2026 Hurun UK Under 25s, Under 30s, Under35s and Under40s Awards & Dinner
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In partnership with
2026 Hurun UK-China Awards & Hurun UK Future Unicorns Dinner
Rupert Hoogewerf, Host
Hurun Report
Chairman & Chief Researcher
"Britain’s startup story is a production line of people as well as companies. Today’s U25 founders are learning how to start; the U30s and U35s are turning proof into scale; and the U40s show how experience, exits and leadership recycle back into the ecosystem. The next billion-dollar businesses are already being built by people in this series"
Alexandra Sanne, MC
Hurun UK,
Editor & Researcher
Night of the Awards
The 2026 Hurun UK Under 25, Under30s, Under35s, and Under 40s Awards and Dinner took place on the evening of November 9th at the prestigious InterContinental Park Lane, bringing together 150 young entrepreneurs, business leaders and industry professionals.
Hosted by Rupert Hoogewerf, Chairman and Chief Researcher of Hurun UK, the evening celebrated the achievements of the UK's most promising young entrepreneurs across the Under 25, Under 30, Under 35 and Under 40 categories, recognising their innovation, ambition and contributions to the UK's business landscape.
The evening opened with a lively performance from Luka, the A3 humanoid robot from AGIBOT, one of the world's leading humanoid robot makers who entertained guests with an impressive display of dance moves.
The event was held in association with Alibaba Cloud and Shan Arts & Lux Consulting.
Welcome Address
George Panayotopoulos
VP of International Business, GM of Europe North and Central Region
Award Categories
Evening of the Awards
The Hurun UK Uth Series Awards and Dinner recognised 25 outstanding entrepreneurs across the Hurun UK Under 25, Under 30, Under 35 and Under 40 lists, celebrating founders who have built successful and innovative businesses at a young age. The evening also marked the inauguration of the Under25s category on the Hurun Report. The U25s is composed entirely of first-generation founders — at these ages, nobody has yet inherited a family business or risen to run a major company. From the U30s upwards, the Uth Series also recognises NextGen family-business leaders and senior executives.
Among those recognised was Alice Mackenzie, co-founder of Nook, who, at just 22 years old, was the youngest award winner of the evening. Other notable winners included Darcy Laceby, co-founder of Absolute Collagen, who having first been recognised on the U30s list in 2022, returned for a 3rd year to be presented with a U35s award. Sai Shivareddy, co-founder of Nyobolt, was also recognised on this year's list both as an Under40 and as UK Unicorn.
The awards showcased the breadth of young entrepreneurial talent in the UK, with founders representing industries ranging from technology and finance to healthcare, fashion and consumer goods. Together, their achievements highlighted the ambition, creativity and innovation driving the next generation of British business.
The Awards
Fireside Chat with Sai Shivareddy
From left: Rupert Hoogewerf, Hurun Report, Chairman & Chief Researcher; Sai Shivareddy, Nyobolt, Founder
+25
FOUNDERS
+120
GUESTS
4
Keynote
Speakers
1
PANEL DISCUSSION
GUEST SPEAKER
Baroness Virginia Bottomley
Former Member of Parliament in the House of Commons
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GUEST SPEAKER
Russ Shaw CBE
London Tech Week, founder
Panel Discussion
Abbas Kazmi,
Collegiate Capital, founder
Abbas founded Collegiate Capital and the Sabah.fund, the London investment businesses he launched after leaving BlackRock. Raised in Dubai and an Oxford graduate, he previously won the U35s 2024.
Yucheng Li, SuperIntern, Co-founder
Co-founder and Head of Business Development of SuperIntern, the London AI startup (Houly Ltd) building customisable AI agents for SEO and generative-engine optimisation, customer support and sales — agents that live inside the tools businesses already use. Founded in 2024, the company raised a US$3.5 million pre-seed led by Samsung Next, with Dispersion Capital, Amber Group and Openspace also investing, and counts BNB Chain among its public AI-support clients. Dhillon represents a new generation of Under30s founders who are building and scaling businesses in fundamentally different ways, leveraging digital channels, brand-led growth and operational efficiency. Over the past two years in particular, the company’s expansion has accelerated significantly, reflecting both strong demand and a highly disciplined approach to scaling.
Piers Millar,
Nook, Co-founder
Millar dropped out of the LSE to co-found Kaikaku, the restaurant-robotics company, at 21; the business for which he was, at 22, the youngest member of the U30s 2024. Kaikaku has since been sold, and Millar went on to found Nook, the hotel-room automation startup he co-founded with 2026 U25s winner Alice Mackenzie and valued at over US$10 million
Roei Samuel, Connectd, founder
Israel-born founder of the platform connecting startups with investors, directors and advisors, with US$17m of annual recurring revenue; raised US$24m including a US$7m round in July 2025 led by Anker Capital. A Nottingham politics graduate and serial entrepreneur, he previously sold RealSport to Gfinity in 2018.Tanguy emphasised that, despite its scale and economic contribution, the creative sector is often overlooked by investors in favour of technology. She argued that the industry offers significant untapped potential and deserves far greater prominence within the broader investment landscape.
Tom Markland, HYDP, founder
Manchester-born founder with no university degree who built the creator-marketing agency from London into New York and Riyadh, serving clients from Amazon and Mercedes to PrettyLittleThing; revenue tripled after the 2023 US expansion.Tanguy emphasised that, despite its scale and economic contribution, the creative sector is often overlooked by investors in favour of technology. She argued that the industry offers significant untapped potential and deserves far greater prominence within the broader investment landscape.
Lucky Draw
The evening concluded with a lucky draw hosted by Ada Shan, Hurun UK Representative and event partner. Guests had the chance to win a range of prizes, including teeth-whitening kits from Whites Beaconsfield, meal boxes from Simmer Eats, a two-night stay at the InterContinental, Speyside whisky, and collagen supplements from Absolute Collagen. Hurun also contributed a selection of gifts from its own collection, including cufflinks, fans, and a tea set.
Event Partnerships
Alibaba Cloud is a global leader in cloud computing and artificial intelligence services, offering scalable, secure, and reliable cloud solutions to businesses of all sizes around the world. As the cloud-computing arm of Alibaba Group, it delivers a comprehensive suite of products, from elastic computing and data storage to advanced AI, analytics, database, and security services, that help organisations accelerate digital transformation, reduce IT costs, and innovate with confidence. Backed by a vast global infrastructure and cutting-edge technologies, Alibaba Cloud enables enterprises to build high-performance applications, power marketing and customer experiences, and scale with agility in today’s dynamic digital economy.
Shàn Arts & Lux is a London-based consultancy helping luxury brands, artists, HNW individuals and young founders thrive across Asia, the UK and North America. Led by Ada Shan, who is also the Hurun UK & Europe representative, we organise events for luxury brands, manage the lifestyle needs of HNWIs, run social media (including WeChat and Xiaohongshu), and advise young entrepreneurs on fundraising, connecting them with investors through our network. As an official partner of Hurun UK & Europe, we also bring Chinese contemporary art to London each year.
Learn more at www.shanartslux.com
With thanks to Speymouth Spirits for providing refreshments.
Speymouth Spirits is an independent Scottish whisky company based at the Dandaleith Estate in the heart of Speyside, just minutes from The Macallan Distillery. Part of the Riverwood Whisky Group, we source and manage exceptional Scotch whisky from some of Scotland's most renowned distilleries, giving private collectors and whisky enthusiasts worldwide access to rare, aged and newly filled casks.
We offer a complete ownership experience: cask purchase, bonded warehousing, maturation management and bespoke bottling. We also host exclusive tastings and private distillery visits, bringing clients closer to the craftsmanship and heritage behind Scotland's finest whiskey. Www.speymouthspirits.com
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