Founder and CEO of aql CEO of BlueWave Communications Founder of NorthInvest
Years active
1998–present
Title
Professor
Partner
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]
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] He has also founded ManxIX, the first and only internet exchange on the Isle of Man[11] and is the operator of the islands SpaceX Starlink ground station.[12]
In 2015, Beaumont founded the not-for-profit investment platform NorthInvest.[13] As an angel investor, he invests between £20,000 and £400,000 in early-stage tech companies, including CBiS Education, Deekit, ID Health, Memento VR, Gravity Industries,[3] handi,[14] jet-drone company Hydra,[15] artificial diamond innovator Dyman,[16] and satellite startup Kappazeta.[17] NorthInvest raised over £2 million for startups in Q1 2020[18] and over £22 million throughout that year.[19] NorthInvest is also a notable driver of diversity and equality in entrepreneurship.[20]
After aql acquired Isle of Man-based communications provider BlueWave Communications in 2015, Beaumont became the company's CEO.[21] BlueWave was the first 5G operator on the Isle of Man.
Beaumont is active internationally, leading the founding delegation to create UK TechLink.[22] 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.[23]
In June 2017, Beaumont was appointed as a Trustee of the Eden Project.[30] He was also a Non Executive Director of the Eden Project International Board, the team responsible for initiating Eden projects in China, Ireland, Dubai, US.[31] Latterly he became a notable donor to Eden.[32] He was a key driver of Eden Project North[33] until his resignation as a Trustee, alleging a lack of confidence in members of the Eden Executive and Trustee team.[34]
Beaumont was named International Director of the Year 2017 for Yorkshire and the North East by the Institute of Directors.[22] He was named Director of the Year for Innovation in 2018.[35] He was named International Director of the Year in 2019.[36] He was named as a Maserati 100 Entrepreneur in 2019.[37]
Beaumont joined the UK5G Advisory Board in March 2018.[40] His mobile network BlueWave received permissions to operate 5G in the Isle of Man[41]
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.[42] In April, he gave two talks at CYBERUK 2018, the National Cyber Security Centre's (NCSC) annual flagship conference.[43] In 2022, he addressed the Global Air and Space Chiefs Conference.[44]
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).[45] Beaumont and the team[46] are now alumni of the programme.
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.[47]
He was made a Deputy Lieutenant of the West Yorkshire Lieutenancy in 2023.[48] He is also an Honorary Group Captain in the RAF serving as a Royal Auxiliary in the City of London 601 Squadron.[49]
