OREANDA-NEWS. Blippar, Inc., a technology company building a visual discovery browser through artificial intelligence and augmented reality, today announced the appointment of Danny Lopez as the company's chief operating officer. Lopez, currently the British Consul General to New York and Director General for UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) in the United States, will oversee the company's worldwide operations and strategic planning as Blippar continues to scale its business. He will leave his current position in New York on July 7, 2016 and start with the company on August 15.

Lopez has 20 years of international business affairs experience. Most recently, as British Consul General to New York, he held one of the most prestigious diplomatic positions in the world. When he was appointed in 2011 at the age of 37, Lopez became the youngest ever British Consul General to New York in the Consulate's 230-year history. In addition to his responsibilities promoting the UK's economic profile, foreign policy and national security priorities in New York, Lopez also served as the Director General for UKTI in the United States. Under his leadership over the last five years, UKTI has brought over 1,700 new US companies into the UK and supported over 20,000 UK businesses doing business in America.

"Danny has been a transformative leader, integrating a key public sector body and driving it forward with private sector precision and delivery," said Blippar CEO and Co-Founder Ambarish Mitra. "His extensive international business and economic development experience will prove to be an invaluable asset to us as we continue to grow the business on a global scale and deliver strong value to brands. Plus, his operational prowess, proven business development background and strong leadership will help our business accelerate at a much faster pace."

"I've enjoyed a front-row seat over the years watching Blippar grow from an upstart company in the UK to a major presence in New York and across the globe," said Lopez. "Having seen the company develop industry-leading technologies, I'm bullish on Blippar vision to transform the phone and head-mounted wearables into a virtual browser for the physical world, while establishing itself as a first-class media company."

Prior to his role with the British Consulate, Lopez built his career across both the public and private sectors. Most recently, he worked for the London Development Agency, the Mayor of London's economic development arm, as Group Director for Business Support and Promotion. He was responsible for creating London & Partners, the UK capital's promotional agency for business, visitors and students, and was its inaugural CEO.

Previously, he was Managing Director, Marketing and Communications, at UKTI, where he was responsible for delivering a new marketing strategy to promote and showcase the UK economy internationally. Lopez also worked at Barclays Bank for 10 years, where he held a number of senior positions including Director of Business Banking USA in New York, Head of Inward Investment in London, and Business Development Director in India.