The CEO of Cambridge tech giant Featurespace is to retire following its £700m acquisition by Visa last year.
Martina King is ending her 12-year tenure at the company she grew from an early stage innovator to a global leader in AI-powered fraud detection.
Featurespace analyses the data of some of the world’s biggest banking and financial companies to detect fraud and scams.
Jason Blackhurst will take on the role of SVP, head of Featurespace and acceptance risk solutions at Visa. He brings over 30 years of experience in the financial services industry and will relocate with his family from the United States to Cambridge.
Featurespace is also reinforcing its commitment to its academic heritage by securing a six-year lease at its current head office location in Cambridge.
It says this investment underscores its longstanding ties to the University of Cambridge, where its technology originated, with Visa’s dedication to fostering innovation within the vibrant Cambridge technology ecosystem.
King’s stellar career has seen her be the managing director of augmented reality company Aurasma and hold senior roles at Yahoo! Europe and Capital Radio.
When BusinessCloud editor Chris Maguire recently asked her for a surprising fact about herself she didn’t disappoint.
“My children call me the ‘CEO of fun’,” she revealed with a laugh. “Although what we do everyday when we come to work is a serious business, protecting payments, I think we can do it with creativity, ingenuity and fun.
“I will measure the quality of my day by the number of belly laughs I’ve had.”
“I am excited to build upon Featurespace’s strong foundations and drive further innovation in the rapidly evolving fraud prevention landscape,” said Blackhurst.
“I have been inspired by how deeply the team thinks about problems and solutions under Martina’s leadership and hope to continue that legacy.
“Cambridge is Featurespace’s innovation heartbeat. Our continued presence here allows us to tap into the exceptional talent pool and collaborate closely with the University of Cambridge, ensuring we remain at the forefront of artificial intelligence’s advancement.
“This long-term lease demonstrates our dedication to the Cambridge community.”