We caught up with Jamie Burrows, CEO & Founder of Vertical Future as part of ‘Product | People | Potential’. Vertical Future is a technology that is focused on improving population health in cities, set to redefine the way food is produced and delivered. The purpose of article series ‘Product | People | Potential’ is to feature and showcase the very best UK start-ups with grand potential, truly inspiring businesses that are shaking up their sector. We capture and share the stories behind the name. We collate authentic peer to peer real-talk, while celebrating the growth and success thus far and gather a glimpse of what’s ahead.
Jake @ ADLIB: Hi Jamie, great to meet you. Can you please start us off with an introduction to you and Vertical Future please?
Jamie: I’m Jamie Burrows and I’m the Founder & CEO of Vertical Future. My background is primarily in healthcare and life sciences, had a stint in the Air Force in the US, did a couple of degrees, and then went into consulting. I’ve worked for companies like EY & Deloitte, working in the Department of Health while doing a part-time Ph.D. in Healthcare Economics and then decided to start up Vertical Future. I’ve always had an interest in urbanisation and the way that interacts with health. Food is the catalyst for what we do as there are other things that we can focus on like air pollution or housing, but we decided that food is the most relevant issue to solve, next to water, in our time. Vertical Future is a London-based technology company, founded in 2016. Our mission is to improve population health by building a better, smarter, and more efficient food production system. Last year there were only 4 of us but since September last year, we’ve grown the team to around 20 people. We’re not necessarily a young team like a lot of start-ups. Our Head of Engineering, for example, has 35 years’ experience from technology engineering companies and our Head of Plant R&D is the former Head of Gene Discovery & Computational Research at British American Tobacco and has a Cambridge Ph.D. and 20 years’ industry experience. View the article here…