Every morning I wake up energised by the latest developments and challenges in the tech world. So, I’ve decided to share my insights and perspectives on the tech industry through this blog.

I thrive on disrupting the status quo, looking for new ways to shake up business models previously considered the ‘norm’ and unlocking new value for customers – an ethos I have brought to every business I have founded throughout my 25 years in building tech companies.

For a long time I have shared my thoughts and ideas in different places. On LinkedIn, in speeches, and in conversations with peers in the industry.

None of that will change.

But with this new blog, I hope to bring a lot of it together into one place, touching on topics like cloud, innovation, business, social value and all things tech – to name a few.

My goal is to provide a useful resource for all: aspiring founders embarking on the thrilling journey of starting their own businesses, tech industry veterans in search of fresh ideas and insights, or beginners just stepping into the vast world of technology.

About me

I’ve been in and around the tech scene my whole life. When I was 12, I ran my own BBS (Bulletin Board System), before the Internet even existed. This was a platform that allowed other computers to connect to your system using a modem and exchange mail, files and play games.

In 1999, I embarked on my entrepreneurial journey by founding a company that initially specialised in web design services. Recognizing a market opportunity, I shifted the focus towards providing domain names and web hosting through LCN.com.

This strategic pivot was the right call, propelling LCN to substantial growth. Eventually, it ranked as the fifth-largest hosting company in the UK, with over 450,000 domains under management.

In 2008 I expanded my horizons into the world of data centers by founding ServerChoice and later putting fibre networks into the ground across the UK with Ai Networks (founded in 2012).

I’ve also founded a cybersecurity company, Defense.com (launched in 2016). So it’s fair to say I’ve been involved in many corners of the tech community for a very long time!

After witnessing the potential of emerging cloud-native technologies, I made the difficult decision to sell LCN in 2019 and invested those funds into launching Civo.

Civo is the big next step in my tech journey.

I co-founded Civo with the vision to create a new type of cloud provider that delivered cutting-edge tech to users, that was accessible and open, and crucially, fair and transparently priced for businesses.

Thanks to our amazing team, I take great pride in Civo’s rise to become one of the top challengers to the hyperscaler cloud providers.

The Cloud

We knew from the beginning that there was a lot of work to do. Big Tech had launched the cloud in the early 2010s with so much promise to provide affordable, scalable compute for users. Since then, the cloud hasn’t lived up to its initial promise.

Over the last decade, we’ve seen Big Tech transform the cloud from a solution designed to provide businesses with flexible, easy, and cost-effective access to computing at scale, into a vendor lock-in nightmare.

Users are enticed with the promise of hundreds of thousands of free credits, only to discover that they often can’t fully utilize them and that the door has now firmly closed behind them. Our message is clear: “the cloud is broken”.

But, the future doesn’t have to be bleak!

Amidst the concerns of the VMware acquisition (take a look at some of my previous thoughts on this here) and egress fees debacle, there’s still positivity to be found in cloud.

There are providers out there operating with the best interests of developers and the cloud ecosystem at heart. At Civo, we are always listening to businesses’ concerns, and are taking steps to do something about it.

Whether that be reducing costs for users, cutting egress fees, providing green alternatives to traditional compute, or simply offering a straightforward approach to cut through the complexity favored by hyperscalers.

Join me on this journey as I strive to make a cloud that is fair, equitable and open. One which stays true to the original promise of the cloud, and supports business growth and doesn’t hinder companies through escalating costs, vendor lock-in and other things that are taken from the users’ control.