John Byrne’s path to founding IPBN member company Writers’ Bloc is a story shaped as much by persistence as by timing. Like many businesses born during the pandemic, Writers’ Bloc began not as a fully formed startup idea, but as a response to a very real gap and a willingness to step in where help was needed.

During Covid, John returned to university to complete a Master’s in Finance. But when he graduated, the job market was far from welcoming. "After more than 200 unsuccessful applications, I was asking anyone and everyone I knew if they needed help with any work," he recalls. That search led him, in 2022, to a journalist working on a project designed to help fellow journalists find paid work during lockdowns. The journalist needed someone with commercial and business skills, and the partnership was formed.

What started as a crisis-era initiative quickly evolved. Over the following three years, John and his co-founder conducted more than 450 one-to-one customer interviews, a process that fundamentally reshaped the company’s direction. Today, Writers’ Bloc operates at the intersection of media, AI, and emerging technology, powering what John describes as "the $100bn AI-media economy through blockchain-based content licensing."

At its core, Writers’ Bloc helps writers and publishers protect their intellectual property, unlock new revenue streams, improve AI outputs, and reduce legal risk for AI labs. While the journalist co-founder returned to journalism full-time in 2024, John continued to build the business, steering Writers’ Bloc into its current seed-stage growth phase.

John’s background is firmly rooted in commercial strategy and execution. He brings more than 12 years of experience across startups, SMEs, and a FTSE 100 conglomerate, with roles spanning sales, business development, and corporate finance across the US, UK, and EU. He has worked in M&A teams in both France and the UK, supported acquisitions and strategic investments, and played a role in a major aviation merger and integration in Ireland.

Alongside this, he has a strong track record in performance management and leadership. From running incentive programmes for regional sales teams to overseeing rebrands and coaching junior rugby teams to multiple trophies, John’s approach consistently blends structure with motivation. He is also a confident public speaker, regularly pitching to investors and audiences, and has addressed crowds of more than 3,000 at Google Ireland as a top-ten fundraiser for an Irish charity.

Today, his focus is firmly on growth. His priorities include scaling Writers’ Bloc into a profitable business, expanding its podcast and newsletter, Around the Bloc, which explores media and AI, and developing a personal podcast project currently in production. While formal case studies are still under wraps as pilots roll out with early customers, John points interested readers to his published writing on the problems Writers’ Bloc is addressing and why they matter now.

Asked what message he would like IPBN members to take from his story, John is direct. "If you are a publisher or a journalist, sign up to Writers’ Bloc, or tell someone you know to sign up," he says. "And if you know media or web3 investors, please introduce us."

At the same time, he offers a broader perspective on change and opportunity. "The world is in a much better place than mainstream news would have you believe," he notes, "but that doesn’t mean there aren’t massive changes taking place across most industries. Enjoy the ride."

IPBN members will also see John in a new role in 2026, as part of the Network’s Conversations with a Leader series, where he will sit down with senior figures from across business and academia. “I’ll be speaking to some of the best and brightest about their businesses, how they see the world, and more," he says. "The first conversation takes place this February."

Through Writers’ Bloc and his work with the IPBN, John Byrne represents a new generation of founders navigating rapid technological change with curiosity, discipline, and a strong sense of purpose, and inviting others to join the conversation along the way.