spain that Malaga has become an important technological center. I encourage opportunities here whenever I can. My advice to anyone is to look at Malaga first,” says the businessman.

Haig and his wife, with whom he founded the company, began developing a parental control tool that over time evolved into a solution for monitoring networks for suspicious activity. “This software understands how the network and devices behave and looks for patterns that might mean devices are going rogue, which could lead to future cybersecurity breaches,” he explains.

BlackDice’s roadmap is expanding its operations in Europe and into markets such as Australia, Asia, the Middle East and the United States. They also have “Big recruitment plans” in Malaga and the United Kingdom. The company is currently seeking financing.