"Isembard is the west’s new Eden. An industrial colossus for the intelligence age. We will build the most valuable company in the world. And we will solve economic prosperity, security and purpose for the west along the way."
BLUF: I'm an Ex Reaper MQ9 pilot turned Bussiness Development professional who wants to be part of the team building the factories of the future.
Since reading about the investment from Notion Capital into Isambard in 2025, I've been fixated on the role the business plays, and will play in the future of Western industry. You've recruited top tier talent, and I can't help but make early comparisons to Ben Rich's Skunk Works culture: small teams, high trust, hard work and a disproportionate impact.
I hope this microsite achieves three things. Firstly, evidence that I've done my homework, secondly that I'm bringing you a point of view, and thirdly that my approach isn't whimsical.
My desired end state? As the domain name suggests, a coffee on Eldon Way to discuss further.
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Part 1: Why I felt compelled to reach out - I firmly believe we are at the Inflection point.
There is a $200B TAM across aerospace, defence, and mission critical industries - If not now, when?
Warfare TTPs HAVE CHANGED FOR GOOD
Lessons from Ukraine in Cyber warfare, AI-enabled systems, are unmanned platforms have kicked off the next arms race for defence equipment. Of £31.7bn of MOD spend >£4bn will be spend on Drone technology. Isembard customers/future customers are racing to 'get a slice of the pie'.
UK Policy / PROCUREMENT IS CHANGING
The inception of the NAD, the The 20-40-40 strategy and the DCP23 recognise that industrial capacity is a strategic asset. There is a wde emphasis on speed to effect. Deterrence today is defined less by stockpile size and more by the speed at which it can be regenerated.
The WEST is reversing 30 + years of offshoring
Manufacturing accounted for just 9% of GDP in 2023 vs 18% in 1990. Yet the West has realised it's been at the dip of Stan Shih's curve for too long. Signs of the shift are here, The MOD acquisition of Sheffield Forgemasters, the EU Chips Act, the reassertion of naval build requirements across Europe. The opportunity is (quite literally) on our shores.
TECH DRIVEN INDUSTRIAL Force Multipliers
‘Real-world’ industries are already automating with software and AI. Siemens reports a 30–50% reduction in unplanned downtime and longer asset life. Isembard is ahead, and the the gap doesn't stay static, it widens.
Part 2: Isambard's challenge is finding commercial talent who can operate where the clay is still wet, with extreme ownership whilst respecting their part in building the new the most valuable company in the world
Technical & engineering acumen
The convergence of software and manufacturing places a premium on commercial people who can bridge disciplines, not just master one.
The edge belongs to the BusDev professionals who can bridge disciplines. Technical fluency, regulatory awareness (ISO/AS9001, NCSC SBD etc) and the ability to continuously learn whilst identifying real customer problems are now table stakes.
UK Gov procurement is messy
Talent will need to understand the complexities of UK government procurement frameworks, coupled with a solid understanding of Treasury accounting (RDEL vs CDEL), in order to truly understand the position of Isembard customers.
This insight enables Isembard to align solutions to the real budgetary constraints & procurement incentives that customers face.
Big name sales experience ≠ early-stage execution
Sales candidates will come with the right logos/titles/a history of big deals. What’s harder to find are people who can build a commercial motion when the playbook doesn’t exist yet, whilst 'rolling up their sleeves' and executing.
Put Simply, "That's not my job" won't cut it. The right people need need to be prepared to get a bloody nose on the way for the good of the team.
There is no one buyer, but a buying committee
Sellers from traditional primes are experts across one persona. Isembard sellers will need display conviction to Engineering leads, Procurement, Ops, supply chain, digital, compliance and more. Isembard sits in between these domains and the right seller will need to educate without overwhelming, all while building consensus. Ultimately, setting the conditions to sell whilst not being in the room.
Selling engineering capacity won't change the industry
The right sales people must have the ability to position Isambard not as a commodity supplier, but as a strategic accelerator of sovereign capability, resilience, and digital traceability. There is no space for 'feature bashing' purely based capacity, price, or lead time. Empirical change isn’t sold easily.
Part 3: Why me? I understand you customer base, have bought into your mission and have I've done the unglamourous boots on the ground selling
Auror
0.9M → 3.5M ARR over 6 Q's
I turned down a sales role with an Isembard customer to join Auror as the first UK & Europe sales hire, deliberately choosing the zero-brand, early stage business.
Leading sales, but playing in marketing, strategy and Gov Affairs.
Led the signing of the second largest deal in company history (£1.25m), the first Auror hardware deal globally and grew the team from one to five. Operated directly with senior government stakeholders, including engagement with the Home Secretary’s SpAds.
Leading sales, but playing in marketing, strategy and Gov Affairs.
Led the signing of the second largest deal in company history (£1.25m), the first Auror hardware deal globally and grew the team from one to five. Operated directly with senior government stakeholders, including engagement with the Home Secretary’s SpAds.
Deloitte
£0.5M → £2.4M ARR over 3 FY's
While still in the military, I spent 12 months in my mess room teaching myself how to design and build AWS infrastructure, deliberately preparing for my transition into industry.
Hired into Deloitte’s National Security account, I quickly identified a gap between leadership and technical teams in a niche area of UK Gov. By embedding with engineers, DevSecOps teams, and operational units, I scaled my portfolio 6x. This impact led to two consecutive “exceptional circumstance” promotions, fast-tracking my progression from Senior Consultant to Senior Manager.
Royal Air Force
Deployed Reaper MQ9 Pilot
Mission tested Reaper MQ-9 pilot, making high-consequence decisions under pressure. Learning complex subject matter, at speed, under pressure.
Later seconded as a targeting SME to the The Royal Air Force of Oman.
To Finish… Everything above matters, but the real reason I've created this site, listened to your podcasts and read your articles is after answering Peter Theil's questions:
Is this place truly unique?
Is this company working on problems that actually matter to the world?
Will I be trusted with real responsibility, not parked in a middle layer of bureaucracy?
Will I work with people who are better than me and make me better?
Will my work show up in reality, not just in documents and dashboards?
If this succeeds, will I be proud to have my name attached to it?"
Is this company working on problems that actually matter to the world?
Will I be trusted with real responsibility, not parked in a middle layer of bureaucracy?
Will I work with people who are better than me and make me better?
Will my work show up in reality, not just in documents and dashboards?
If this succeeds, will I be proud to have my name attached to it?"
The path is a hard one, but clear. Responsibility over bureaucracy, reality over slide decks, growth over comfort, and pride over optics. Building something real, with people who raise the bar, and knowing it matters.