Timberpost was formed in May 2005 by Peter Ross, Tim Taylor, Rory Macneil, Bob Pettigrew and Glasgow Investment Managers (represented by its then-Chief Executive, Mike Balfour). Glasgow Investment Managers was acquired in August 2007 by Aberdeen Asset Management, who are now represented on Timberpost's board by Gary Jones.

Timberpost's aim has been to develop software using artificial intelligence techniques to give long/short signals on individual equities that could be used for decision-making for a long/short equity hedge fund. Peter Ross and Tim Taylor have done the technical development work, and the others have provided advice and the necessary initial investment.

Immediately prior to the formation of the company, Peter and Tim had both been working in local universities. Peter was a professor at Napier University, specialising in evolutionary and biologically-inspired computing techniques, and had been exploring the use of such AI techniques in practical financial trading. Tim was a researcher at Edinburgh University specialising in artificial life and robotics but was keen to return to the field of computerised trading, having worked in the past in an investment management quant firm in London.