Voi appoints Diego Piacentini as its first independent board member
Jul 18, 2023
Voi’s shareholders have appointed the company’s first independent board member, Diego Piacentini, bringing a wealth of experiences to take Voi to the next phase on its journey to help shape cities made for living.
After almost 30 years with Apple (1987-1999) and Amazon (2000-2016), and two years serving as a civil servant with the Italian Government (2016-2018), Piacentini founded View Different. With his own company, Piacentini’s mission is to invest in and provide mentorship to entrepreneurs who use tech as an enabler to reshape traditional sectors, with an emphasis on mobility, government, education and environmental sustainability.
“The long-term sustainability of cities relies on the evolution of mobility. Shared micromobility has taken Europe by storm, with tech enabling transformational shifts. Voi is an innovative operator, focused on operational efficiency supported by responsible practices. It’s a positive example for an industry whose reputation is still shaky”, says Diego Piacentini.
Early in his career, Piacentini joined Apple in Italy in his home town, Milan. Ten years later, he was appointed General Manager and Vice President of Apple EMEA, based in Paris. In February 2000, he moved to Seattle to work for Amazon as a Senior Vice President, being part of the senior executive team and responsible for the international consumer business.
“Diego was part of building Apple and Amazon. His experience in driving large business areas and international teams will be invaluable for the next phase of Voi’s journey in building a profitable micromobility service changing the way we move in cities”, says Fredrik Hjelm, co-founder and CEO of Voi Technology.
More recently, Piacentini served a two-year civil servant term as Italian Government Commissioner for Digital Transformation, reporting directly to the Prime Minister.
“Tech can truly reshape traditional sectors such as mobility, but it’s critical to work closely with national governments and local authorities to ensure that the transformation is supported by thoughtful regulations. Although millions of people use micromobility services, it’s still day one”, says Diego Piacentini.
Piacentini is currently also Chairman of the Board for Apolitical (a start-up focused on upskilling civil servants), and a member of the Board of Directors of The Economist Group and DoorDash. He is a Senior Advisor for KKR and Chairman of Exor Ventures. Diego graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Economics from Milan-based Bocconi University in 1985.
