Adam Beaumont

Professor Adam Beaumont (born August 1972) is a businessman, angel investor, trustee and digital entrepreneur. He is the CEO of telecommunications provider aql, a visiting professor of cyber security at the University of Leeds and the Honorary Consul of the Republic of Estonia to the Northern Powerhouse and the Isle of Man.

Adam Beaumont
BornAugust 1972
Stockport, Greater Manchester, England
NationalityBritish
Alma materUniversity of Leeds
OccupationFounder and CEO of aql
CEO of BlueWave Communications
Founder of NorthInvest
Years active1998–present
TitleProfessor
Partner(s)Not Known

Early life and education

Beaumont was state educated. He was born in Stockport, England.[1]

He has a PhD in Physical Chemistry and a BSc in Colour and Polymer Chemistry from the University of Leeds.[1]

Career

After completing his PhD, Beaumont began his career at age 24 with a three-year stint as the University of Leeds' youngest lecturer in physical chemistry, including quantum mechanics and thermodynamics.[1][2]

He then spent some time in secure mobile communications for the Defence Evaluation Research Agency (DERA), an agency of the Ministry of Defence. Beaumont was involved in building the agency's first cyber teams.[3]

Beaumont founded telecommunications platform company aql in 1998, and is the company's CEO.[4]

In 2008, he purchased the Salem Chapel, a 1791 Grade II listed building in the heart of Leeds.[5][6] Over several years, he restored the building and turned it into the main data hub in the North. The restored chapel houses aql's head office, and has hosted the launch of government initiatives, including the Northern Powerhouse concept and the first Northern Powerhouse Partnership report.[7][8][9]

He is a founder and board member of IXLeeds, the UK’s first and only fully independent internet exchange outside London.[10]

In 2015, Beaumont founded not-for-profit investment platform NorthInvest.[11] As an angel investor, he invests between £20,000 and £400,000 in early-stage tech companies, such as CBiS Education, Deekit, ID Health, Memento VR, Gravity Industries,[3] handi[12] and jet-drone company hydra.[13] Northinvest raised over £2m for startups in Q1 2020[14] and over £9m across that year.[15]

After aql bought Isle of Man-based communications provider BlueWave Communications in 2015, Beaumont became the company's CEO.[16]

Beaumont is active overseas, leading the founding delegation to create UK:Estonia TechLink.[17] More recently he led a delegation of northern business leaders on an April 2017 trade mission to San Francisco as part of the government's Northern Powerhouse initiative.[18]

In January 2018, he helped launch Transport for the North's Strategic Transport Plan to transform transportation in the North of England over the next 30 years.[19][20] He is a speaker on cyber topics, including more recently, the UK govt COVID-19 app.[21]

Honours and other endeavours

Beaumont was appointed a visiting professor of cyber security at the University of Leeds in October 2017.[22] He is also a governor of Leeds City College.[23] He is a patron of Leeds Community Foundation[24] and the major supporter of Child friendly Leeds[25]

In June 2017, Beaumont was appointed as a Trustee of the Eden Project.[26] He is also a Non Executive Director of the Eden Project International Board - responsible for Eden projects in China, Ireland, Dubai, US.[27] He is a key driver of Eden Project North,[28]

Beaumont was named International Director of the Year 2017 for Yorkshire and the North East by the Institute of Directors.[17] He was named Director of the Year for Innovation in 2018.[29] He was named International Director of the Year in 2019.[30]

He was appointed to the board of the Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (LEP) in 2017.[31]

He was named Honorary Consul of the Republic of Estonia to the Northern Powerhouse and the Isle of Man in April 2018.[32]

Beaumont joined the UK5G Advisory Board in March 2018.[33] His mobile network BlueWave received permissions to operate 5G in the Isle of Man[34]

A regular keynote speaker on topics including cyber security and mobile security, Beaumont delivered the opening address at the Huddersfield leg of the Duke of York's prestigious Pitch@Palace entrepreneurship competition in February 2018.[35] In April, he gave two talks at CYBERUK 2018, the National Cyber Security Centre's (NCSC) annual flagship conference.[36]

He is part of Leeds City Region's team that successfully bid on a place on Massachusetts Institute of Technology's (MIT) two-year Regional Entrepreneurship Acceleration Programme (REAP).[37]

In 2018 he created funded the "Beaumont Awards" - an award for outstanding final year research which has the potential to positively impact society, the winners each receiving a medal inspired by the achievements in research-led public education by Michael Faraday.[38]

References
  1. "Profile: Adam Beaumont". www.yorkshirepost.co.uk. Retrieved 2017-11-13.
  2. "Four Admitted as Freemen Entrepreneurs – Guild of Entrepreneurs". guildofentrepreneurs.org. Retrieved 2017-11-20.
  3. Evans, Peter (2017-11-12). "Q&A with angel investor Adam Beaumont". The Sunday Times. ISSN 0956-1382. Retrieved 2017-11-13.
  4. "AQL expands data centre campus with ex-council building". www.yorkshirepost.co.uk. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  5. "Where did it all start for Leeds United?". Time Out Leeds. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  6. "Dotcom survivor to put university in your pocket". www.yorkshirepost.co.uk. Retrieved 2017-11-20.
  7. "rebuildingsociety MD Daniel Rajkumar joined the Institute of Directors to hear the PM set out his long term economic plans for Yorkshire". rebuildingsociety.com. 2015-02-06. Retrieved 2017-08-23.
  8. "Let's stop the brain-drain from the North and claim the ultimate prize, says George Osborne's new think-tank". www.yorkshirepost.co.uk. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  9. News, Bdaily Business. "George Osborne launches first Northern Powerhouse Partnership report at aql's Leeds HQ". Bdaily Business News. Retrieved 2018-03-05.
  10. "Adam Beaumont: Executive Profile & Biography - Bloomberg". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2017-11-13.
  11. "aql Chief Exec announces launch of "NorthInvest" - UK Business Angels Association (UKBAA)". UK Business Angels Association (UKBAA). 2015-07-27. Retrieved 2017-11-13.
  12. "Angel investors fast-track start-up growth amid virus crisis | TheBusinessDesk.com". Yorkshire. 2020-05-19. Retrieved 2020-05-28.
  13. Media, Insider. "NorthInvest backing for trio of start-ups". Insider Media Ltd. Retrieved 2020-05-28.
  14. Cuthbert, Dominic (2020-05-27). "Q1 sees NorthInvest raise over £2m for Northern start-ups". Business Link Magazine. Retrieved 2020-05-28.
  15. "Investment facilitator hails record-breaking support for tech start-ups | TheBusinessDesk.com". Yorkshire. 2021-02-01. Retrieved 2021-02-07.
  16. "Firm owned by Apprentice star Baggs bought by Leeds company". Retrieved 2018-05-21.
  17. "Adam Beaumont named as International Director of the Year - Business Link Magazine". Business Link Magazine. 2017-07-17. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
  18. "Leeds tech leader Adam Beaumont heads San Francisco trade mission from the North". Yorkshire. 2017-03-29. Retrieved 2017-11-13.
  19. News, Bdaily Business. "Thirty-year infrastructure plan launched to transform transport in the North". Bdaily Business News. Retrieved 2018-01-24.
  20. "VIDEO: Bradford set to get station on high speed Northern Powerhouse Rail line". Bradford Telegraph and Argus. Retrieved 2018-01-24.
  21. "How will Britain's coronavirus contact-tracing app work (and should we be worried about our privacy?)". www.mailplus.co.uk. Retrieved 2020-05-28.
  22. Richardson-Smith, Josephine. "School of Computing welcomes Visiting Professor". engineering.leeds.ac.uk. Retrieved 2017-11-13.
  23. "Governors - Leeds City College". Leeds City College. Archived from the original on 2017-12-10. Retrieved 2017-11-13.
  24. "Meet The 100 Club". Leeds Community Foundation. Retrieved 2020-02-02.
  25. "Shortlist revealed for the 2020 Child Friendly Leeds Awards". Shortlist revealed for the 2020 Child Friendly Leeds Awards. Retrieved 2020-02-02.
  26. "Professor Adam Beaumont, Eden Trustee". www.edenproject.com. Retrieved 2017-11-13.
  27. "Professor Adam Beaumont". Eden Project. 2017-07-06. Retrieved 2019-10-11.
  28. "South Lakes Eden boost". The Westmorland Gazette. Retrieved 2020-02-02.
  29. News, Bdaily Business. "Lady Ruby Sykes honoured at Director of the Year awards". Bdaily Business News. Retrieved 2018-08-09.
  30. "Shortlist revealed for IoD Director of the Year Awards | Institute of Directors | IoD". www.iod.com. Retrieved 2019-10-11.
  31. "Cultural, environmental and digital experts join Leeds LEP". www.yorkshirepost.co.uk. Retrieved 2018-01-24.
  32. ERR (2018-04-19). "Estonia opens honorary consul office in Leeds". ERR. Retrieved 2018-04-24.
  33. KTN. "UK5G Launched". KTN. Retrieved 2018-05-21.
  34. Langan-Newton, Shelley. "BlueWave Acquires Old BBC Transmitter Site – BlueWave". Retrieved 2020-02-02.
  35. "Duke of York Pitch@Palace entrepreneurs mass in Huddersfield - University of Huddersfield". www.hud.ac.uk. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  36. "CYBERUK 2018 Leadership Agenda" (PDF).
  37. "LEP - MIT REAP programme". 2018-05-10. Retrieved 2018-07-31.
  38. Cruise, Richard. "The Beaumont Award winners 2018 & 2019". students.leeds.ac.uk. Retrieved 2020-06-24.
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