BrewDog co-founder James Watt is launching a reality show that will see entrepreneurs compete for the largest cash prize ever offered by UK television.

Mr Watt, who stepped down as chief executive of the Aberdeen-based brewer and pubs chain last year, is partnering with Sony and Whisper Productions to produce House of Unicorns which will offer £2 million to the winners.

He and Martin Dickie set up BrewDog in 2007 and he regularly reminds his social media followers that they were rejected by the panel on BBC TV’s Dragons’ Den.

He said: “I’ve always been so disillusioned and frankly fed-up with the tired format of reality TV business shows relying on worn-out tropes and stale stereotypes of entrepreneurs for comedy value, which are well past their sell-by date.”

The website for the new show says it “will take a group of ambitious companies on a journey to not only scale their businesses but also build brands that evoke emotion, inspire loyalty, and become famous.

“Over six intense weeks, these start-ups will experience a crash course in what it takes to not just grow but become a staple of the UK economy and be on a path to [becoming a] unicorn.”

He will choose who will win half the prize money and viewers will decide who gets the other half.

Mr Watt has been critical of the Labour government’s policies, saying it is only making it more difficult to set up a business in the UK.

He has sparked some debate after he and his fiancée, Georgia Toffolo, who starred in Made in Chelsea and now runs a raw dogfood company, said the UK was one of the least work-oriented countries in the world and that people should drop their obsession with a “work-life balance” and instead pursue a “work-life integration”.

Since reducing his commitment to BrewDog he has launched a number of initiatives to help other entrepreneurs, including a scheme to build the next unicorn, a company valued at $1 billion.

A year ago, 1,057 applied for his The Next Unicorn initiative. Five were flown to Las Vegas.

“I was supposed to pick just three to invest in. But after hearing their stories, seeing their grit, and feeling their obsession with building something the world couldn’t ignore… I handed a cheque to all five. And they’ve all done spectacularly well.”

Tallow + Ash has run rate revenues of £12m+, is profitable and has more social media followers than the top five UK laundry brands combined. Mous has had great growth, is solidly profitable and has opened its first store in London. Basket has gathered 100,000 users in Q4 of 2024 alone. Yum Bug opened the world’s first bug restaurant. Uncouth saw its sales double over the 2nd half of 2024.

“The truth is, great ideas are everywhere,” he said.