David Ward

David Ward became Oxford PV’s Chief Executive Officer in February 2023, after serving for a decade as director/observer on the company’s board and as an investor. He has over 30 years of experience as an entrepreneur, executive leader, and VC investor with cleantech and physical sciences technology companies.

Prior to becoming Oxford PV’s CEO, David served for five years as the CEO of Adaptive Surface Technologies, a US-based industrial technology company spun out from Harvard University. David steered the company from R&D to commercialisation and production. Under his leadership, he led the company in raising private funding, including strategic investors such as BASF, Tokyo Electron Ventures and Akzo Nobel.

David spent nearly 20 years with MTI Ventures, an active investor in early-stage companies in the physical sciences. As a Managing Partner and Head of Materials and Cleantech Practice, David led MTI’s cleantech and renewables investment strategy, with Oxford PV as an investee. He set up the firm’s US presence in 2006 and, as board member of a number of its portfolio companies, was instrumental in supporting their growth in North America.

David is passionate about growing technology-based companies that can make an impact on the sustainability of the planet. He is a mentor at the Perovskite PV program of the US Department of Energy’s American-Made Network, a group connecting innovators to accelerate the clean energy transition.

David holds a Masters in Materials Science from the University of Oxford.