Steven Bartlett (businessman)

Steven Bartlett
Born	(1992-08-26) August 26, 1992 Botswana
Occupation(s)	Business leader, investor, podcast host
Known for	Founder of Social Chain, Thirdweb; host of The Diary of a CEO; investor on Dragons' Den

Steven Cliff Bartlett (born 26 August 1992) is a British business leader, investor, and podcast host. He established Flight Story, which encompasses FlightStory Studio and FlightStory Fund. Additionally, he is the creator of Thirdweb, a Web3 enterprise that secured $24 million in funding during 2022, supported by Haun Ventures and Mark Cuban. In 2023, Bartlett introduced a $100 million investment fund designed to empower Europe's emerging unicorn entrepreneurs.

Bartlett launched the social media marketing firm Social Chain in 2014. Three years later, in 2017, he initiated The Diary of a CEO, a podcast that ranks among the top five globally on Spotify as of 2024. Since 2021, he has served as an investor on BBC One's Dragons' Den, becoming the show's youngest-ever Dragon and contributing his expertise in digital business.

Early life

Born on 26 August 1992 in Botswana, Steven Cliff Bartlett is the son of an English father and a Nigerian mother. His mother left school at age seven and was unable to read or write, while his father worked professionally as a structural engineer. The family relocated to Plymouth, England when Bartlett was two years old. He attended Plymstock School but was expelled during sixth form. Bartlett briefly enrolled at Manchester Metropolitan University but exited after attending only one lecture.

In his early years, Bartlett also explored music, performing as a rapper under the stage name "Lyricist".

Wallpark

Bartlett founded Wallpark in 2013, an online platform for message sharing.

Social Chain AG

In 2014, Bartlett partnered with Dominic McGregor to establish Social Chain, a social media marketing agency headquartered in Manchester, England. In 2019, Social Chain merged with German e-commerce company Lumaland to create The Social Chain AG, which was subsequently listed on Xetra and the Düsseldorf Stock Exchange, with a valuation exceeding $200 million. At the time of this merger, the company’s worth stood at €186 million and was co-managed by Bartlett alongside Wanja Oberhof.

By November 2021, The Social Chain AG transitioned to the prime standard segment of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, achieving a valuation of $600 million. According to its mid-2022 financial report dated June 30, the holding entity comprised 64 subsidiaries. Bartlett resigned from his CEO position in 2020 due to differences over strategic direction but maintained significant equity and contractual involvement in key strategic initiatives—including the Frankfurt Stock Exchange up-listing—receiving virtual shares and options as part of this arrangement.

The original Social Chain Ltd., founded by Bartlett, was eventually sold for £7.7 million. While his official site initially stated he had built a $600 million company, The Times clarified that although he had stepped back from day-to-day management by the time of the second listing, he retained considerable ownership stakes and advisory responsibilities during that period.

Thirdweb

Thirdweb is a Web3 startup created by Bartlett that raised $5 million in seed capital followed by $24 million in Series A funding within nine months of its inception in 2022. This funding round valued Thirdweb at $160 million. Katie Haun’s $1.5 billion crypto-focused fund led the investment round with contributions from Coinbase Ventures, Shopify, and Polygon. The company’s mission centers on streamlining the creation of decentralized applications on blockchain technology.

Flight Story

Established by Bartlett, Flight Story operates as both a media and investment enterprise, consisting of Flight Story Studio, a media production entity, and Flight Story Fund, an investment vehicle valued at $100 million. The fund focuses on backing a variety of founders and rapidly expanding startups within the fields of blockchain, biotechnology, healthcare, commerce, technology, and aerospace. Its strategy involves investing in approximately 20 companies by acquiring minority stakes at reduced valuations, in exchange for guidance from seasoned entrepreneurs who act as limited partners. However, Flight Fund has encountered criticism regarding the transparency of its portfolio.

In July 2025, Bartlett appointed Niki Aryana—previously Director and Partner at Boston Consulting Group—as Chairman of Flight Story to strengthen its strategic growth and leadership.

Stan Store

In May 2025, Steven Bartlett became a co-owner of the American technology firm Stan Store, a platform designed to empower creator entrepreneurs in launching and managing their online ventures. At that point, Stan Store reported an annual recurring revenue of $30 million alongside $300 million in gross merchandise value.

The Diary of a CEO podcast

Since 2017, Bartlett has produced The Diary of a CEO, a podcast featuring interviews with prominent personalities such as Simon Cowell, Jada Pinkett Smith, Boris Johnson, and Richard Branson. By the early 2020s, it had become one of the world’s most popular podcasts, ranking fifth on Spotify's top podcasts list for 2024 and maintaining the second-largest weekly UK audience in 2023.

Although generally non-political, the podcast has been criticized for hosting guests who promote alternative medicine and medical misinformation without sufficient scrutiny. A 2024 BBC investigation revealed an average of 14 misleading health claims per episode, including unsupported cancer treatments and anti-vaccine conspiracy theories.

In March 2025, The Diary Of A CEO received the Best International Podcast award at the IHeartRadio Podcast Awards. By December 2024, it had amassed over one billion total streams with 50 million monthly listeners. Forbes reported that Bartlett declined a $100 million partnership proposal from an undisclosed streaming service.

In June 2025, Forbes placed Bartlett among the top 50 global digital creators—ranking ninth in earnings and eleventh overall. The subsequent month, he was included in Time magazine’s inaugural “TIME100 Creators” list under the “Leaders” category for his podcasting achievements.

Dragons' Den

Joining the investment reality series Dragons' Den in 2021, Bartlett became the youngest among the five investor "dragons." His investments have included Omni—a plant-based dog food brand—PerfectTed, a matcha energy drink producer, and Kitt Medical, a startup focused on allergy response solutions. In 2024, controversy arose when Bartlett supported "Ear Seeds," an acupuncture product featured on the show that falsely claimed to cure Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome.

Homewards

Bartlett was appointed an advocate for the Royal Foundation's Homewards campaign in September 2023 and accompanied William, Prince of Wales on official visits to Bournemouth. In March 2025, he joined Prince William in Aberdeen to meet with young people benefiting from homelessness prevention initiatives and local businesses engaged with the programme.

Advertising standards violations

In 2022, the BBC issued a warning to Bartlett for infringing advertising regulations on Dragons' Den after he wore jewellery from a brand he endorsed on social media platforms. The broadcaster reiterated its strict policies regarding commercial endorsements, and Bartlett accepted responsibility, subsequently deleting the relevant posts.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) intervened in August 2022 when Bartlett promoted the meal replacement company Huel on his podcast The Diary of a CEO without making it clear that the content was an advertisement. The ASA determined that the promotion could not be repeated in its existing format and recommended more transparent disclosure of sponsored content in future podcast advertisements.

In August 2024, advertisements featuring Bartlett for both Zoe and Huel were prohibited by the ASA due to inadequate disclosure of their commercial association with him.

Bartlett was honored in 2020 by being inducted into the Manchester Hall of Fame and included in the Forbes 30 Under 30 list. His public image has been characterized as divisive.

Publications

Bartlett released his debut book, Happy Sexy Millionaire, in 2021, which became a Sunday Times bestseller. His follow-up book, published in 2023, titled The Diary of a CEO: The 33 Laws of Business and Life, compiles key lessons from his podcast into written form. This work was shortlisted for Book of the Year at The British Book Awards and achieved record-breaking sales as a personal development title.

Additional pursuits

In 2019, Bartlett appeared on Channel 4’s program The Secret Teacher, where he went undercover as an educator at a school in Liverpool.

He established the private equity firm Catena Capital in December 2020 and took on a role as non-executive director at Huel, the meal replacement company. Bartlett resigned from Huel’s board in February 2025 to focus on other ventures.