Dragons' Den pitch helps Gener8 reach £36m valuation, four years on

A Dragons' Den star has turned Gener8 into a £36 million business after asking for £60,000 in exchange for 10% on the BBC show in 2021.

Sam Jones founded Gener8 in 2018 after leaving Red Bull with a mission to help people gain more control over their data or to get something back from it. On the show, he pitched for £60,000 for 10% and impressed a panel that included Touker Suleyman, Peter Jones, Deborah Meaden and Tej Lalvani. Jones ultimately chose to partner with Touker and Peter, launching what would become a rapid growth story for the data-control company.

Since the broadcast, Gener8 has attracted additional attention and capital. After filming, Tej Lalvani expressed interest and joined the journey, having been connected through Touker; he invested £300,000 in the business. Jones also notes that other high-profile figures, including Harry Redknapp, Tinie Tempah and Chris Gayle, became involved in the broader narrative surrounding the brand and its ambitions.

Jones said the company’s growth has been explosive, with revenue this year up by more than 500% and the team aiming to build what he calls a tech unicorn. The plan is to empower consumers to earn and control value from their own data while expanding the product suite.

Gener8 markets itself as a privacy- and data-management platform, with offerings that include an app, a browser, an extension, and the company’s own tools named genie and sentinel. The brand’s messaging centers on blocking ads, trackers and cookies while providing real-world rewards for users who opt in to data-sharing arrangements.

The business has cultivated a modest but growing social footprint, with about 20,300 followers on Instagram and a profile that emphasizes user empowerment and data independence. The journey from a £60,000 ask to a £36 million enterprise underscores the evolving landscape of data rights and consumer control in the tech market.

Dragons' Den airs on BBC One and is available to stream on iPlayer.