David Watson (entrepreneur)
David Timothy Patrick Watson (born 28 July 1975) is an Irish environmental entrepreneur. He is the co-founder and CEO of the electric vehicle charging company Ohme.
Education[edit]
Born in Cork, he attended Midleton CBS Secondary School and then studied chemistry at University College Cork, obtaining a first-class degree, followed by a PhD in physical chemistry at Darwin College, Cambridge. His PhD was supervised by David King, a mentor who later became chief scientific adviser to the government of Tony Blair, helping to push through the Climate Change Act 2008.[1]
Career[edit]
In 2017, Watson and Guy founded Ohme, a provider of home chargers for electric vehicles.[2] The chargers use smart technology designed to encourage drivers to take advantage of flexible home electricity tariffs.[3] The firm was named Fast Track Company of the Year at the UK Green Business Awards 2023.[4] It has offices in Cork and London and employs around 120 people.[5]
Watson also co-owns Killahora Orchards at Glounthaune, County Cork, which he established with his cousin Barry Walsh. Producing cider and apple ice-wine, Killahora grows Ireland's largest collection of apple and pear varieties.[1] It was a gold winner at the Guild of Fine Food′s Great Taste Awards in 2017 and 2019.[6]
References[edit]
- ^ a b "World's first 'smart' car-charging cable leads the charge to power up EV drivers". www.independent.ie. September 18, 2022.
- ^ "Taking a smarter approach to charging electric vehicles". The Irish Times.
- ^ "'I convinced myself that EVs would be the mass form of transport much quicker than people thought'". The Irish Times.
- ^ "UK Green Business Awards: And the winner is..." www.businessgreen.com. June 30, 2023.
- ^ "'Ohme is trying to make car charging easy, cheap and reliable' – David Watson, co-founder". www.businesspost.ie.
- ^ https://www.killahoraorchards.ie/media-awards/