Overcoming Usage Hurdles to Increase Tech Adoption in Automotive

Point B welcomes, Najib El Ajjani, ISO 26262 functional safety expert and Head of Safety and Cybersecurity at Cubonic GmbH, to discuss road safety and the role autonomous vehicles will play in improving it. Take a drive with us as Najib outlines challenges automakers have faced, particularly in the EV and AV sectors, why EVs are better designed to support autonomous vehicle operations, and how to cover all levels of safety through testing and certification, OEM responsibility, and thinking ahead of industry standards. Don’t miss out on all this and more in this exciting episode of Point B!

Najib is the head of Safety and Cybersecurity at Cubonic GmbH, a startup based in Cologne, Germany with a mission to create the first integrated eLCV (electric Light Commercial Vehicle) enabling autonomous driving and connected ecosystems.

For the last 12 years, Najib has shaped his career working for automotive international OEMs and Tier1 suppliers. He started his mission within functional safety prior to the publication of the first safety standard release ISO 26262 in 2011. Eventually, he participated in the automotive industry’s preparation for the adoption of the new upcoming safety standard.

Throughout his career, he worked on challenging projects and advanced technologies creating safety concepts for cutting edge HW technologies and advanced SW platforms.

Najib has been actively contributing to the mobility transformation from its first applications of emission reduction solutions, e.g., stop and start, engine management systems, and post-treatment active regeneration for diesel and gasoline engines. Ultimately, accompanying the vehicle electrification from hybridization to full electrification.

During his career, Najib has always been passionate about actively contributing to shaping safe, secure, sustainable, and accessible mobility. During this path, he actively implemented multiple organizational changes to reach state-of-the-art safety compliance and organization awareness. This all, while working closely with board members and engineering teams. 

He also took part in the ISO technical committee working group for Automotive Cybersecurity which is responsible for the ISO/SAE 21434 Cybersecurity Engineering standard definition.

Najib holds a B.A. in Electrical Engineering and an M.A. in Quality and Dependability Engineering from Polytech Engineering School in France.

In this groundbreaking episode of Point B, Shawn Turner, Senior Research Engineer at Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI), sheds light on the innovative use of connected vehicle data, machine learning, and AI in the realm of road safety. Delving into the intricacies of data collection and analysis, Shawn outlines the challenges in handling massive datasets, various use cases of connected vehicle data, and how data is leveraged to enhance road safety. He also talks about the role of V2X and V2I technologies and the importance of ensuring data privacy and protection in this rapidly evolving field. All this and more in this episode of Point B!

Shawn Turner is a Senior Research Engineer at Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI), where he has conducted and managed applied research for 32 years. Shawn is a nationally recognized expert with practical experience in multimodal travel data collection and analysis, performance measures and monitoring, and mobility analysis. In short, he is a data nerd. Shawn works with the public and private sectors to advance the use of the best available and high-quality data in transportation.

In this episode, Alexander Rosen, Co-founder of DeepDrive, sits down with us to explore innovations in the Tier 1 automotive sector. From extending EV battery range to revolutionizing powertrain technology and intelligent modules that amalgamate numerous functions into a singular unit, we discuss how these innovations are not only disrupting the Tier 1 sector but enabling automakers by significantly reducing total cost of ownership, enhancing safety, and setting new standards in serviceability. 

As a co-founder of DeepDrive with vast research experience in wheel hub motors, fault-tolerant electric machines, and manufacturing technologies, Alexander played a pivotal role at Fraunhofer Institute before contributing to Bosch as a Senior Expert in Electrical Machines.

Special guest Kim Mathers, VP of Product Marketing & Strategy at REE Automotive, joins Point B for an in-depth discussion on unlocking new possibilities for the EV commercial market. What innovative technologies are fundamentally changing the function of fleet vehicles? How can OEMs and fleet managers get increased flexibility in vehicle design and enhanced performance? Most importantly, how is REE’s future-proof tech decreasing the Total Cost of Ownership and increasing the Total Benefit of Ownership? All this and more in this episode of Point B!

Kim Mathers is the highly accomplished VP of Product Marketing and Strategy at REE Automotive with over 20 years of global experience in developing and innovating products, road mapping, and lifecycle management. With a proven track record of driving product transformation through strategic business planning and leveraging market and consumer insights, Kim has consistently enabled profitable growth. Throughout her various executive roles in organizations such as Mopar, Maserati North America, and Chrysler Group LLC, she has established herself as a change agent known for her collaborative approach. Kim holds an MBA from the University of Windsor and a BASc in Materials Engineering from Queen’s University.

In this episode of Point B, we are joined by special guest Ali Vezvaei, Chairman of Next.e.GO Mobile, to discuss the changes taking place in urban mobility. How can lean manufacturing be improved and leveraged to create more sustainable products? What is Next.e.GO Mobile doing to create a unique experience? And what disruptive approaches and technologies are being leveraged to tackle the challenges associated with urban mobility?

Ali Vezvaei has more than 20 years of experience in executive, board, and operational management functions, including in the areas of technology and energy tech as well as global investments and M&A. He is currently the CEO of ND Group B.V., an international private equity and portfolio holding company based in the Netherlands with a presence or footprint around the globe, as well as the chairman of the administrative board of German independent electric car producer Next.e.GO Mobile SE, chairman of the supervisory board of a Swiss-based lithium asset, Arcore Ltd. and President and member of the management board of Euromax Resources, a listed company on TSX. Previously, Mr. Vezvaei had held the position of Executive President & CEO of Bilfinger SE in the Middle East, where he was in charge of group companies and their operations across the region. Prior to that, he assumed the responsibility as the President of Linde’s Engineering division across the MENA region while serving as a member of the board of its affiliated companies in the region. Prior to joining the Linde Group, Mr. Vezvaei worked for more than a decade at Siemens, where he served as the Global Senior Vice President of Siemens Oil & Gas after he had served as the Division Cluster CEO of the firm’s Oil and gas division in the Middle East. He served previously as Siemens Oil & Gas Division’s Global Vice President for Strategy and Mergers and acquisitions and has assumed several other senior management positions during his tenure with Siemens. Mr. Vezvaei accomplished his Executive Education at both Harvard Business School as well as the University of Oxford - Saïd Business School. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering.

Point B welcomes special guest John Correia, Managing Director at Connected Strategy Advisors, on a deep dive into automotive connectivity. How have OEMs leveraged connectivity and data in the past? How can they utilize connectivity to change and improve the customer experience? And what’s next in the realm of predictive analytics and the software-defined vehicle? All is revealed in this episode of Point B. 

John Correia has over 30 years of experience leading technical development across a number of cutting-edge automotive technologies – most notably infotainment, telematics, and other forms of connectivity. John is currently working with Connected Strategy Advisors as Managing Technical Director. He is focused on helping a variety of companies more fully exploit the rich data and analytics that connected devices and machines of all varieties can provide. 

Previously, John held a number of leadership positions within the connectivity and infotainment areas GM/OnStar and Ford exposing him to a diverse variety of connected technologies, business models, and lessons learned.

At Ford, John was an advisor for several years and then joined Ford as Chief Engineer of the Advanced Product Engineering team within Ford’s Enterprise Connectivity group, transitioning to Director of Product Management for many of their Digital Connected Platforms. During this time, John was involved in V2X, ADAS, OTA, Autonomous, and SW Defined Vehicle initiatives.

During John’s 15 years at GM/OnStar, he was Director of their advanced development, innovation lab, OTA activities, and all of their mobile and embedded infotainment applications. Before that, he led the technical development for several generations of OnStar systems and managed the team of experts focused on strategic technologies such as Wireless/RF, Positioning, Voice Recognition, Security, Consumer Device Connectivity (BT, WiFi, NFC), Satellite Radio, and Vehicle Interface. During this time, he was instrumental in leading GM’s early efforts to exploit vehicle data to provide more engaging customer relationships, improve product quality, and enhance overall customer satisfaction. His achievements include over 17 patents, 2 Boss Kettering Innovation awards, and several chairman and CEO-level recognition awards. 

Prior to GM, John worked for Ford and Visteon, designing and packaging audio and cellular systems. In addition to managing some of the Ford/Lincoln RESCU activities, he helped establish many of the early cellular and satellite systems. John is an Electrical and Computer Engineering graduate from the University of Michigan and has an MBA from the University of Michigan Ross School of Business.

Special guest Matt Harden, AVP Business Development at AT&T, takes us on a drive down 5G lane. How is 5G enabling new vehicle functionalities and supporting mission-critical connected vehicle functions? What challenges are networks facing to support the shift to the software defined vehicle? And what does the future have in store for 5G and automotive?

Matt Harden, AVP Business Development, is responsible for AT&T Connected Solution’s Connected Car team. His team is responsible for managing each of AT&T’s OEM relationships from RFx, to contracting, to deploying, and supporting after launch. Matt joined AT&T as part of the Leadership Development Program in 2008. Since then, Matt has held positions in Network Operations, New Product Deployment, Business Solutions, and IoT Product Development. Matt serves on the board of two different 501c3 organizations, Hackin’ for Harden and the Navy Football Brotherhood, and also supports the US Naval Academy’s admission office as a Blue and Gold Officer representative in Georgia. Matt holds an MBA from the University of Georgia and a Bachelor of Science degree from The United States Naval Academy. Following graduation from the Naval Academy, he served 9 years on active duty and continues to serve in the reserves with multiple deployments in support of Operations Iraqi Freedom, Enduring Freedom – Afghanistan, and Enduring Freedom – Philippines. Matt and Andreea have been married for 18 years and have 4 daughters.

Brian Carlson, Director of Global Product and Solutions Marketing at NXP, is back on Point B to continue his discussion on the evolution of SDVs, this time with a focus on software. How are new E/E architectures (discussed in last month’s episode) changing the way automakers do software? How are OEMs navigating this new world of OTA updates and full-vehicle data logging? What challenges must be overcome to ensure success?

Brian Carlson is responsible for global marketing of automotive processors and solutions at NXP Semiconductors. He focuses on enabling new innovations that can create new automotive industry business opportunities. He has over 30 years’ experience driving leading-edge, computing and communications products, with roles in product development, technology marketing, product management, and business development. He served as vice-chairman on the MIPI Alliance board of directors where he led the mobile charge into adjacent markets including automotive and IoT. Brian holds a Master’s of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Southern Methodist University.

Point B welcomes the Director of Global Product and Solutions Marketing at NXP, Brian Carlson, to discuss how new vehicle architectures are changing the world. What changes is the automotive industry seeing? Is there one vehicle architecture to rule them all (domain vs. zonal)? What are the implications of these shifts, and what are silicon providers doing to support and address them? 

Brian Carlson is responsible for global marketing of automotive processors and solutions at NXP Semiconductors. He focuses on enabling new innovations that can create new automotive industry business opportunities. He has over 30 years’ experience driving leading-edge, computing and communications products, with roles in product development, technology marketing, product management, and business development. He served as vice-chairman on the MIPI Alliance board of directors where he led the mobile charge into adjacent markets including automotive and IoT. Brian holds a Master’s of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Southern Methodist University.

Point B welcomes Scotty Reiss, Founder of A Girls Guide to Cars, to talk about tech adoption challenges faced by automakers when introducing new features into their vehicles. What will it take to increase consumer comfort and confidence when using new automotive technologies? How can OEMs increase their ROI on advanced automotive tech? What are some of the things the industry can do to accelerate new feature adoption?

Scotty Reiss is the founder of A Girls Guide to Cars, the leading automotive site for women. Missioned with sharing cars on women's terms, Scotty also regularly contributes car content to Forbes, Parents, Pure Wow, and others. She has written for The New York Times, Town & Country, The New York Daily News, and Adweek. Scotty also serves on the board of Women in Automotive and as a juror and steering committee member of the World Car Awards. A graduate of the Grady College of Journalism at the University of Georgia, she lives in Austin, Texas with her husband and daughters.