Okan Kara

About

Okan Kara is an entrepreneur who previously established and managed the regional operations (EEMEA) of Pera, a UK-based advisory services company focused on innovation-driven growth programs. He coordinated the national office of EU programs at TUBITAK (Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey), securing EUR 200 million in R&D funds from the EU. As Chairman of the EUREKA Network in Brussels, he oversaw a EUR 1 billion budget. Throughout his career, he has worked with over 2,000 researchers, start-ups, SMEs, and corporations in the technology sector. He began his career as an analyst in the telecom sector at Telsim (later acquired by Vodafone). Okan holds M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Science and Technology Policy, with part of his Ph.D. research conducted at University College London. He also has an MBA degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, USA. He is a Chevening Scholar alumnus and was recognized as Entrepreneur of the Year by the British Council in 2016.