The founder of Birmingham Tech Week has launched an AI ‘strategy as a service’ business.
Dr Yiannis Maos MBE has co-founded Unloq with Satyen Fakey, former co-founder of the mobile marketplace Doji.
Dr Maos launched Unloq during an exclusive AI event at Birmingham Tech Week 2025, attended by over 100 business, technology, and academic leaders.
The firm will provide services such as strategic consultancy and bespoke AI engineering to help organisations embed intelligence into their decision-making processes. It will also develop a proprietary AI platform to help businesses adapt their strategies in real time using internal performance data and external market signals.
Dr Maos says the aim is to provide a new category – ‘strategy as a service’ – which he describes as an intelligent system that continuously analyses data, learns from outcomes, and provides dynamic recommendations to help organisations stay agile, competitive and resilient.
Dr Maos said they were raising a £300,000 pre-seed round to accelerate product development and growth.
During a period in ‘stealth mode’, Unloq has already supported over 40 companies and formed strategic partnerships with organisations including SF Technology and Aston University.
A major outcome of its partnership with Aston University will be the creation of an AI Growth Engine, launching in 2026 as part of the new Aston Business Hub. The initiative will help SMEs leverage AI to scale and innovate more effectively.
“We founded Unloq to unlock the true potential of AI in shaping strategy, not just operations,” said Dr Maos. “Our vision is to create a world where businesses can continuously learn, adapt, and thrive – turning intelligence into a living, evolving strategy.”
Professor Aleks Subic, Vice-Chancellor and CEO of Aston University, commented: “I’m delighted to congratulate Yiannis on the launch of Unloq and am pleased to be collaborating closely through the Aston Business Hub and joint projects.
“This reflects our shared ambition to harness the power of AI, particularly in Fintech and operational innovation.
“Aston University is committed to driving forward the West Midlands’ tech ecosystem, and Unloq’s vision aligns perfectly with our mission to connect research, talent and enterprise for real-world impact.”
Fakey added: “Data really matters when it enables decision intelligence. With Unloq, we’re uniting retrieval-augmented reasoning, model routing, and human-in-the-loop governance to deliver a real-time strategic co-pilot.”