Katie Prescott | The Future of Tech & Billion Dollar Scandals

Jimmy's Jobs of the Future

Boxlight Creative Studio

Technology, Business, Careers

5 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 20 November 2025

⏱️ 61 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Get in touch with Jimmy about EVs and Solar Panels at [email protected] Want your own Brand or Business Podcast? Try out our NEW Podcast Calculator: https://www.boxlight.io/ Billion-dollar deal. Explosive fraud allegations. Extradition. Acquittal. A yacht, a storm… and a tragic ending. In this episode of Jimmy’s Jobs of the Future, Katie Prescott, tech correspondent at The Times, takes us inside her new book on Mike Lynch – the brilliant, controversial founder at the centre of Britain’s biggest tech scandal. Katie explains how Lynch rose from a nurse-and-fireman family to build Autonomy into a multibillion-dollar company, why HP paid $11bn for it, and how that deal spiralled into one of the most complex legal sagas in modern British business. She talks about writing the book in the aftermath of his death, what she learned from those who worked closest with him, and why his story still hangs over the UK tech ecosystem today. Along the way, Jimmy and Katie dig into power in Big Tech, the culture of entrepreneurship, Dragons’ Den, Reggae Reggae Sauce, and what it really takes to report on the people shaping our technological future. If you want to understand how one tech deal became a decade-long war over truth, power and billions, this conversation is unmissable. 00:00 Intro01:35 Katie’s new book & why this story matters02:20 Early life and career of Mike Lynch04:55 The rise of Autonomy08:27 The HP acquisition & legal battles16:18 The tragic end and Lynch’s legacy24:42 The UK tech ecosystem today35:25 Peter Jones and the startup mindset36:42 How entrepreneurship has evolved37:14 The Reggae Reggae Sauce phenomenon37:59 Katie’s transition into journalism39:43 What a journalist’s job really is now40:06 Interviewing the world’s top tech leaders41:24 Power dynamics inside Big Tech44:32 Future trends in technology50:34 Advice for aspiring journalists51:22 BBC vs The Times55:47 Hiring a tech correspondent57:33 Closing thoughts58:36 End ********** Follow us on socials! Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jimmysjobsTiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jimmysjobsofthefutureTwitter / X: https://www.twitter.com/JimmyMLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jimmy-mcloughlin-obe/ Want to come on the [email protected] Sponsor the show or Partner with us:[email protected] Credits:Host / Exec Producer: Jimmy McLoughlin OBEProducer: Sunny Winter https://www.linkedin.com/in/sunnywinter/Junior Producer: Thuy Dong Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Why are businesses like HelloVet choosing Apple products and services?
0:05.0	So we started the business two years ago.
0:07.0	We had a few people who were used to PCs and this was their first foray into Macs.
0:12.0	But it's been super smooth getting everyone onto those devices and everyone seems really, really happy.
0:18.0	Find out how Mac can help you run and grow your business at apple.com forward slash hello vet.
0:26.2	Welcome to Jimmy's Jobs of the Future.
0:28.1	Today I'm joined by Katie Prescott.
0:30.4	She's the technology editor at the Times and she's written a fascinating book,
0:34.0	The Curious Case of Mike Lynch.
0:36.4	The United Kingdom's first technology billionaire.
0:39.3	She charts his story all the way from Cambridge through to California and the sad ending of his life last year.
0:45.3	It's a remarkable story.
0:47.3	We also talked to Katie about what it's like being a technology journalist, where she would be starting her career if she was a journalist today, where she
0:54.5	would be starting it if she was looking to go into technology. And we also talk about some
0:59.3	of the cultural differences between her previous employer at the BBC and the Times as well.
1:04.4	And I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as we did recording it. On to today's episode. Make
1:10.2	sure you subscribe so we can continue to
1:12.4	get bigger and bigger guests. Well, Katie, welcome to Jimmy's Jobs to the Future. He's
1:22.1	written this amazing book. You might not be able to see the detail on the cover, but I love the ones and zeros,
1:28.4	particularly in it. Tell us about Mike Lynch, who he was and how he ended up being in California
1:37.3	having to hire bodyguards that might need to kill him.
1:40.0	It's an absolutely extraordinary story, and I should start by saying it was a very, very difficult
	...

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