Ola, one of the world’s leading mobility companies, today announced that Georgina Owens will join the Ola UK board as an independent non-executive director.

Owens brings decades of senior technology and IT leadership experience from high-growth and major established businesses across multiple sectors. She will bring her significant expertise and provide corporate governance and strategic guidance as Ola continues to build world class technology and invest significantly into R&D.

Owens is currently chief technology officer at Liberis Capital, a UK fintech company focused on business finance for SMEs, where she focuses on supporting the company’s international growth and developing the product portfolio.

Previously she was at DAZN, a fast-growth media business, where she led IT and data services globally. In her career, Owens has delivered major technology transformation programmes for large companies including WPP, Kantar Media, Centrica and Vodafone, and been awarded numerous accolades including UK Top 50 Most Influential Women in Tech 2020 and Top UK CIO 2020 and several Women in IT Awards. She currently serves as a technology advisor to several UK start-ups.

The appointment further strengthens Ola UK’s Board. The company appointed Sir Mike Rake as independent non-executive chairman and Leon Daniels as independent non-executive director in 2021, joining Balasubrahmanyam Vijay Juturi (non-executive director, Ola UK), Marc Rozendal (managing director, Ola UK), and Karl Lutzow (operations director, Ola UK).

“Georgina joins us at a high growth phase and I believe her deep experience working with fast moving companies combined with insights on technology will be instrumental as we scale our businesses and double down our focus on building future technologies for the world,” said Sir Mike Rake, chairman of the Ola UK Board.

“Ola’s vision for the mobility industry and focus on tech innovation is unparalleled. It is not only making ride-hailing safe and accessible but also leading the world's transition to clean mobility. I look forward to collaborating with the team and building the future of mobility,” added Owens.

Ola launched its ride hailing services in the UK in 2018 and has expanded rapidly since, successfully launching in London in February 2020. Today Ola operates across 27 local authorities, including Birmingham, Liverpool, Cardiff and Bristol.

Ola also recently announced Ola Futurefoundry, its global center for advanced engineering and vehicle design. This center will be based in Coventry, the UK, a global hub for the best automotive design and engineering talent in the world.

It will house global talent across multiple disciplines of 2W and 4W vehicle design, advanced high-performance automotive engineering, digital and physical modelling, vehicle R&D around new energy systems including cell technologies and more. Ola will invest over $100M over the next five years into the state-of-the-art center and staff it with over 200 designers and automotive engineers.

Ola is also accelerating the world’s transition to sustainable mobility. The company launched its flagship electric vehicle - Ola S1 - last year and has been building the Ola Future Factory at a record speed. The factory at full capacity will be the world’s largest two-wheeler factory.