Governtment of Dubai - Organizer | Dubai World Congress For Self-Driving Transaport | Autonomous Vehicle Technology Exhibition
Roads & Transport Authority - Organizer | Dubai Congress For Self-Driving Transaport | Self-Driving Car Conference & Exhibition
Under The Patronage Of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince Of Dubai And Chairman Of The Executive Council
Under The Patronage Of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince Of Dubai And Chairman Of The Executive Council
Seminars and Workshops2023-09-25T06:10:42+00:00

Seminars and Workshops

Seminar 1 Hall Agenda

September 26th | Seminar 1 Day 1 – Tuesday

Tuesday
September 26
12:15

Technical developments in AD technology – A reality-check to optimistic roadmaps

Speaker
Dr. Klaus Schmitz
Partner Automotive and digital
 
12:30

Human Acceptance of Automated Transportation

Speaker
Dr Dalia Hafiz  
Assistant Professor College of Architecture, Art, and Design Ajman University
 
13:00

Mappable: maps, navigation and geospatial solutions for self-driving transport industry

Speaker
Abdullah Mohamad
Chief Commercial Officer, GCC, Mappable 
 
14:15

A users perspective on autonomous transport : Key requirements and barriers to overcome

Speaker
Dr. Philipp Seidel 
Arthur D. Little Principal Automotive Practice, Head of Sustainable Mobility Team Central Europe
 
14:30

Empowering your solution with HERE Location Technology

Speaker
Neil Watts
Sales Director, Partners for UK, Middle East & Africa at HERE Technologies
 
14:45

Computer on wheels

Speaker
Arvind CJ 
Partner Roland Berger Middle East

Seminar 2 Hall Agenda

September 26th | Seminar 2 Day 1 – Tuesday

Tuesday
September 26
09:00 – 10:30

SAE Knowledge Sesion1: Vehicle Electrification

Location: Breakout room 1

Speaker
Frank Menchaca   
President Sustainable Mobility Solutions, SAE International 
Michael Paras
Business Development Product & Strategic Partnerships Manager, SAE International
Robert (Bob) L. Gaylen  
Senior Strategic Consultant & Advisor Retired CTO of Contemporary Amperex Technology Company Limited
 
12:15 – 13:00

Workshop: Building trust and executing real-live deployments of fully autonomous services

Location: Breakout room 1

Speaker
Lukas Neckermann 
Managing Director of
Neckermann Strategic
Advisors 
Professor Siddartha Khastgir
Head of Verification &
Validation, Connected &
Autonomous Vehicles,
WMG, University of Warwick, UK
Jeroen Andre Beukers 
Innovation Expert Automated
Driving & Smart
Mobility, Transports Publics
Genevois
 
12:15

Autonomous vehicle platform solution for public transport – AUS

Speaker
Dr Mamoun Abdelhafez
Professor PhD, University of California, Los Angeles, United States
 
12:30

Advancing Passenger Experience and Reliability of Autonomous Buses through LiFi Technology – University of Dubai

Speaker
Dr. Diana Daoud   
Assistant Professor at UD
 
12:45

Redefining Experience – Exploring Diverse Solutions for Passengers – University of Bolton RAK

Speaker
Akbar Qamar
Student
 
14:15

"Next-Gen Commute: A Seamless Journey with Self-Driving Buses"- Heriot Watt

Speaker
Madihah Anaum
Student
 
14:30

Enhancing Passenger Experience in Autonomous Buses: A Comprehensive Approach to Safety Comfort, and Trust– Khalifa University – KU

Speaker
Professor Majid Khonji
Assistant professor KU
 
14:45

Hyper realistic digital twin for autonomous driving (simulators)

Speaker
Jason Kim  
CEO
Mobiltech
 
15:00

The Operation Phase as the Currently Underestimated Phase of the (Safety and Legal) Product Lifecycle of Autonomous Vehicles for SAE L3/L4

Speaker
Michael Herdrich
Consultant Autonomous Mobility at P3 automotive, Germany

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Dr. Klaus Schmitz

Partner Automotive and digital

  • Partner Automotive ADL Germany
  • Head of ADL Digital for automotive and manufacturing

Consulting focus:

  • Automotive and High Tech
  • New mobility and AD
  • Electronics and semiconductors

Professional background:
25+ years experience in Consulting and research in digital, SW development, automotive and high tech

Education:
PhD and Diploma Information Systems University of Bamberg, Germany

Examples of relevant projects

  • Concept for and execution of bus AD challenge Middle East Mega City
  • Robotaxi buyer DD including business model, technology and operations
  • Robotaxi vendor DD including market, com-petitive position and business model
  • AD Strategy Dubai and Introduction of Cruise Origin in Dubai
  • AD regulation strategy Saudi Arabia
  • Digital mobility strategy Mega City including robotaxis and -shuttles
  • Mobility on Demand and IoT for ME authority
  • IoT strategy truck, bus and construction equipment OEM
  • Study author impact of AD on road capacity (the march of the robot taxis)
  • Study author on customer mobility preferenc-es and modeling the robo taxi market

Dr. Dalia Hafiz

Assistant Professor College of Architecture, Art, and Design Ajman University, UAE

Dr. Hafiz's received her doctorate. and a master's degree in architecture from the School of Architecture and Design (A+D), Virginia Tech, USA. During her academic career, she was awarded the highest research recognition twice from the Architecture and Design School at Virginia Tech. Additionally, she received the Richard Kelly Grant Award for her research in the field of lighting.

Dr. Hafiz was fortunate to have the opportunity to instruct at multiple universities in the U.S., Egypt, and the UAE. From 2017-1922, she participated in several classes at the architecture department at Al-Ghurair University in Dubai, as a program coordinator and then as the head of the department and Acting Dean. Currently, she is a member of the faculty at the College of Architecture, Art, and Design at Ajman University in the UAE.

In her recent study, she attempted to investigate the effect and potential of technological innovation (ie. autonomous vehicles) in the city and its citizens. Additionally, she has other academic interests including the education and practice of architecture, the behavioral decisions of individuals in transit stations, the wayfinding of interior spaces, and energy-saving methods.

Abdullah Mohamad

Chief Commercial Officer, GCC, Mappable

Abdullah leads commercial expansion and growth for Mappable in the GCC by implementing commercial strategy and developing initiatives that drive revenue growth, also building high-quality, trust-centric relationships with clients. Abdullah plays a key role for the company in the GCC, ensuring Mappable’s locally relevant and accurate maps, navigation, and geospatial solutions are tailored to the needs of customers and their businesses in the region.

Before joining the Mappable team, Abdullah worked at Talabat for more than six years, going from Digital Content and Coordination Officer to Sales and Growth Director in the UAE.

Abdullah holds a bachelor’s degree in business and economy from the United Arab Emirates University. He is also a graduate of the INSEAD leadership program for business executives.

Dr. Philipp Seidel, LL.M.

Arthur D. Little Principal Automotive Practice, Head of Sustainable Mobility Team Central Europe

Dr. Philipp Seidel is a Principal in the Automotive Practice of Arthur D. Little. He advises international automotive manufacturers, suppliers and emerging players in the areas of autonomous, electric and connected mobility services.

His work focuses on the impact of new technologies and the implementation of innovation and new business models for mobility companies. He helps clients to navigate challenges at the interfaces of traditional segments like automotive, transportation, energy, electronics, and telecom.

He has graduated with a doctoral degree and a diploma in Business Administration and International Management from WFI - Catholic University Eichstaett-Ingolstadt and holds a LL.M. with specialization in Mergers & Acquisitions from WWU Münster.

Neil Watts

Sales Director, Partners for UK, Middle East & Africa at HERE Technologies

Neil Watts is Sales Director, Partners for UK, Middle East & Africa at HERE Technologies, the world's leading location platform company with a global footprint across 52 countries.  Neil has over 3 decades of pan-European telecoms and geo-location expertise in FTSE-100 companies holding senior positions within the areas of sales, marketing and business development. Extensive expertise working with blue chip developer, distributor, reseller & manufacturer clients. As well as multiple corporate roles Neil also founded successful businesses within the UAS and 3D printing sectors.

Arvind CJ

Partner at Roland Berger Middle East

Arvind is a Partner at Roland Berger's Dubai office and leads the Automotive practice in the Middle East. He has over 15 years of work experience in Automotive, both in consulting and industry. He extensively advised clients in Middle East, specifically UAE and KSA on EV value chain strategy, new-age distribution, autonomous & mobility strategy, production localization as well as NewCo establishments across these topics. Arvind holds an MBA from Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, and a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering.

Sanjay Dulepet

Accomplished innovation and AI leader

Sanjay Dulepet is an accomplished innovation and AI leader with a track record of driving transformative changes and creating innovative solutions using AI technologies. With extensive experience as the former Global Technology Head for Smart Mobility and EV Ecosystem at TCS, Sanjay focused on developing technology-led mobility ecosystems across various industries. He is highly regarded for his entrepreneurial product mindset and is known for fostering a culture of creativity and growth within organizations. Sanjay achieves this by forging strategic partnerships with startups, academia, and industry partners to foster innovation and collaboration. With over 25 years of industry experience and master's and bachelor's degrees in computer science, Sanjay's expertise brings significant value to his field.

Joseph Salem

Partner, Travel and Transport lead in Arthur D. Little

Joseph is the leading partner in the Travel and Transportation practice at Arthur D. Little Middle East. ADL is the oldest global management consulting company established in 1886.

Joseph holds a Master’s degree (Strategic Management) from HEC in France, and a Bachelor in Engineering from the American University of Beirut. His work focuses on the future of urban mobility and innovative business models in the transport sector. Joseph has led major assignments on future strategies for global mobility players and supported national transport ministries and authorities in reshaping the ecosystem. Expertise are (and not limited to):

  • Transport & Logistics
  • Future of Mobility
  • Growth Strategies
  • Public Sector

Arnaud de La Fortelle

CTO & Co-Founder – Heex Technologies
Associate Professor, MINES Paris – PSL University, Center for Robotics

Dr. Arnaud de La Fortelle has engineer degrees from the French École Polytechnique and École des Ponts et Chaussées (2 top French institutions) and a Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics (Probability Theory) prepared at Inria. He has been director of MINES Paris’ Center for Robotics (2008-2021). He was Visiting Professor at UC Berkeley in 2017-2018. He is an elected member of the Board of Governors of IEEE Intelligent Transportation System Society. He has been member of several program committees for conferences and was General Chair of IEEE Intelligent Vehicles Symposium 2019 in Paris (900 attendees). He was member, then president of the French ANR scientific evaluation committee for sustainable mobility and cities in 2008-2017. He serves regularly as expert for the European research programs (FP7, H2020, Horizon). In 2021, he took a full-time position as CTO at Heex Technologies while retaining a part-time position at MINES Paris. He co-founded this start-up company in 2019 and designed the technology behind Smart Data Management in a customer-oriented approach. Smart Data is a powerful way to address current and future Big Data limitations, especially needed for autonomous systems (Autonomous Driving, ADAS, Industry 4.0, Smart Cities…).

Reuben Sarkar

CEO, American Centre for Mobility

Prior to joining ACM, Reuben was Chief Product Officer for Forge Nano, a venture-backed start-up focused on commercially scalable, precision nano-coatings for EV batteries and other industrial applications. Formerly, he was Deputy Assistant Secretary of Transportation for the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), where he oversaw more than $1.8B of R&D investments into the sustainable transportation sector through their Vehicle, Fuel Cell, and Bioenergy Technologies Offices. While at U.S. DOE, he established EERE’s focus on mobility systems, co-chaired the advanced materials workgroup, was executive director of the Clean Energy Manufacturing Initiative (CEMI) and established the Energy Materials Network (EMN).

Before joining EERE, Reuben worked at Proterra Inc., a leading manufacturer of electric buses, where he led the development of their 1st generation 35-foot all-electric bus and fast charging station as well as product planning for their 2nd generation 40-foot electric bus that are in transit fleets today. Prior to that, Reuben spent more than a decade at General Motors where he was the lead engineer on the 1st generation electric drive unit for the Chevy Volt.

Reuben is a Senior Fellow at the U.S. Council on Competitiveness, an advisor at the Center for Connected and Automated Transportation (CCAT), and an Operator Advisor at Assembly Ventures. He is also a senior advisor to the Michigan Council on Future Mobility and Electrification and a Board Member of the Zero Emission Transportation Associations Education Fund. He holds both Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in chemical engineering, as well as an MBA with high distinction, all from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

Dr. Sama Khazraeian

Lead ITS Engineering - Stantec

With a Ph.D. in Transportation Engineering focusing on Connected Automated Vehicle (CAV) technology, Sama adds her expertise to the Stantec’s global Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) practice. Most known for her work on self-driving cars, CAV, emerging technologies, and system engineering, Sama’s led many ITS projects around the world, performs research on trending technologies, and writes winning proposals.
Sama recently landed a project in Australia focusing on driving offenses detection using artificial intelligence. Currently, she leads a confidential CAV project in California. She’s received several prestigious awards including the 2018 Transportation Research Board Best Paper Award and the 2017 Women’s Transportation Seminar International Leadership Legacy Award. She also authored a book chapter in Intelligent Transportation Systems in Future Smart Cities with Springer.

Frank Menchaca

President, Sustainable Mobility Solutions

SAE International

Frank Menchaca is President, Sustainable Mobility Solutions at SAE International, the oldest and largest technical organization for engineering in ground and air transportation. Frank incubated and developed SAE's work in sustainability and has also led the organization's product development, marketing, information publishing, professional learning, events and international business. Frank has a deep background in information products and served as Executive Vice President at Cengage Learning. Frank holds degrees from New York University and Yale University and is a candidate in the Chief Sustainability Officer certification program at MIT. A musician and artist, Frank has released ten records of original music under his own name and in the duo Hourloupe; his visual art practice includes painting and digital media.

Robert (Bob) L. Galyen

Senior Strategic Consultant & Advisor Retired Chief Technical Officer of CATL (Contemporary Amperex Technology Company Limited)

Robert (Bob) L. Galyen, age 68, is recognized as one of the top executives in the battery energy storage world and within science/engineering-based communities. He is a highly sought-after public speaker as a subject matter expert. His positions as CTO of CATL (the world’s largest battery manufacturer), Chairman of SAE International Battery Standards Steering Committee, also an SAE Fellow, Chairman Emeritus and CTO of NAATbatt International, provides him a unique leadership perspective in the global battery industry. His degrees in chemistry and biology, along with decades of engineering experience and executive roles, provides him a unique view in a leadership or consulting role in cross functional technology areas. He has patents, publications and participates on multiple BOD’s and TAB’s. The 48 years’ international work experience has given him a visionary perspective on worldwide business, making him uniquely qualified as a global energy storage and scientific/engineering community thought leader. His manufacturing experience qualifies him as one of the top Lithium-Ion Battery producers (CATL) and Lead Acid Battery producers (Delco Remy Division of GM) in the world. He presently works with over 8 different battery systems in his consulting roles.

Lukas Neckermann

Managing Director of Neckermann Strategic Advisors

Lukas is the Managing Director of Neckermann Strategic Advisors.  He has over 20 years of leadership experience in automotive, media, and financial services and has worked at BMW and Allianz Group, and recently served as interim COO of Splyt, a high-growth scale-up.

He is an advisor to investors, as well as scale-up companies across the mobility and urban ecosystems including NEXT Modular Transportation, MSCI Thematic Indexes, StreetDrone.

He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Science and Technology Studies from Cornell University, and an MBA from the NYU Stern School of Business. Lukas has been featured in the Financial Times, Wired, Fast Company, Trends.be, Robotics Tomorrow, Quattroruote, Fleet Management Weekly, Fleet Europe and other magazines and newspapers.

Books written or co-authored by Lukas:

The Mobility Revolution (Matador Business Press 2015)

Corporate Mobility Breakthrough 2020 (collaboration with the CVO 2016 and the Matador Business Press 2017)

Smart Cities, Smart Mobility (collaboration with the CVO 2016 and Matador Business Press 2017)

Being Driven (Matador Business Press 2019)

Professor Siddartha Khastgir

Head of Verification & Validation, Connected & Autonomous Vehicles, WMG, University of Warwick, UK

Professor Siddartha Khastgir is the Head of Verification & Validation for Connected & Autonomous Vehicles (CAV) at WMG, University of Warwick. He leads several collaborative R&D projects with industrial and academic partners nationally and internationally. His research focuses on generating safety evidence and arguments, test scenario generation, simulation-based testing, and safety of AI systems. Leveraging the cross-domain nature of safety, he is also involved in safety research in aviation, marine and healthcare. He has been appointed as a member of the UK Govt’s Department for Transport’s Science Advisory Council.

Siddartha is an active member of various national and international standardisation and regulatory groups, including ISO, SAE and ASAM. Currently, he represents the UK on several ISO technical committees and is the lead author for two new ISO standards for aspects of automated driving systems. He sits on the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) committees on safety of automated driving.

Prior to joining WMG, Siddartha was with FEV GmbH in Germany, leading automotive software development and testing for series production projects.

He has received numerous national and international awards for his research contributions, including the prestigious UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship in 2019 focused on safety evaluation of CAVs and a Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe listmaker.

Jeroen Andre Beukers 

Innovation Expert Automated Driving & Smart Mobility, Transports Publics Genevois

Jeroen works at Transports Publics Genevois, the public transport operator in the Swiss Canton of Geneva, where he manages the EU Horizon funded Enflate, Sinnogenes and Ultimo projects. Within the framework of these projects, the TPG showcases a 100% automated, full scale on-demand, shared, door2door, dynamically routed, public transport service with a fleet of automated low-emission mini busses serving a large number of virtual bus-stops and connected to the existing transport network

Jeroen also represents SAAM. As the leading autonomous mobility platform in Switzerland, SAAM aims to shape the mobility of tomorrow sustainably by providing a place of exchange and collaboration between its members with a focus on concrete projects and by accompanying new policies

Mamoun F. Abdel-Hafez

Professor Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles, USA, 2003

Mamoun F. Abdel-Hafez received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Jordan University of Science and Technology in 1997, his M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee in 1999, and his Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in 2003. In 2003, he served as a Postdoctoral Research Associate with the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, UCLA, where he was involved in a research project on fault-tolerant autonomous multiple aircraft landing.

Dr. Abdel-Hafez is the author and co-author of 77 journal and conference papers. He received several international awards. He was among a research group who received the 2002 NASA Public Service Group Achievement Award. He also received the 2002 NASA Peer Award. He received two best presentation awards from the Institute of Navigation. Dr. Abdel-Hafez was among a group that won the 2nd place of the Dubai Self-Driving World Congress in 2021. Additionally, He was leading a team that was declared the national winner of the UAE Robotics/AI for Good Competition in 2017.

Dr. Abdel-Hafez is an IEEE senior member and a member of the UAE ASME section leadership team. Additionally, he is a member of the leadership team for the UAE IEEE section of the Robotics and Automation Society. He gave many invited and panel talks at local and regional conferences.

Dr. Diana Dawoud

Assistant professor at the University of Dubai

Dr. Diana Dawoud (linkedin.com/in/dianadawoud) is a University of Surrey PhD graduate whose current research interests are the physical layer aspects of optical communication systems, digital signal processing for communications and internet of things systems . Dawoud completed her bachelor in electrical engineering at the University of Jordan (UJ), Amman, Jordan. Then, she joined the department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) at Applied Science University, Amman, Jordan, as a laboratory engineer and started working toward her master degree at UJ. Prior to undertaking her doctoral studies at the Institute for Communication Systems (ICS) of the University of Surrey, Guildford, UK, she taught for four years at the EESC Department at Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi, UAE. Currently, she is an assistant professor at the University of Dubai. Dr. Dawoud has served as a reviewer of several manuscripts for IEEE transactions on communication, IEEE communication letters, and flagship IEEE conferences such as ICCC. She is a member of IEEE, IEEE women in engineering, IEEE women in communication engineering and Jordanian Engineers Association. As well as the IEEE educational activities chair at UAE section. Dr. Dawoud has a pending patent application on optical communication systems and authored and co-authored several research papers published in international high ranked journals and conferences

Akbar Qamar

Electronics Student - University of Bolton

Akbar is an Electronics Student and Hobbyist with a passion for RF with RAHRF101 Certification, high-speed Hardware Design while having a passion for designing and building circuits. Experienced in PCB Design and Hardware testing of Circuits.

He has led many competitions ranging from robotics to innovation challenges. He is dedicated to finding practical solutions to real-world problems, and his passion for electronics drives him to keep learning and pushing the boundaries of what is possible.

Madihah Anaum 

Robotics Engineering student - Heriot-Watt University

Madihah is a passionate third-year Robotics Engineering student at Heriot-Watt University. Her exceptional skills in programming, AI, and 3D modeling and design, drive her to create innovative and captivating projects. As the President of the Engineering Society at Heriot Watt, she excels at organizing informative and enjoyable events that fosters an environment that nurtures personal growth and professional development of her peers. Madihah's impressive problem-solving abilities were evident when she and her team secured a remarkable 3rd place in the prestigious 4x4 Car competition at Yas Marina. With a keen interest in IoT, Madihah actively contributes her talents and knowledge, particularly in enhancing user experience in self-driving buses. Her distinct perspective to improving existing systems make her an invaluable asset, as she looks forward to making an invaluable impact in her society.

Majid Khonji

Assistant Professor - Khalifa University

Majid Khonji is an assistant professor in the EECS department at Khalifa University, UAE, a Research Affiliate with MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL), USA, and leading research activities of the autonomous vehicle laboratory (www.avlab.io) at KUCARS. He received his MSc degree in Security, Cryptology, and Coding of Information Systems from Ensimag, Grenoble Institute of Technology, France, and PhD in Interdisciplinary Engineering from Masdar Institute, UAE, in collaboration with MIT in 2016. Previously, he was a visiting professor at MIT CSAIL, a senior R&D technologist at Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), and an information security researcher at Emirates Advanced Investment Group (EAIG). Email: majid.khonji(at)ku.ac.ae

Jason Kim

CEO of Mobiltech Co., Ltd.

Jason Kim, graduated from the undergraduate and graduate schools of the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at Yonsei University.

The main fields of research are SLAM technology using lidar, digital twin technology, and HD-maps for autonomous driving. Since the founding of Mobiltech in 2017, he has applied 3D LIDAR technology and realistic digital twin technology to a number of self-driving companies and smart city projects, leading to innovation in spatial information.

Michael Herdrich

Consultant Autonomous Mobility at P3 automotive, Germany

Advanced autonomous vehicles for SAE Level 3 and Level 4 functions will lead to a new understanding of the operation phase in the overall product lifecycle. Regulations such as the EU Implementing Act and the German L4 Act (AFGBV) request a continuous field surveillance, the handling of critical E/E faults and software (SW) updates during operation. This is required to enhance the ODD (Operational Design Domain) during operation, offering functions on demand (FoD), by increasing SW features within these autonomous vehicle (AV) systems over the entire digital product lifecycle, and to avoid and reduce downtime by a malfunction of the AD SW stack. Supported by implemented effective management systems for CyberSecurity (R155), Software Update Management System (R 156) and a safety management system (in compliance to Automated Lane Keeping System (R157), the organizations have to ensure safe and secure development, deployment and operation to fulfill legal requirements. Based on senior expert interviews from relevant AD/ADAS stakeholders, a blueprint is developed to support the deployment and scalability of AD system. Relevant roles for the operation will be presented and current gaps in the industry, regulation and academia are highlighted.

Join us for a captivating exploration into International Autonomous Technology Insights. Our featured distinguished speakers will share their expertise on the forefront of technological evolution. Delve into the future with discussions on uncovering how artificial intelligence is shaping urban transportation. Gain invaluable insights into the intricate landscape of self-driving vehicles during "Navigating the World of Autonomous Vehicles." Lastly, be inspired by "Autonomous Cars and Entrepreneurship," where entrepreneurs will share their journeys in this groundbreaking industry. This is your opportunity to engage with thought leaders, visionaries, and pioneers in the realm of autonomy, harnessing innovation to steer us toward a smarter, self-driven tomorrow. 

In this dynamic era of technological advancement, the convergence of artificial intelligence and transportation systems has the potential to revolutionize the way we perceive mobility. I will talk about AI-enabled road infrastructure and its pivotal role in expediting the integration of connected and automated mobility solutions. I will give an overview about the status of Connected Vehicles (V2X) deployment in Qatar and elaborate on real use-cases where the fusion of AI and Connected Vehicles can enable seamless Automated Mobility.

Dr. Hamid Menouar

Principal R&D and Innovation Lead, Qatar Mobility Innovations Center

Dr. Hamid Menouar is a Principal R&D and Innovation Lead at Qatar Mobility Innovations Center (QMIC). In his role, he spearheads the design and development of cutting-edge solutions aimed at enhancing the quality of life. Leveraging state-of-the-art technologies like AI and IoT, he focuses on creating smart, efficient, and sustainable cities. Several of his innovative solutions have played a pivotal role in the success of the Qatar FIFA World Cup 2022.

Dr. Hamid is an expert in connected and automated mobility. He has contributed to the early development and standardization of vehicles to vehicle and vehicle to infrastructure (V2X) in Europe. Since 2010, he has been leading the development and deployment of V2X in Qatar.

With a Ph.D. degree from the esteemed French school Telecom Paris Tech, Dr. Hamid possesses extensive expertise in AI, IoT, Connected and Automated Mobility, and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) or drones. His research endeavors have yielded a remarkable collection of scientific research publications, both in esteemed international conferences and journals, along with multiple patents.

Autonomous vehicle technology has continued to improve in parallel with moderation of expectations and timeline predictions as to its widespread deployment. As the field matures, many organizations are investing in pivots to specific aspects of autonomy - ranging from autonomous delivery vehicles, to region-restricted robot axis, to automated and semi-automated road freight. In this session I'll present a snapshot of where we are as a field in 2023 and the key factors that have led to the field being where it is today. I'll highlight some of the key milestones and developments to watch over the coming years and how they may impact further technology improvements and vehicle deployments.

Michael Milford

Specialist and Director of the Robotics Center at the Queensland University of Technology

Michael Milford conducts interdisciplinary research at the boundary between robotics, neuroscience and computer vision and am a multi-award-winning educational entrepreneur.

He has been a long-term international judge for the Dubai World Self-Driving Transport Challenge events (2018–21); a non-executive director on the board of the Qld Motor Trades Association Institute; Automation Technology Lead at Mining; and member of the National Transport Commission’s Automated Vehicle Industry Insights Group.

He has led or co-led industry projects with leading Fortune 100 and multinational companies in the autonomous vehicles space spanning automotive, mining and defense.

He currently holds the positions of Australian Research Council Laureate Fellow, Joint Director of the QUT Centre for Robotics, QUT Professor and am a Microsoft Research Faculty Fellow.

Professor Siddartha Khastgir

Head of Verification & Validation, Connected & Autonomous Vehicles, WMG, University of Warwick, UK

Professor Siddartha Khastgir is the Head of Verification & Validation for Connected & Autonomous Vehicles (CAV) at WMG, University of Warwick. He leads several collaborative R&D projects with industrial and academic partners nationally and internationally. His research focuses on generating safety evidence and arguments, test scenario generation, simulation-based testing, and safety of AI systems. Leveraging the cross-domain nature of safety, he is also involved in safety research in aviation, marine and healthcare. He has been appointed as a member of the UK Govt’s Department for Transport’s Science Advisory Council.

Siddartha is an active member of various national and international standardisation and regulatory groups, including ISO, SAE and ASAM. Currently, he represents the UK on several ISO technical committees and is the lead author for two new ISO standards for aspects of automated driving systems. He sits on the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) committees on safety of automated driving.

Prior to joining WMG, Siddartha was with FEV GmbH in Germany, leading automotive software development and testing for series production projects.

He has received numerous national and international awards for his research contributions, including the prestigious UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship in 2019 focused on safety evaluation of CAVs and a Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe listmaker.

Dr. Sherin Abdelhamid

Senior Strategy Manager at TELUS

Dr. Sherin Abdelhamid is a Senior Strategy Manager at TELUS, where she drives the strategy development & implementation of connected and autonomous vehicle services. She also manages partner relationships and large-scale projects that span across major TELUS frontline and internal facing business units. Prior to joining TELUS, Sherin worked as a technical advisor and manager with the Ontario Vehicle Innovation Network, where she owned and managed delivery of strategic projects in partnership with industry, government, and other ecosystem partners. She also worked as a research associate and adjunct assistant professor at the School of Computing - Queen’s University, where she received her PhD in 2014. Sherin is a subject-matter expert in connected, autonomous, and electric vehicle technologies and mobility innovation, and has been named by Automotive News Canada as one of the 2020 Canadians to Watch in the auto industry. She is also experienced in data analytics, smart city innovations, and the Internet of Things. She is an award-winning researcher with more than forty publications in many top journals, magazines, and conferences. .

Andrew Bevan

Smart Mobility and EV Lead, Parsons

A versatile technology leader who is passionate about the future of our cities and
improving the lives of our citizens, Andrew is accountable for delivery of Smart City
and Smart Mobility Projects for Parsons across the Middle East.
He has nearly 25 years’ experience in major transport infrastructure projects and has
held a series of leadership roles at a global and regional level, leading multidisciplinary teams to drive growth, innovation and new business. He is an
experienced professional in advanced mobility having successfully delivered multiple
projects around the world, which include a number of technically complex and first-inregion connected, autonomous and electric vehicle initiatives valued at over $100M.
He is a regular contributor to the advanced mobility industry, authoring and
contributing to papers on range of publications such as SAE Edge. He is also a
regular speaker at global events such as World Roads Congress, World Self-Driving
Congress and United Nations technical meetings where he provides thought
leadership on the future of mobility.

Cristian Sandu

Co-Founder & CEO – Quadribot, France

  • Before creating QuadriBot S.A.S, Cristian participated and led several R&D projects related to autonomous driving, solving issues related to automation, real time calculation, power management, renewable energy, mobility and urban micro-mobility through innovative projects at: INRIA (French Digital Science Research Institute), SAFRAN (French Aerospace & military leader) and PSA (French automotive leader).
  • Since 2014, QuadriBot developed different hardware and software modules related to smart and autonomous mobility for private and governmental clients.
  • In 2022 Quadribot developed R-Box, a brain for autonomous driving. R-Box is an all-in-one HPC (high performance computing system) optimized for autonomous driving offering ASIL-D safety level. This further lead to innovative products such as the Ryl autonomous personal shuttle and the Scargo autonomous delivery robot.
  • Cristian earned his MSc. Power Electronics from Institute of Energy Technology, Aalborg, Denmark in 2009

Fash Shahrokni

Business Development Director – EMEA, Quadribot, France

  • Fash Shahrokni started his career in the UK oil & gas industry at 21, at 24 he was one of the youngest international managers in the industry, covering Middle East, Eastern Europe and North Africa.
  • He progressed to General Manager of Gray Mackenzie Oil Services Company in Syria in 2001, where he doubled the sales within one year and was responsible for hiring 120 new engineers to meet the demands of this growth, making it the largest foreign company in the country.
  • In 2004 he was appointed Managing Director of Enerpac M.E (Dubai), covering 70 countries in Middle East, Africa and CIS. There, he led his team and transformed the struggling company within one year from negative sales & profits to becoming the most successful region worldwide year-over-year for the next 7 years.
  • He progressed to developing South America and Russia before his passion for autonomous vehicles lead to joining Quadribot (France), a technological leader in autonomous vehicles.

Gagandeep Reehal

Co-founder, CEO & CTO Minus Zero

Gagandeep Reehal, is co-founder & CEO of Minus Zero, an autonomous vehicle startup pioneering a groundbreaking AI approach aimed at solving autonomous driving using only cameras. Closely working at an intuitive intersection of AI & cognitive computing from the last 4 years, he had always been intrigued by neuronal computations inside the human brain contributing to attention, behavioural awareness, episodic memory, and predictive decision-making, evolving With the problem of autonomous driving where current AI paradigms fail due to inability to handle real-world complexity, unlike the human mind, he knew the big gap that they could solve when he cofounded Minus Zero in 2021 with Gursimran Kalra.(Co-founder, CFO). Represented India as part of delegation led by Gov of India at VivaTech Paris 2022. He has mentored/judged major developer events worldwide and has spoken at multiple conferences and major institutions around AI & robotics. (List below)
Books & Publications
• Mother (Fiction, 2019)
• A coffee date (Non-Fiction, 2019)
• Burial amidst Gods (Poetry, 2020)
Awards
• E&T Innovation Award 2021 - Young Pioneer by The IET (Shortlisted)
• NASSCOM AI Gamechangers Award 2021 (Special Mention)
Community Engagement
• Lead Mentor, BuildWithAI Hackathon (August 2020 - Australia)
• Judge & Mentor, HackMIT, Blueprint - Massachusetts Institute of Technology (February
2021 - USA)
• Keynote Speaker, MOVES 2021: Mobility & Vehicle Electronics Summit, July 2021
• Panellist, MOVE Asia by Terrapinn (September 2021 - Singapore)
• Speaker, 12th Autonomous Vehicles Detroit-2022, Michigan Sept, 2022
• Speaker - G20 Presidency India (17th July, 2023)

Juan R. Pimentel

Ph.D. – Electrical Engineering, University of Virginia.

Dr. Pimentel has been developing industrial and automotive communication protocols and networks since the early 1980s. He participated in the early development of key communication protocols and networks such as Profibus of Siemens and MAP (manufacturing automation protocol) used by GM at the Saturn plant in Spring Hill, TN. He got involved with several international projects dealing with industrial communications and vehicle and robotics control systems, including autonomous mobile robots in Germany, France, Italy, and Spain. 

Throughout his career he has developed a wide range of experience on various aspects of automated vehicles, electrical vehicles, automotive systems, intelligent transportation systems, wireless technologies, communication and computing technologies, and industrial process control systems. 

Currently, he is a consultant in electrical vehicles, automated vehicles, and intelligent transportation systems focusing on system design, functional safety, automotive data security, automotive cybersecurity, SOTIF, hardware and software, HPC and Cloud technologies.  He is also an expert witness in IP (intellectual property) law cases.  

As a former Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Engineering with deep industrial experience and insights, he has a gift for explaining complicated ideas and concepts in a clear, convincing, and easy to understand man.

Okan Baş

CEO, Karsan

Having received his undergraduate and graduate degree from Boğaziçi University, Department of Mechanical Engineering and Clemson University (USA), Department of Mechanical Engineering, respectively, Mr. Baş embarked upon his professional career at TOFAŞ Bursa Plant in 1987 in Engineering Support Department in the capacity of Mechanical Engineer. He has served at various positions at TOFAŞ until June 2016.

Mr. Baş has served at TOFAŞ Bursa Plant as Workshop Production Supervisor, Engine Production Unit Manager, Body Production Unit Manager, Assembly Production Unit Manager and Doblo Product Manager between 1991 and 2002, and has worked at Tofaş Head Office İstanbul between 2002 and 2016 in various positions such as After-Sales Director, Mini-Cargo Project Manager, After-Sales Spare Part Director, FIAT Business Unit Director, and Aegea Project and Business Development Director.

Sanjay Dulepet

Accomplished innovation and AI leader

Sanjay Dulepet is an accomplished innovation and AI leader with a track record of driving transformative changes and creating innovative solutions using AI technologies. With extensive experience as the former Global Technology Head for Smart Mobility and EV Ecosystem at TCS, Sanjay focused on developing technology-led mobility ecosystems across various industries. He is highly regarded for his entrepreneurial product mindset and is known for fostering a culture of creativity and growth within organizations. Sanjay achieves this by forging strategic partnerships with startups, academia, and industry partners to foster innovation and collaboration. With over 25 years of industry experience and master's and bachelor's degrees in computer science, Sanjay's expertise brings significant value to his field.

Robotics for AV Systems Bootcamp which is developed by SAE International and Clemson University with industry guidance from experts. In this workshop, participants will learn how they can enter the field of mobility robotics through an overview of this rigorous, twelve-week, experience. If they take the course, students will gain insights into how engineers build autonomous systems by learning to program a mobile robot through hands-on approaches using ROS, Gazebo, and Python. (Space permitting, we will demonstrate this.) Following an introduction to Mechatronics and Kinematics, participants will learn how the course guides students through software engineering principles such as SLAM; Localization; Navigation/Path Planning; Perception: LiDAR, Cameras & Vision and Visual Intelligence; and Machine Learning.

Prof. Venkat N. Krovi

Michelin Endowed Chair of Vehicle Automation in the Departments of Automotive Engineering and Mechanical Engineering at Clemson University

Prof. Venkat Krovi is an Associate Professor in the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department at SUNY Buffalo. He obtained his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1998 and joined SUNY Buffalo in 2001. Prof. Krovi directs the Automation, Robotics and Mechatronics (ARMLAB) Laboratory and co-directs the Medical Robotics and Computer-Integrated-Medicine (MRCIM) Laboratory. His research program focuses on the lifecycle treatment of mechanical and mechatronic systems, leveraging mechatronics and computer-aided engineering for implementation/validation. His research has received funding from federal, state, and industrial sources. Prof. Krovi's work increasingly focuses on developing improved design and implementation methodologies for bio-inspired machines/systems. He has served in technical program committees and editorial boards of several IEEE and ASME conferences and is an Associate Editor of the IEEE Transactions on Robotics. Prof. Krovi has served on several funding agency review panels and chaired the ASME Robotics Technical Committee.