Former Uber Boss Joins Aura, a South African Smart Personal Security Firm
AURA, one of South Africa’s leading security and medical response marketplaces, has appointed David Myers as its COO. Previously a GM and Regional Operations Lead at Uber for Europe, Middle East & Africa, Myers brings with him decades of experience that will stand him in perfect stead for this position, according to a statement from AURA.
Co-founder Ryan Green, who is moving into a new role at the company, hands over to Myers.
For Myers, the position has personal meaning, as he says “I started my career in the security industry in SA, at first with a proactive security start-up, and then ADT Tyco before moving to the largest and most efficient tech-enabled marketplace in the world at Uber. Combining these two allows me to leverage my learnings and experience while having an immense impact on people’s lives”.
On reflecting on what motivates and drives him “the first is solving tough problems, and the second is building something new. AURA affords me both.”
Myers says he is excited to get involved in the company at its current level of operations too.
“AURA is primed and ready to scale. Ryan will be transitioning into the area of launching new businesses and markets, scaling the business globally, as I take over as COO. He’ll build new markets from 0 to 1, hand over to me and the operations team, and we’ll build from 1 to 100.”
“We can get anything on demand nowadays. You can order and get groceries, food and riding services at the push of a button, but one of the most basic needs, safety, is inaccessible. It’s the most important need of every single human. Even in developed countries, these industries have not advanced quickly enough from a tech perspective,” he says.
“The challenge of safety exists everywhere but manifests differently in different markets – in some areas it might be personal safety, in others violent or organised crime. I’m excited to work out how to address each market’s unique needs, balancing demand and supply, generating sufficient value for the marketplace, and building a sustainable business,” Myers concludes.
