GOV.UK

Something surprising is happening in the world of UK startups. Brilliant programmers and designers are heading to the same place in droves, assembling into an impressive team of web development. The surprising part isn’t the numbers or even the talent, it’s the destination: The Government Digital Service. Not quite a startup, not at all actually, but a service using all the trappings of one. Open Source software, quick iterative development, transparency, openness to communities, collaboration with the outside, cloud services, using proven solutions instead of trying to build everything in-house, even an emphasis on design. Almost unheard of, design and development geeks even piled on compliments for a government outfit when the Service published their GDS design principles. Within a short time, this initiative to rebuild the UK government’s most visited site has become a role model for public web projects. Well done.