Rob Waller has joined Happl, an AI-native employee benefits platform for global companies, as its new director of technology.
Happl was founded by tech entrepreneur Ben Towers, who was just 27 when he was awarded an MBE in the King’s New Year Honours List.
The company, which has offices in London and New York, is backed by Y Combinator – the Silicon Valley incubator that helped launch Airbnb and Reddit – as well as notable investors including Tom Blomfield, co-founder of Monzo and GoCardless.
Towers, who has been included in BusinessCloud’s Founder 250, was awarded an MBE for services to the startup business community after founding his first business at the age of 11.
He was identified as ‘one of the UK’s most exciting entrepreneurs’ by Richard Branson while still a teenager.
Waller, who previously worked at TELUS Health, said: “It’s about time I shared that I’ve joined Happl as director of technology. The more I learned about what they’re building, the more I had to be part of it.
“Happl’s using technology and AI to totally change what employee benefits can do for both employees and employers. They’re not bolting AI onto an old system, but rethinking that system entirely.
“I’m grateful to Ben Towers for trusting me with such an important role as we grow Happl into the best benefits platform on the market.”
In May, Happl raised £8.1m in an oversubscribed Series A funding round led by Portage Ventures.
The round included participation from F Capital and existing investors Y Combinator, 6 Degrees Capital, Haatch and Ventures Together.
The fundraising was marked with a billboard in Times Square, New York.