Tony Harper

First car:

Favourite movie:

Recommended book:

Go to holiday:

Best boss:

Opel Ascona 1.9 SR

JB Thunderball

Code of the Woosters

Agni Bay Corfu

Paul Newsome

Engagement Model Offered

Advisory; Chair

Suited to Organisational Types

Start-ups; Scale-ups; SME

Tony is a senior leader in automotive innovation and battery technology, with over 40 years of experience spanning industry and national research programmes.

Having held roles including Founder, Challenge Director and Engineering Research Director at organisations such as UK Research & Innovation and Jaguar Land Rover, he has worked at the forefront of emerging technologies and large-scale electrification programmes.

Tony supports battery start-ups, scale-ups and organisations across the electrification ecosystem, helping them raise their profile, attract investment and turn innovation into commercial value.

Tony’s Arena

  • Automotive & Battery Start-Ups and Scale-ups.

  • Technical Focus: Batteries.

  • Function Expertise: R&D, Government Affairs.

Superpowers

  • Helps organisations raise their profile, attract public and private investment, and define technology development plans that create value.

  • Thinks at a big-picture level while staying close to the technical and operational detail.

  • Brings deep experience of taking technology from lab to factory, including the associated challenges and success factors.

  • Builds and leverages networks across government, scientists, investors, industrialists and entrepreneurs.

Impact in Action

  • Managed a £610m budget at UKRI and engineering teams of 350 at Jaguar Land Rover.

  • Led engineering concept design for the second-generation XK8 (X150).

  • Delivered JLR electrification concept prototypes in the early 2010s, contributing to the development of the Jaguar I-PACE and beyond.

  • Attracted £1.6bn of venture capital investment into UK battery start-ups and scale-ups from approximately £170m of public investment.

Working style

  • Curious, outcome-focused and creative.

  • Approaches challenges with a combination of curiosity and practical thinking, maintaining a clear focus on delivering results.

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