Ann Arbor Mobility Summit
Restructuring mobility investment.
Tuesday, October 5 | 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
2021 Post-Event Note:
Where the automotive industry intersects with era-defining tech innovation, you’ll find Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Thanks to everyone who joined us for the fourth annual Ann Arbor Mobility Summit. We hope everyone gained valuable, actionable information to advance mobility innovation and rethink mobility investments. Also, congratulations to Bedestrian for winning the Invest360: Mobility session and a $50,000 investment.
A global destination for trailblazing OEMs, researchers, and entrepreneurs — the mobility ecosystem flourishes here. The city is also home to the University of Michigan which in 2020 invested more than $1.5 billion in research, making it the top-ranked public research university in the United States.
Emerging from this vibrant collection of mobility leadership is the fourth annual Ann Arbor Mobility Summit, where visionaries from across the globe gather virtually to share, learn, and inspire.
The 2021 theme is Restructuring Mobility Investment. The mobility industry has been rapidly changing. While policy is catching up, we also need to rethink our investment strategies. How should we fund the future of mobility? How could recent policy changes affect private funding in the space? How will evolving safety, equity, and sustainability requirements shape investment strategies? Who will fund and be responsible for our data infrastructure? What investments are automakers prioritizing for the cars of the future?
Keynote Speaker & Special Guest
Sahar Shirazi
Nelson\Nygaard
Biography
Sahar Shirazi
Nelson\Nygaard
Sahar is passionate about enhancing equity, sustainability, and access in communities through local, regional, and national mobility solutions.
Sahar is an experienced problem solver and has spent most of her career tackling complex issues that span multiple stakeholders. From coordinating across 14 federal agencies at the Office of Management and Budget to engaging with California’s diverse communities and international partners for the Governor’s Office to her daily activities in mobility and land use planning, she works to frame the goals and outcomes, then dig into the nuance to make solutions actionable.
Sahar’s varied background spans across policy and planning arenas — including transportation, land use, environment, housing, economic development, public health, and equity—and focuses on the intersections and connections between goals. She sees emerging mobility as an opportunity to rethink the way our cities and towns are formed and address past mistakes that caused direct and indirect harm to communities.
Sahar currently serves as a principal at Nelson\Nygaard consulting. Prior to that, Sahar served as planning and policy lead for emerging mobility at WSP, senior planning advisor in the office of California Governor Jerry Brown, policy analyst for the Office of the Secretary at USDOT, policy lead at the Office of Management and Budget at the White House during the Obama Administration, and as a preschool teacher for 10 years.
Her early childhood in Iran during a war, her family’s prolonged escape to the United States, and the challenges faced through her adolescence helped shape her passion for public service. She has completed the Emerge training and been recognized by Ignite National, and she remains active in many local organizations. Sahar received her undergraduate degree from UC Berkeley and her Master’s in Public Policy at Mills College. She currently lives in Oakland, where she is an appointed planning commissioner, adjunct professor at Mills College, local political and policy schemer, neighborhood benefit planner, and lazy bike rider.
Rep. Debbie Dingell
Michigan’s 12th District
U.S. House of Representatives
Biography
Rep. Debbie Dingell
U.S. House of Representatives
Congresswoman Debbie Dingell represents Michigan’s 12th District in the U.S. House of Representatives, where she has made it a priority to be a voice for the Midwest on issues that matter most to working families.
A member of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Debbie is a leader on efforts to grow manufacturing, improve access to quality affordable health care, support seniors and veterans and protect the Great Lakes. Recognized as one of the 25 hardest-working Members of Congress, Debbie is focused on forging bipartisan solutions that support Michigan’s families and economy, including improving long-term care and ushering in the future of the American auto industry.
Before being elected to Congress, Debbie worked in the auto industry for more than three decades, where she was President of the General Motors (GM) Foundation and a senior executive responsible for public affairs. She was also Chairman of the Wayne State University (WSU) Board of Governors, and continues to fight to make education more affordable and accessible in Congress
Panelists, Guests, and Moderators
Peter Adriaens
University of Michigan
Biography
Peter Adriaens, PhD, PE, BCEEM
Professor of Environmental Engineering, Finance, and Entrepreneurship
Dr. Adriaens is Professor of Environmental Engineering, Finance and Entrepreneurship at the University of Michigan, with appointments in Civil and Environmental Engineering, Ross School of Business and the School for Environment and Sustainability. He directs the Center and Master of Engineering program in Smart Infrastructure Finance, focused on efficient financing mechanisms for public and private infrastructure systems such as water, energy, waste, transportation and mobility. The Center is a cofounder of the University’s FinTech Collaboratory with the FinTech Initiative in the Ross School of Business and the Center on Finance, Law and Policy in the Ford School for Public Policy.
He was president of the Association of Environmental Science and Engineering Professors and is a member of the American Academy of Environmental Engineering and of the Belgian Royal Academy of Applied Sciences and the Arts. Previously, he was Distinguished Professor of Entrepreneurship at Sichuan University (China) and at the Research Institute of the Finnish Economy (Helsinki, Finland) focused on investment and financing models for green economic transitioning. He serves as investment advisor to the Great Lakes Impact Investment Platform under the auspices of the Council of Great Lakes Governors.
His research and teaching focus on data-driven (digital) business and finance models for infrastructure, blockchain applications for smart cities infrastructure, and artificial intelligence/machine learning models for asset pricing of sustainability premiums in bonds and equities. He is co-founder of Equarius® Risk Analytics, a financial technology firm focused on asset risk pricing from water exposure in securities and indexes.
Paul Brown
eLab Ventures
Biography
Paul Brown
eLab Ventures & University of Michigan Regent
Regent Brown is a Democrat from Northern Michigan. He holds a B.A. and M.B.A. from the University of Michigan and a J.D. from Wayne State University.
Regent Brown is a managing partner of eLab Ventures, a venture capital firm headquartered in Michigan with offices in Silicon Valley. Previously he was Vice President of Capital Markets at the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC), under Governor Granholm and Snyder, where he managed the bulk of the State’s $2 billion 21st Century Jobs Fund investment portfolio and developed programs focused on increasing the availability of capital for businesses in Michigan. He has testified before Congress on issues of economic development and access to capital. Prior to joining MEDC Paul practiced law in the Manhattan office of Skadden, Arps. He began his legal career as a law clerk to Judge John O’Meara in Federal District Court.
Regent Brown is the board chair of the Michigan History Foundation and currently serves on the board of Wolverine Mutual Insurance Company. He is a past board member and observer of the Michigan League of Conservation Voters; the Michigan Venture Capital Association; Venture Michigan Fund and several early stage IT and life-science companies. Regent Brown was a lecturer in U-M’s School of Engineering teaching courses on finance and entrepreneurship.
Regent Brown was elected to the Board of Regents in 2018. His term expires January 1, 2026.
Ryan Buck
Washtenaw Area Transportation Study
Biography
Ryan Buck
Washtenaw Area Transportation Study
After a near ten-year tenure at Ann Arbor’s beloved Washtenaw Dairy, Ryan began working at the Washtenaw Area Transportation Study in 2002. Initially focusing on travel demand modeling, Ryan has been exposed to all facets of transportation planning and involved in the development of four Long Range Transportation Plans for Washtenaw County. In 2006, Ryan led the effort for a countywide non-motorized plan which resulted in policy changes and an increased focus on multi-modal investment in the area. Ryan served as Chair of the Michigan Transportation Planning Association and sits on the State of Michigan Transportation Asset Management Council. Ryan became Director of WATS in 2013.
Eric Bursch
Toyota Motor North America, Inc.
Biography
Eric Bursch
Toyota Motor North America, Inc.
In 1999, I completed my BSME at the University of Michigan, which was a dream of mine as far back as I can remember. In the fall of 1999, I started my career as a calibration engineer at Cummins Engine company. In the fall of 2000, I got an opportunity to return to Ann Arbor, Michigan. I took a job working for the Toyota Technical Center as a design engineer in the engine compartment design group. For 16 years, I worked in the same group. When I started, there were two members and we only had liaison design responsibility. To build trust with our headquarters, I spent 15 months living and working in Japan from 2004-2005. When I finished my role in 2016, I was managing a team of 8 engineers with responsibility for air intake, fuel, exhaust, secondary air, engine cooling, HV & EV cooling systems on 6 NA manufactured vehicles. Over that time, I gained experience developing new suppliers, new technology, and benchmarking many competitive vehicles and systems. In 2017, I was given a new challenge of leading the design innovation group in the digital engineering design department. This diverse group of 13 members has responsibility for KBE applications, appearance digital assembly, VR enterprise applications, quality checking, powertrain CAD modeling, and CAD training. At COE2018, I gave a presentation on the application of analytics to predict target users for KBE tools in CATIA V5. In 2019, I was part of a panel of speakers discussing enterprise VR use cases. I’m continuing to press forward to apply VR technology throughout our product development process to reduce lead time and physical prototyping costs.
Royce Channey
HARMAN
Biography
Royce Channey
HARMAN
Royce Channey is a Global Director of Design within the Huemen team at HARMAN. Royce has over 20 years of design experience spanning across the automotive and consumer technology spaces. He oversees Industrial Design across Harman’s Connected Car, Connected Services, Aftermarket Car and Huemen Agency. He is a graduate of the College for Creative Studies in Detroit. Raised on a farm in Western Michigan, his humble upbringing, curiosity, and early exposure to the simple conventions of life have influenced his unique perspective.
SERIAL ENTREPRENEUR:
Co-Founded Two Consumer Product Startups
Co-founded and Bootstrapped Two consumer product companies. The first was an iOS Accessories company. The second was an iOS-enabled children’s toy that raised money through private equity and crowdfunding. Through both experiences, I learned how to take an idea from concept to production on my own. Through “baptism by fire” I learned how to play multiple roles from sales to logistics, Marketing, and finance.
DESIGN LEADER:
Award Winning Industrial Design for Multiple Harman B/U’s & Huemen Agency
Over 20 years of design experience spanning across the automotive and consumer electronics, experiences & technology I currently oversee Industrial Design across Harman’s Connected Car, Connected Services, Aftermarket Car and Huemen External Agency as a Global Director of Design within HARMAN’s Huemen Design Agency.
Komal Doshi
Ann Arbor SPARK
Biography
Komal Doshi
Komal Doshi is a mobility expert, urban designer, and design thinker. In her new role at Ann Arbor SPARK she will work with existing and new startups to identify and solve challenges, engage stakeholders, and build new relationships within the mobility industry. In her previous role at SMART (Sustainable Mobility & Accessibility Research & Transformation) at the University of Michigan, she co-developed the Mobi Platform, a global platform for mobility entrepreneurs and industry players. In addition, she focused on the trends and opportunities that accelerate New Mobility and M-a-a-S(Mobility as a service) implementation and related industry and economic development around the globe.
She has provided research and strategic consulting for organizations that include Ford Motor Company, Alcoa Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, Mobile Lives Forum, Barr Foundation, and Michigan Environmental Council. She has also been a jury member at prestigious international mobility innovation awards and mentored several startups at local and international mobility accelerators.
She has a Masters in Urban Design from the University of Michigan in the US and a Bachelors in Architecture from Sushant School of Art and Architecture in India.
Jeffrey S. Hannah
SBD Automotive
Biography
Jeffrey S. Hannah
Chief Commercial Officer, SBD Automotive
Jeffrey Hannah serves as the global Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) and leads the North America office of SBD Automotive (www.sbdautomotive.com) and has more than 19 years of experience working with global automakers and their partners to successfully plan and implement effective Connected, Autonomous, Shared, and Electric vehicle (C.A.S.E.) strategies. SBD Automotive provides automotive technology data, research and consulting services to over 95% of the world’s automotive OEMs globally and a majority of leading suppliers and service providers. Prior to his role with SBD Automotive, he was a leading member of General Motors’ Global Connected Services (GCS) organization which included the industry’s most successful telematics service, OnStar. He is also active in various industry initiatives to drive the connected vehicle industry forward, including co-founding the Michigan Telematics Group (MTG) and currently serves as the co-founder and co-director of the Experiences Per Mile (EPM) Advisory Council. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan and an MBA from the UCLA Anderson School where he specialized in Marketing & Strategy. He is based in Ann Arbor, MI USA.
Mike Flanagan
Ann Arbor SPARK
Biography
Mike Flanagan
Ann Arbor SPARK
Mike Flanagan is Vice President of Capital Programs at Ann Arbor SPARK and Managing Director at the Michigan Angel Fund (MAF). Mike manages SPARK’s portfolio of early-stage technology investments and evaluates new opportunities to invest in and grow the Ann Arbor tech sector. He also helps manage the Michigan Angel Community, a new statewide partnership designed to accelerate angel investment in Michigan. At MAF — now on its third fund — Mike sources, evaluates, and invests in early-stage Michigan technology companies, and helps manage a growing portfolio.
Prior to joining SPARK, Mike held various roles at the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) including director of capital markets and director of equity programs. In those roles, he helped create and oversee the state’s private equity and loan programs, which included the state’s private equity fund of funds, angel tax credit, mezzanine funds, as well as loan participation and collateral support programs. As part of these efforts, Mike also helped lead the creation, fundraising, and administration of an $80 million evergreen fund from the U.S. Treasury to help fund the growth of Michigan businesses.
Prior to joining the MEDC, Mike held several commercial banking roles at JP Morgan, Chase, and Morgan Stanley for 10 years. Mike holds a BA and MPA from the University of Michigan and has certifications from the Venture Capital Institute and Michigan Bankers Association. He is also a frequent speaker, panelist, and judge at economic development and industry events.
Emily Frascaroli
Ford Motor Company
Biography
Emily Frascaroli
Ford Motor Company
Emily Frascaroli is Managing Counsel of the Product Litigation Group for Ford Motor Company, including the Product Litigation, Consumer, Asbestos, and Discovery teams. She also advises globally on automotive safety, regulatory, and product liability issues, including a focus on autonomous vehicles and mobility. She has extensive experience handling complex product litigation cases, regulatory matters with NHTSA and other governmental entities, and product defect investigations. She is also a lecturer at the University of Michigan Law School where she teaches a class about the legal issues involved with autonomous vehicles, and she is co-chair of the Legal and Insurance Working Group of MCity at the University of Michigan. In 2020, she was appointed by Governor Gretchen Whitmer to the Michigan Council on Future Mobility & Electrification. She earned her JD, cum laude, from Wayne State University and was an editor of the Wayne Law Review. She received her BS in aerospace engineering from the University of Southern California and her MEng in aerospace engineering from the University of Michigan. Prior to practicing law, she worked in engineering at both Ford and NASA.
Janet Geissler
Michigan Department of Transportation
Biography
Janet Geissler
Michigan Department of Transportation
Janet Geissler is the mobility innovations specialist in the Michigan Department of Transportation’s Office of Passenger Transportation. In that role, she’s responsible for leading MDOT’s implementation and coordination of projects to demonstrate the feasibility of emerging technology and innovative service models for the statewide public passenger transportation network. She’s been with MDOT since 2003 as a project manager, then a supervisor, working with staff and transit agencies to deliver quality public transportation throughout the state.
Patti Glaza
ID Ventures
Biography
Patricia (Patti) Glaza
ID Ventures – 2014–Present
Executive Vice President & Managing Director
Ms. Glaza joined Invest Detroit in 2014 with over 25 years of experience in the tech sector. She leads ID Ventures, the organization’s venture capital team. Her primary responsibilities include sourcing and facilitating the development of early-stage and high-growth companies by providing guidance and investment capital. She manages an active portfolio of over 100 companies, primarily in healthcare and software.
Prior to IDV Ms. Glaza managed the Michigan office for Arsenal Venture Partners, a national venture capital firm focused on IT, energy, and industrial technologies. She started her career at Accenture, where she managed national teams of consultants for F500 companies. She transitioned to venture and start-ups and then held executive start-up positions in healthcare IT, nanotechnology, and energy and environmental tech. She is an experienced start-up CEO with fundraising, sales, and client services specialties.
Professional & Board Affiliations: Ms. Glaza is an advisor/board member for organizations that include: Michigan Venture Capital Association, University of Michigan’s M-TRAC – Advanced Transportation Oversight Committee, TechTown, MedHealth Cluster Steering Committee, and GreenLight Detroit. She holds director positions for portfolio start-ups Genomenon, MicroLam, HT Mobile, and Ripple Sciences. She is an active entrepreneurial instructor and coach for the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health I-CORPs and commercialization programs.
Education: BA in International Relations/Economics from Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI
Masters of Business Administration from University of Michigan – Ross School of Business, Ann Arbor, MI
Asad Hussain
PitchBook
Biography
Asad Hussain
PitchBook
Asad Hussain is a senior analyst at PitchBook, the premier research and data provider for venture capital, private equity, and M&A. Hussain leads PitchBook’s research coverage of privately-held mobility companies, including autonomous driving, ridesharing, carsharing, micromobility, last-mile delivery, fleet management, and electric vehicles.
Hussain’s research has been featured in various media outlets including Bloomberg, CNBC, CNN Business, The Financial Times, The New York Times, Reuters, and The Wall Street Journal.
Prior to joining PitchBook, Hussain was an equity research associate at Westwood Holdings, where he supported the coverage of 100+ publicly listed US companies within the technology and industrial sectors. He is a Harvard College graduate, where he earned his BA in economics.
Henry Liu
University of Michigan
Biography
Henry Liu
University of Michigan
Professor Henry Liu is a professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. He is also the director for the Center for Connected and Automated Transportation (USDOT Region 5 University Transportation Center) and a research professor at the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute. Professor Liu conducts interdisciplinary research at the interface of transportation engineering, automotive engineering, and artificial intelligence. Specifically, his scholarly interests concern traffic flow monitoring, modeling, and control, as well as testing and evaluation of connected and automated vehicles. He has published more than 120 refereed journal papers on these topics and his work has been widely recognized in the public media for promoting smart transportation innovations. He has appeared on media outlets including CNBC, Forbes, and Technode. In 2019, Professor Liu was invited to testify on the national transportation research agenda in front of the U.S. House Subcommittee on Research and Technology. Professor Liu has nurtured a new generation of scholars, and some of his Ph.D. students and postdocs have joined first-class universities such as Columbia University, Purdue University, and RPI. Professor Liu is also the managing editor of the Journal of Intelligent Transportation Systems.
Voratima Orawannukul
Mitsubishi Electric
Biography
Voratima Orawannukul
Mitsubishi Electric
Voratima is a Principal User Experience Engineer at Advanced Development, Mitsubishi Electric. Since joining the team in 2017, she has led a global development team in creating a compelling automobile occupant experience and determining future technology strategies. Through Design Thinking, she helps the team unlock their creative potential and solve complex problems across domains, including infotainment, IoT, autonomous driving, ADAS, and many more. Known for her expertise in digital design and development, her work has won international awards and she has been featured in the New York Times and AutoBeat. Voratima holds a Master of Science degree in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and is a guest lecturer at the School of Information.
Raj Paul
Microsoft
Biography
Raj Paul
Microsoft
Raj Paul serves as Microsoft’s Regional Automotive Industry Business Leader for the Americas and India regions. He has responsibility for developing Microsoft’s automotive industry solutions portfolio, including joint solutions with key partners and go-to-market initiatives. He supports vehicle manufacturers and mobility service providers including their suppliers with innovative solutions and strategies that accelerate digital transformation.
Raj is a passionate advocate of the connected world. With more than 20 years of experience in the automotive industry, he has been involved in the evolution of vehicle connectivity – creating the in-vehicle innovations and infrastructure to connect owners and OEMs with their vehicles and with each other. Through his efforts in telematics and infotainment at various OEMs, he has helped create new automotive experiences, new ways of connecting with customers, and platforms that fuel intelligence.
Prior to joining Microsoft, Raj was Senior Vice President for Automotive and IoT at Lochbridge/Compuware providing strategic leadership for the advancement of the firm’s connected services portfolio. Raj has a Master’s Degree in Computer Science from the University of Texas at Arlington and a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science Engineering from the University of Madras. He is a graduate of the Harvard Business School general management program.
Trevor Pawl
Michigan Office of Future Mobility and Electrification
Biography
Trevor Pawl
Chief Mobility Officer
Michigan Office of Future Mobility and Electrification
Trevor Pawl is the Chief Mobility Officer for the State of Michigan and leads Michigan’s Office of Future Mobility and Electrification. In this position, Pawl is responsible for working across state government, academia, and private industry to grow Michigan’s mobility ecosystem through strategic policy recommendations and new support services for companies focused on the future of transportation.
Prior to this position, Pawl served as the Senior Vice President of Business Innovation at the MEDC, where he led the official state programs for mobility (PlanetM), supply chain assistance (Pure Michigan Business Connect), export assistance (Michigan International Trade program) and entrepreneurial assistance (Michigan Entrepreneurship and Innovation Program).
Before joining the MEDC, Pawl brought with him experience in supply chain matchmaking, having led the creation of the economic development program, Connection Point, at the Detroit Regional Chamber, which later became Pure Michigan Business Connect.
Trevor has been named Crain’s Detroit Business’s “40 Under 40” and “50 Names to Know in Government.” He’s also been named Development Counsellors International’s “40 Under 40 Rising Stars of Economic Development” and the Great Lakes Women’s Business Council’s “Government Advocate of the Year.”
Pawl holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Marketing from Grand Valley State University and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Detroit Mercy.
Tifani Sadek
University of Michigan Law School
Biography
Tifani Sadek
University of Michigan Law School
Tifani Sadek is a clinical assistant professor at Michigan Law where she teaches entrepreneurship law and leadership. Before entering academia, Professor Sadek’s legal career traversed many sectors and primarily centered on the intersection of law and business. A native Texan, she moved to Detroit in 2012, attracted to the city’s entrepreneurial climate and urban revival. She soon recognized a need for an attorney that applied Detroit’s innovative culture to her practice, and she left her corporate career behind to establish her own firm that catered to startups and entrepreneurs. Her work in helping entrepreneurs earned her recognition by the Detroit Regional Chamber as one of Michigan’s “Emerging Leaders” and by Business Insider as “One of Fourteen People Changing the Face of Detroit.” She later joined General Motors where served as lead counsel on the expansion of connected vehicles into South America, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific. Professor Sadek received her B.S. from Texas A&M University, her master’s in management from Harvard University, and her law degree from the University of Virginia
Laura Schewel
StreetLight Data
Biography
Laura Schewel
StreetLight Data
Laura Schewel is co-founder and CEO of StreetLight Data, a transportation analytics provider. As CEO of StreetLight, she has helped hundreds of transportation agencies, engineering firms, and private transportation companies put big data to work. Prior to founding StreetLight, Laura worked at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and Rocky Mountain Institute on vehicle electrification and other transportation sustainability topics and has a Ph.D. in Transportation Data and Climate Change from UC Berkeley.
Luke Schneider
Refraction AI
Biography
Luke Schneider
Refraction AI
Luke is the CEO of Refraction AI. With more than 25 years of experience at the intersection of transportation and technology, he has launched, led, and scaled various early-stage companies in the space, including Silvercar (acquired by Audi in 2017), Zipcar, and Flexcar. Most recently, he held the role of Chief Operating Officer at Wejo, an early-stage technology company that uses connected vehicle data and analytics to make roads safer, travel more efficient, and cities more sustainable.
Maggie Shannon
Cavnue
Biography
Maggie Shannon
Cavnue
Maggie Shannon is the Director of Cavnue’s Connected and Autonomous Vehicle Corridor Project in Michigan. The first-of-its-kind project requires unique integration of technology and infrastructure design, civil and traffic engineering, policy, community engagement, finance, and operations. Maggie is focused on bringing together the collective brainpower of Cavnue, Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT), and our robust network of public and private partners to deliver on this vision in Southeast Michigan. Previously, Maggie was with Deloitte Consulting working across automotive, public sector, and consumer product clients on the future of mobility solutions. She has a B.A. in Public Policy and Psychology from Duke University and an MBA from the University of Michigan Ross School of Business.
Chris Stallman
Fontinalis Partners
Biography
Chris Stallman
Fontinalis Partners
Chris Stallman has spent his career working with both emerging companies and large incumbents in the venture and mobility ecosystems. He is particularly interested in innovators that are reshaping large industries, and he enjoys lending his experience to support founders operating across such themes as supply chain transformation, automation & workforce efficiency, and the future of commerce & trade.
Chris currently serves on the board of directors of two Fontinalis portfolio companies, FreightWaves and Karamba Security, and is a Board Observer to Highland Electric Transportation. He previously served on the board of directors of TransLoc (acquired by Ford Smart Mobility in 2018) and as a board observer of Synovia Solutions (acquired by CalAmp in 2019). He also worked closely with the firm’s investments in Telogis (acquired by Verizon in 2016) and Postmates (acquired by Uber in 2020).
Chris is active throughout the venture community and serves on the oversight committee for the MTRAC Innovation Hub for Advanced Transportation—a statewide program that funds translational research at the university level. He is also an active member of the Michigan Venture Capital Association, of which he currently serves on the membership committee.
Prior to joining Fontinalis in 2011, Chris spent five years at Stout, a leading independent advisory firm that provides investment banking, valuation, dispute consulting, and management consulting services. While at Stout, he served many industrial and automotive clients and played an important role in advising private equity and venture capital clients on a variety of transaction, tax, and financial reporting matters. He also worked on the private equity and venture capital team at the University of Michigan’s investment office.
Chris earned his Bachelor of Business Administration (with distinction) from the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business and is a CFA charter holder. He lives in Plymouth, Michigan with his wife and son.
Brett Steudle
DTE
Biography
Brett Steudle
Senior Strategist, EV Strategy & Programs, DTE
Brett Steudle is a senior strategist for DTE (NYSE: DTE), a Detroit-based diversified energy company involved in the development and management of energy-related businesses and services.
Currently, Steudle leads the strategy and operations efforts for DTE’s Charging Forward program. Beyond encouraging electric vehicle (EV) education and adoption, the Charging Forward program is designed to help fuel EV charger infrastructure growth in Michigan by offering incentives and rebates to Michigan residents and businesses. In his role, Steudle is responsible for working with residential and business customers as they plan the installation of their electric vehicle chargers.
Prior to joining DTE in April 2019, Steudle was a financial controller at Masco Cabinetry, a cabinet manufacturing company. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan and an MBA from Oakland University, with a concentration in Finance.
Mobility Summit: Agenda
Breakfast and Registration
8:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.
Welcome Remarks
9:00 a.m. – 9:05 a.m.
Paul Krutko, CEO | Ann Arbor SPARK
Vision Statement: Rep. Debbie Dingell
9:05 a.m.–9:10 a.m.
Debbie Dingell, Representative, MI-12|United States House of Representatives
Program Overview
9:10 a.m. – 9:15 a.m.
Komal Doshi, Director of Mobility Programs | Ann Arbor SPARK
Keynote: Restructuring Mobility Investment
9:15 a.m. – 9:55 a.m.
Sahar Shirazi | Nelson\Nygaard
- Cities and industry are rethinking their roles, their ownerships, and their investments into mobility assets and systems. This is the time to reimagine how we make investments today to create a mobility ecosystem that is sustainable, equitable, and spurs economic growth.
Presentation: Value Capture Financing
9:55 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.
Peter Adriaens, Professor | Center for Smart Finance, University of Michigan
- Panelists discuss how value financing can be utilized to advance new business models for efficient capital deployment in IoT-enabled resilient infrastructure systems.
Panel: Reimagining KPIs and Funding for Mobility Infrastructure
10:15 a.m. – 11 a.m.
Ryan Buck, Director | Washtenaw Area Transportation Study
Janet Geissler, Mobility Innovations Specialist | Michigan Dept. Of Transportation
Henry Liu, Professor | University of Michigan
Maggie Shannon, Michigan Director | Cavnue
Brett Steudle, Senior Strategist, EV Strategy & Programs | DTE
- Panelists from the public and private sectors dive deeper into the evolving goals and metrics for our mobility ecosystems and look at how the shaping of these goals could affect the way we fund the current and future mobility infrastructure.
Break
11:00 a.m. – 11:10 a.m
Presentation: Data as Infrastructure: Who Funds and Manages It?
11:10 a.m. – 11:35 a.m.
Laura Schewel, Co-Founder & CEO | StreetLight Data
- Data is a key infrastructure asset that can provide input into our current performance and help us plan for the future. How can cities fund and manage this key infrastructure asset?
Fireside Chat: Michigan’s Mobility Priorities
11:35 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Trevor Pawl, Chief Mobility Officer | State of Michigan
Emily Frascaroli, Managing Counsel, Product Litigation Group | Ford Motor Co.
- Join these two Michigan leaders in a look at where the state of Michigan is headed in infrastructure, electrification, and autonomous technology.
Lunch
Map of Deployments in Ann Arbor
noon – 12:05 p.m.
Alison Beatty, Mobility Specialist | Ann Arbor SPARK
Jon Riley, Doctoral Candidate| University of Michigan School of Information
Lunch Break
12:05 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Presentation: Mobility Investment Landscape
1:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Asad Hussain, Senior Mobility Analyst | PitchBook
- Learn about the latest national funding trends for mobility startups and how Michigan compares. How has the pandemic impacted the mobility landscape and what does recovery look like for some of the lagging industry segments.
Panel: Evolving Automotive Industry Priorities and Investments
1:30 p.m. – 2:10 p.m.
Jeff Hannah, Chief Commercial Officer | SBD Automotive
Raj Paul, Regional Automotive Industry Business Leader for the Americas and India | Microsoft
Voratima Orawannukul, Principal User Experience Engineer at Advanced Development | Mitsubishi Electric
Royce Channey, Global Director of Design within the Huemen team | HARMAN
Eric Bursch, Senior Manager – Digital Engineering Design | Toyota Motor North America, Inc.
- The automotive industry is experiencing a revolution largely impacted by the pandemic. Hear from leading companies on how they are employing new strategies and technologies to help their companies emerge as front runners.
Break
2:10 p.m. – 2:20 p.m.
Fireside Chat: Perfecting Autonomous Delivery
2:20 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.
Luke Schneider, CEO | Refraction AI
Tifani Sadek, Assistant Professor at the Entrepreneurship Clinic | Michigan Law
- Refraction AI CEO Luke Schneider shares more about the company’s journey growing through the pandemic and expanding from Ann Arbor to Texas. The discussion also dives into the evolving autonomous delivery landscape and how cities can provide guidance to ensure safety and improve efficiency.
Panel: Charting Your Funding Strategy for a Mobility Startup
2:45 p.m. – 3:25 p.m.
Paul Brown, Managing Director | eLab Ventures
Mike Flanagan, Managing Director | Michigan Angel Fund
Patti Glaza, Executive Vice President & Managing Director | ID Ventures
Chris Stallman | Fontinalis Partners
- Investors discuss their funding strategy for early stage mobility companies and share advice on how pre-revenue companies could position themselves when looking for seed investment.
Conclusion
3:25 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Cocktail Reception
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