Oxa has appointed Andrew Heath, former chief executive of Spectris and president of Rolls-Royce Energy, as chair of its board of directors.
Oxa was founded in 2014 and describes itself as developing the world’s first complete AI logistics platform for autonomous industrial vehicles.
Its technology is anchored around the self-driving software Oxa Driver, the development toolchain Oxa Foundry and the fleet management software Oxa Hub.
The Oxford-based company said the appointment comes as it accelerates the commercial deployment of its technology.
Oxa is intensifying its focus on Industrial Mobile Autonomy (IMA), which means deploying autonomous vehicle technology to undertake driving tasks in ports, airports, manufacturing facilities and logistics hubs.
Heath was CEO of Spectris, the global precision measurement technology group, from 2018 to 2025.
He previously led Imagination Technologies Group and Alent, following almost three decades at Rolls-Royce.
At Rolls-Royce he held senior executive positions including president of Rolls-Royce Energy and CEO of Rolls-Royce Fuel Cell Systems.
The appointment follows Oxa’s $103 million Series D first close in March 2026.
Heath succeeds Clive Scrivener, who steps down after 12 years as non-executive chair of Oxa.
Scrivener becomes chair and director of SHIFFT, the joint venture announced by Oxa and Dubai Future Foundation in August.
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The venture aims to position Dubai as a global hub for autonomous logistics, focusing on ports, airports and other industrial environments.
DP World has recently been named as the venture’s first strategic partner.
DP World operates more than 900 vehicles at Jebel Ali Port and thousands globally across more than 60 ports and terminals.
Oxa has already shipped the first autonomous terminal tractors to Dubai for deployment via SHIFFT.
The venture is targeting its first scalable commercial deployment before the end of 2027.
Paul Newman, founder and CEO of Oxa, said: “IMA is inevitable and an enormous commercial opportunity. We now have the systems, the ecosystem partners and the market focus to put that technology to work at scale. Andrew understands what it takes to build and lead major industrial technology businesses, and his experience will be enormously valuable as we execute.
“I would also like to thank Clive for his outstanding contribution to Oxa over the past 12 years. His leadership and commitment have played a giant role in the company’s development, and I’m delighted that he will continue to contribute to our international ambitions as a member of the SHIFFT board.”
Heath said: “I am delighted to be joining Oxa at such an exciting time. Oxa has developed proven autonomous technology, with clear applications across industrial operations, and is now turning its engineering capability into reliable, commercially valuable solutions for customers operating at scale.
“Having spent much of my career leading international engineering and technology businesses, I look forward to supporting Paul and the team, as Oxa executes and delivers on the promise of IMA.”