Smartphone Maker Fairphone Hires Sustainability and Engineering Expert as CTO

Sustainable smartphone maker Fairphone of Amsterdam has hired Chandler Elizabeth Hatton as chief technology officer (CTO). The move comes roughly three months after the company hired Raymond van Eck as CEO.

Fairphone, founded in 2013, strives to design, deliver and support smartphones using sustainable technologies and green business practices. The company's current flagship product, Fairphone 5, typically competes against the Apple iPhone, Samsung Galaxy and other mainstream smartphone providers.

New CTO Chandler Elizabeth Hatton has more than 15 years of experience in the technology sector, including a focus on sustainable product development, the compny notes. Her expertise spans computer vision, imaging technology and biogas systems. Hatton holds degrees from MIT and Delft University of Technology.

Fairphone Hires CTO: Executive Perspectives

In a prepared statement, CEO Raymond van Eck said: “We are delighted to welcome Chandler to the Fairphone team. With degrees in engineering from both MIT in Boston and Delft University of Technology, as well as a MBA from INSEAD, she combines a wealth of technical and international experience with a strong strategic and commercial focus. Her expertise in tech and engineering, along with her leadership skills, will be pivotal in driving our vision and shaping the future of the smartphone industry.”

Added Chandler Elizabeth Hatton: “I’m happy to be joining Fairphone and taking on the challenge of disrupting the electronics industry for the better. I look forward to working with Fariphone’s ambitious team to develop fair and sustainable technologies. Together, we’ll make innovative products that deliver long-lasting value to our customers.”

Sustainable Smartphones and Business Performance

Known mostly in Europe, Fairphone and Murena partnered to reach United States customers in July 2023. An associated Fairphone partner program is listed in our Sustainable Partner Programs database.

As of 2023, the firm had 70 employees and 100,000 end-users, according to the company's website at that time. We have not seen updated headcount stats for 2024.

 Fairphone raised €49 million in funding in January 2023. Key investors to date include:

• Invest-NL
• the ABN AMRO Sustainable Impact Fund
• Quadia with its Regenero Impact Fund
• DALHAP
• DOEN Participaties
• PDENH

For its fiscal year 2023, Fairphone pointed to several business and financial highlights. Key 2023 milestones, according to the company, included:

• Selling 100,107 smartphones.
• Launching the Fairphone 5 and Fairbuds XL, which resulted in avoiding 944 tons of CO2 and 29 tons of electronic waste.
• Over 22,000 additional people benefitting from Fairphone’s measures in 2023, the company said.
• EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) was a negative €14.2 million, though its sounds like 2023 represented a financial improvement over 2022.

We're watching to see if or when the company shares 2024 financial performance metrics.