Gener8 – a free-to-use app that enables people to control and be rewarded from their data – has announced a £2m funding round, valuing the company at £39m.
A group of investors participated in the round and were joined by previous investors including musician Tinie Tempah, legendary football manager, Harry Redknapp, and Dragons' Den stars, Peter Jones, Touker Suleyman, Tej Lalvani, and others.
Gen8 You are creating a movement to highlight the importance of protecting our data online and the diverse nature of supporters shows that this issue affects many from all walks of life. It turns your online data into real rewards: from gift cards and gadgets to exclusive offers and charitable donations. It's like frequent flyer miles for the Internet.
Gener8 founder, Sam Jones, (in the picture) He said: “The most valuable resource in the world is no longer oil but data, and as a result everything that happens online is tracked. The majority of websites we visit and the apps we use place trackers on us to follow our movements and understand our behaviour. These trackers enable dozens, and sometimes thousands , from companies collecting our information and thus exploiting or selling it to make money from our data.
“But this is our information, and at Gener8 we believe people should have the choice to stop this, or even better, earn from it themselves.”
Gener8 also reveals what information other apps hold about you. It visualizes this in an easy-to-understand way and then enables users to exchange their anonymized data from these companies for Gener8 rewards – if they so choose. No data leaves a person's device or passes through any of Gener8's systems without their explicit consent. All insights are generated on the user's device and data is only shared if they choose. All data is anonymous, so personal information is never shared with anyone.
In academia and government there has been a concept called PIMS (Personal Information Management Systems). This is basically the idea that in the future there will be systems created to enable people to centralize their data in one place. Gener8 is doing it today.
“Think about it,” Sam continues. Isn't it crazy that we don't even know which companies are buying and selling our data?
“In fact, we don't even know what data company controls us. What do Facebook and Google know about you? Why do spam emails keep arriving in your inbox? Well, with the Gener8 app, you can connect to different apps and we'll show you the data that… Maintained by these applications.
“So, for example, if you connect to Google, we can show you all the data Google holds about you — every search you've ever done, every YouTube video you've watched, every ad you've clicked on. It's mind-boggling. We can This enables you to delete this data from Google or, if you choose, to anonymize and monetize your data. When we launched the app in 2023, we were the first company in the world to enable people to centralize and monetize their data.
Headquartered in London, Gener8 has over a million downloads, with the app being downloaded every 90 seconds. The company has grown to 26 employees and is on track to become another UK tech company this decade.
Sam adds: “With consumers and regulators around the world becoming aware of the extent of online monitoring, personal data management has the potential to become a multi-billion pound global market, with the winner taking most of the global market. At the moment, Gener8 Well placed to win this race, and achieve further digital success in the UK.
Hailed as having given the “best pitch ever” at Dragons Den, Gener8 founder Sam Jones has attracted investment from a range of high-profile individuals.
