Published 24th Mar 2023, 16:45 BST

Organisers hope to work with regional, national and international partners to spotlight tech in the North throughout the year, as well as creating a central repository for events across the tech sector.

Stuart Clarke, festival director of Leeds Digital Festival, said: “We’ve often been asked to run the Festival all year round, in order to keep the digital community connected and to keep celebrating the innovation and talent we have in the region.

"Leeds Digital will continue the conversation and will enable everyone to bring their own events into one hub, to make it easier for everyone to find out what’s going on every single day.”

Started in 2016, Leeds Digital Festival has grown into the UK’s largest ‘open’ tech event.

Each year sees a three-day mini-fest in April and the main two-week Festival in September with over 250 events celebrating all things digital, including fintech, healthtech, careers and coding.

Deb Hetherington, head of innovation at Bruntwood SciTech and a board director of Leeds Digital Festival, said: “The Leeds Digital Festival has grown from strength to strength over the years, and matured into an incredible example of collaboration and knowledge sharing for the region.

"The launch of Leeds Digital means we are well on our way to ensuring the digital ecosystem in Leeds has access to events, networks and information throughout the whole year. ”

Both Leeds City Council and the West Yorkshire Combined Authority have also worked with the Festival to promote the Leeds City Region to potential overseas inward investors.

Councillor Jonathan Pryor, deputy leader and executive board member for economy, culture and education at Leeds City Council, said: “Leeds has become a hub for digital innovation and entrepreneurship in the UK, and its reputation as a leading digital destination continues to grow.

"Leeds Digital will play a vital role in ensuring that the momentum and benefits of the Leeds Digital Festival, strong tech networks, meet-ups and events across the city continue throughout the year.

"It will also provide a space to showcase the incredible work being done in the city, whilst also providing opportunities for collaboration and growth in the industry. We are proud to throw our support behind this great initiative.”

In 2023, Leeds Digital Festival will return in two parts. Heading into its 8th year, the festival will start with the April “mini-fest”, which runs from April 25 to 27.

Organisers describe this as a “small-but-mighty” programme of events, featuring the likes of TechUK, KPMG, AND Digital, BJSS, Leeds 2023, NEXUS and Leeds City Council.

The main festival will then run from September 18 to 29, and is an open-platform programme of tech and digital events, hosted by organisations across the city and region.

Team behind Leeds Digital Festival launches new platform for region's tech firms