Opened in 2001, it is part of Birmingham Museums Trust and is located within the Millennium Point complex on Curzon Street, Digbeth.

Over the following years, the museum acquired individual artefacts, as well as entire collections, that were related to local industry and the history of science and technology.

[7] While many objects were put on display at Thinktank, others were stored at the Birmingham Museum Collection Centre, and some were brought out of storage.

[citation needed] The planetarium displays films about space and the night sky, the human body and undersea exploration, as well as music and light shows.

[34][36] In September 2014 it was used to provide a live link with Tim Peake at a European Space Agency training camp as part of a British Association of Planetaria conference.

The museum shares the Millennium Point building with Birmingham City University, and is situated in the Eastside district.