Michael Adex: the entrepreneur aiming to inspire black-founded tech startups
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Manchester-raised entertainment mogul is ambassador for scheme helping businesses in creative industries succeed. He is the man behind 3bn streams, a string of chart-topping artists – and Wetherspoon’s newest brand of tequila. Ask Michael Adex how he has achieved all this by the age of 28 and he gives some credit to his “immovable” will to make things happen.
But the Manchester-raised entertainment mogul, who first tasted success as the talent manager behind rapper Aitch before founding a talent agency, record label and global music publishing business, is acutely aware that no matter how powerful the vision, or how good the idea, fledgling companies need cash to survive.
The UK aims to be a leader in “deep tech”, the field of innovation that includes advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing and blockchain. But the pathway from bright idea to commercial success can be a fraught one, especially for black entrepreneurs.
Research from Digital Catapult, which works with government, industry and academia to grow businesses through the use of deep tech, has found just 0.2% of overall investment in the UK goes to black-founded companies. Adex, who last year was named one of Forbes’ magazine’s “30 under 30”, is out to change that, acting as ambassador for Digital Catapult’s Black Founders programme, which is supporting 10 businesses on their commercial journey. Companies previously selected have gone into partnership with large corporates and attracted interest from angel investors.
