Greg Jackson (businessman)

Greg Jackson (born September 1971) is a British entrepreneur and businessman who is the founder and CEO of Octopus Energy.

Greg Sean Jackson
Octopus CEO Greg Jackson at the Octopus/Wired summit in September 2023
Octopus CEO Greg Jackson
BornSeptember 1971
NationalityBritish
OccupationBusinessman
Known forFounder of Octopus Energy

Jackson grew up in Halifax,[1] West Yorkshire, and then Saltburn-by-the-Sea in North Yorkshire.[2] He became interested in electronics and computer coding in the early 1980s, leaving school at 16 to programme computer games.[1] He told the BBC that he remembered having his energy supply cut off when he was growing up.[3] He returned to sixth form college to study economics, before attending Pembroke College, Cambridge.[4]

According to website Move Upstream, "before the age of 30, he had owned and/or managed a number of small businesses employing 4–60 people and turning over £400k to £4m."[5] Jackson founded companies including e-commerce firm C360 and Consultant Connect,[6] a telemedicine provider, and was a director of several businesses, including Zopa, a peer-to-peer lender.[7] He is also an angel investor in companies including Xlinks, which is building the world's largest subsea cable to bring renewable energy from Morocco to the UK,[6] and carbon accounting company Altruistiq.[8]

"After experiencing my bills jump frequently when I was paying them myself as an adult, I knew that something had to be done to change this", Jackson told Energy Digital.[9] He founded Octopus Energy – a subsidiary of Octopus Group – in 2016, and by 2021 the company was valued at over $5 billion.[7] The company is now the second largest energy supplier in the UK, and has expanded to other markets including Japan and Australia.[10][11][12]

The Financial Times reported in 2023 that "Octopus’s credentials as a disrupter have helped win the backing of investors including Generation Investment Management, chaired by former US vice-president Al Gore".[11]

Jackson lives in London and has two children.[1]

References
  1. "BBC Radio 4 - Desert Island Discs, Greg Jackson, entrepreneur". BBC. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  2. Lawson, Alex (11 June 2022). "Octopus Energy's Greg Jackson: 'Climate change is no longer this vague thing'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  3. "You and Yours - Gap Finders - Greg Jackson - BBC Sounds". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
  4. Quetteville, Harry de (16 December 2022). "The school dropout who founded a £5bn energy firm". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
  5. "Meet Greg Jackson, Founder and CEO of Octopus Energy". Move-Upstream.org.uk. 2020. Archived from the original on 8 August 2020. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
  6. "Greg Jackson, Founder and CEO, Octopus Energy Group". CBI. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
  7. "Meet the Octopus Energy leadership team". Octopus Energy. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
  8. "In the sustainability data management wars, Altruistiq raises £15 million". Tech.eu. 25 July 2022. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  9. Ahmad, Mariam (3 February 2023). "Trailblazer: Octopus Energy's Greg Jackson". energydigital.com. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
  10. Mavrokefalidis, Dimitris (11 September 2023). "Octopus boss urges rapid clean energy push". Energy Live News. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
  11. Millard, Rachel (1 October 2023). "Octopus Energy: the UK start-up outgrowing its roots". Financial Times. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
  12. Thurston, Alban (12 October 2023). "Konnichiwa, Kraken ! 'Ows tha doin', Coventry? | theenergyst.com Kraken, Tokyo Gas, Octopus, Severn Trent, mystical, Jackson, deep brain theenergyst.com". theenergyst.com. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
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