The long road to the last mile : Nic Humphries and Matthew Brockman reflect on 25 years of Hg

Orbit - An Hg software leadership podcast

In this candid anniversary conversation, Hg's leadership team of Matthew Brockman and Nic Humphries reflects on 25 years of building one of Europe's most focused software investors. Humphries shares the challenge of convincing colleagues to abandon multiple sectors for pure software focus, while Brockman opens up about his leap of faith in 2010, leaving Apax Partners for an uncertain bet on Hg's vision and the turbulence of 2012 that eventually led to success. The conversation hones in on AI as the next major platform shift and Brockman's concept of the "last mile"—the deep understanding of customer workflows required to transform AI capability into practical business solutions. Their discussion reveals a firm that has spent 25 years accumulating the pattern recognition, operational capabilities, and entrepreneurial culture perfectly suited for an era where success depends less on investment judgement and more on building products that solve real workflow problems—making this milestone feel less like a celebration of the past and more like preparation for the defining challenge ahead.