Under 40s & Unicorn Awards
2025
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The Hurun UK Under40s & Unicorn Conference and Awards 2024
Rupert Hoogewerf:
“These business leaders are the future of the British economy. It takes courage to start a business and a lot more grow to the scale of those we feature here.
Each of our founders have built a company worth $100m - some many multiples of that number."
Award Categories
Under40s Awards: Founders under 40 who have created businesses worth $100M or more.
Future Unicorn Awards: Founders whose businesses are poised to reach unicorn status within three years (Hurun Gazelles) and within five years (Hurun Cheetahs).
Unicorn Awards: Founders whose companies are valued at $1B or more.
Evening of the Awards
On March 10, 2025, we hosted the Hurun UK Under40s & Unicorn Conference & Awards, celebrating the achievements of the UK’s most dynamic and innovative entrepreneurs of 2024. The event was proudly sponsored by global smart electric vehicle leader NIO, premium vodka brand Golden Egg, and renowned executive search and leadership firm Odgers Berndtson.
Set in a stunning private mansion in the heart of Mayfair, London, the afternoon and evening buzzed with energy and excitement.
Over 60 guests gathered to honour the exceptional talent of U40, Unicorn, and Future Unicorn Award winners.
Among the distinguished honorees were seven inspiring winners of the U40 Award, including Jordan Brompton from myenergi, Husayn Kassai from Quench AI, and Tom Gearing from Cult Wines.
The event also spotlighted unicorn founders such as Pratik Gauri and Prateek Dwivedi from 5ire, alongside the visionary Future Unicorn Founders, including Sai Shivareddy from Nyobolt and Andrew Smith from RTGS.
The evening showcased the remarkable talent and potential of the UK's emerging entrepreneurial scene, laying the groundwork for even more impressive accomplishments in the future. The atmosphere was electric with energy and creativity!
Award Winners
Freya Dawson,
Dawson Group, Director
Guest Speakers
Professor Dame Madeleine Atkins
President of Lucy Cavendish College, University of Cambridge & Former CEO of the Higher Education Funding Council for Enngland
Justin Chen
Founder, Managing Partner, ALC Capital & Former Head of the Strategic Investment Department at Alibaba Group
+20
FOUNDERS
+70
GUESTS
2
Keynote
Speakers
2
PANEL DISCUSSIONS
Panel Discussions
Panel 1: Scaling up to the next level
We had a great fireside chat led by Rupert Hoogewerf ,with these three impressive business leaders on what it takes to turn an idea into reality, and how to scale it into a company worth hundreds of millions.
From left: Jordan brompton, myenergi Founder; Husyan kassai, Quench AI Founder; Tom Gearing, Cult Wine Founder
Panel 2: Does the UK have a Unicorn creating advantage.
Is the UK a great place to build unicorn companies? Our three remarkable participants certainly have the expertise to answer.
From left. Andrew Smith, Clear bank Co-founder; Sai Shivareddy, Nyobolt Founder; Hui Zhang, Nio Vice President Europe
Interviews
Interviews were conducted by Alberto Zandi, Co-Founder of 30&Thriving.
Keep an eye on our socials as we release the videos over the coming weeks
From left: Tom Berkeley, Oscar winning director; Alberto Zandi, 30&Thriving Co-founder
Event Partnerships
NIO, founded in 2014, is a global smart electric vehicle company committed to a sustainable future with high-performance EVs and exceptional user experiences. It is the first car company listed on the NYSE, HKEX, and SGX. NIO has three brands: NIO, ONVO, and Firefly. With over 9,800 patents and a focus on R&D, it leads the premium smart EV market. NIO operates R&D and manufacturing in several global locations and offers nine NIO models, one ONVO model, and Firefly’s pre-orders in China. As of January 2025, NIO delivered 685,427 vehicles, leading the premium BEV segment above RMB 300,000.
Golden Egg is a super—premium, supremely smooth vodka
Crafted from the highest quality English grain, Golden Egg vodka undergoes a meticulous process of double distillation and triple filtration, resulting in a supremely smooth character.
Enhanced with an infusion of premium local Berkshire honey acting as a natural smoothing agent, it boasts a distinctive and refined mouthfeel.
