From Care Homes to Raising £120 Million: How He’s Building Britain’s Own AI

What happens when everything you’ve built disappears overnight, not because you failed, but because of a political decision you had no control over?

In this episode, I sit down with Christopher Kenna, entrepreneur, military veteran, and founder of Media Stream. After growing his diversity agency Brand Advance to £5.5 million in revenue, a US executive order banning diversity initiatives wiped out almost everything overnight, leaving him with just £500K.

But Christopher didn’t stop. He’s now building one of the UK’s first sovereign AI companies, including Mother, the UK’s first public large language model with data centres across the north of England and £120 million in debt finance raised.

This conversation goes far beyond business. We talk about growing up in care homes, joining the army on 9/11, the hidden risks of building on infrastructure you don’t own, and why the UK needs to stop giving away the technology it invented.

💡 You’ll learn:
• Why a single executive order destroyed a £5.5 million business
• What sovereign AI actually means in plain English
• Why most UK businesses are built on systems they don’t control
• How Christopher rebuilt after losing his company, his team, and his revenue
• The mindset lessons from growing up in care and serving in the military
• Why he believes the UK can build a tech company to rival American giants

🎧 Hit play to hear one of the most powerful conversations I’ve had on this podcast, about loss, resilience, and building something designed to last.