8 working-class CEOs and execs reveal how they left tough circumstances to break into the elite tech scene

• Business Insider spoke to eight working-class trailblazers about how they managed to climb the ladder in the UK's overwhelmingly middle-class tech scene.
• Research shows a lack of diversity across race, gender and class at European startups, with most founders being well-off and well-educated before starting their companies.
• Among those Business Insider spoke to, some had experienced domestic abuse, poverty and homelessness - but told us how they came through the other side.
• Some are CEOs of their own companies while others work for major players like cybersecurity firm Darktrace and fintech startup Revolut.
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It's no secret that the UK tech scene has something of a diversity issue.

Research released earlier this year confirmed that European tech founders are overwhelmingly well-off and well-educated before starting their companies.

With this in mind, we spoke to eight tech trailblazers - all from working-class backgrounds - about how they broke into this bourgeois bubble.