Advanced Air Mobility at MWC Barcelona 2022

Axel Schmidt is a senior managing director and industry sector lead, responsible for all worldwide activities within Accenture’s Automotive division.

His focus is on helping industry leaders understand, prepare for, and shape the future of mobility. He has almost 30 years of business and strategy consulting experience and leads a global, multi-disciplinary team that shapes the design and delivery of transformative, strategy-led solutions.

Axel is committed to sustainable, electric mobility and the future of the connected car. He believes that with the evolution in this sector and the related transformational opportunities, it will become a multi-trillion-dollar business.

He is a regular speaker at industry events, including the Internationale Automobil-Ausstellung (IAA) and the China Car Summit and a contributor to leading publications, including The New York Times and Automotive World.

Axel holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Stuttgart in Germany, where he is based.

Dr Vassilis AGOURIDAS is Chairman of the UAM Committee of ASD Europe. Vassilis is Head of the EU Public Co-Creation & Ecosystem Outreach activities at AIRBUS (Urban Mobility) and Leader of the UIC2 (Urban Air Mobility Initiative Cities Community) within the EU’s Smart Cities Marketplace. Vassilis is also a member of the EASA’s Task Force on UAM Societal Acceptance and Team Leader for the guidance material of Article 18(f) of the U-space Implementation Regulation (EU) 2021/664.

Nakul Duggal serves as Sr. Vice President and General Manager, Automotive for Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. where he is responsible for Qualcomm’s automotive strategy, automotive semiconductor and software portfolio, ecosystem development, program management and customer relationships. His responsibilities include focused development expansion into the digital cockpit, smart transportation and the connected car as well as autonomous driving, oversight over product roadmap and its execution, customer focused business development, and applications engineering. Nakul has worked in Qualcomm Automotive since 2011 and has been instrumental in building the company’s automotive portfolio and global footprint.

He joined Qualcomm in 1995 as an engineer focused on the company’s commercial base station and infrastructure business. Over the course of his career, he has held engineering and management positions in the development and commercialization of CDMA, UMTS and LTE technologies. He led the Open Market Handset (OMH) initiative, an industry-wide effort to expand CDMA device distribution into the open market.

Duggal holds a BSEE degree from M.S. University, India and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of California, Los Angeles Anderson School of Management.

Shane Rooney is a Senior Technical Director at the GSMA, leading activities in IoT and bringing together strategies and synergies across industry verticals and wider IoT ecosystems. Shane had previously led the GSMA’s initiative in developing mobile solutions in Smart Cities and collaborating with cities like Barcelona, Dubai and Shanghai. His team has developed a wider range of Smart City Indicators, Case Studies and Business Cases demonstrating the importance of mobile technology. His team also have developed enablers in IoT Security and embedded SIM. He has led the launch of the Cellular LPWA Networks Technology (LTE-M and NB-IoT) initiative globally and is now promoting Cellular V2X technology. Previously he has been a Group Vice President with Etisalat, developing solutions for Energy, Security and Transport IoT solutions for Middle East, Africa and Asia. Before that he has worked with other Mobile Operators, Vodafone, Hutchison and 3 UK as well as launching and divesting of his own M2M company. Shane pioneered early telematics and connected car solutions for Ford Motor Company in the USA and Europe. He has extensive Global experience. He holds a PhD in Communications Systems specialising in Location Based Services and studied Business Marketing at IMD Switzerland.

Ralph Schepp is co-founder and COO of Droniq GmbH, a joint venture of DFS the German Air Navigation Service Provider and Deutsche Telekom.
The 45-year-old is driven to create the future by bridging upcoming next generation technology to the market. Prior to Droniq, Ralph led the units Spectrum and Technology Strategy for the Deutsche Telekom Group as Vice President for technology innovations. 2016 Ralph initiated the project “Connected Drones“ which was the origin of today‘s Droniq.

As COO of Droniq Ralph continues to pursue his passion for identifying, developing and bringing disruptive ideas to market. At Droniq he leads technology, IT and product development. In this role Ralph benefits from over 15 years of professional experience in information and communication technology (ICT).
Ralph holds a Master in business administration of Lüneburg university. He has three kids.

Currently Mona works within the UTM team at Airbus Urban Mobility. She pursues projects dedicated to the research and development of U-space and upcoming needs and regulations for this new sector.

Previous adventures from the past 15 years include working on the original City Airbus (avionics, ground control station). Other past activities covered industrial development and certification, within the scope of integrating avionics and navigation sensors on helicopters, and V&V activities for avionics on satellites.
Mona has a background in engineering. She has earned a double Masters degree in Electronics and computer science, and Radio Astronomy and Space science.

Mark joined IBM in 2021 looking at global IoT, 5G, Edge, and AI technologies and business strategy. He has over 30 years of experience in executive roles at a broad range of telephony, infrastructure, and networking companies. Prior engagements include: global IoT strategy for a global leader in insights and data analytics and Amazon Web Services (IoT), Cloud Technology Partners, TELUS, Freewave, and others. Previously he served at Vodafone as VP of IoT Americas. Mark is the Vice Chair of the board of the MIT Enterprise Forum (MITEF) Cambridge, and chairs the annual Connected Things Conference held at the MIT Media Lab. He also chairs the board at VR pioneer ROTU Media & Entertainment.

He is a frequent speaker on the topic of IoT/Connected Things at conferences and events. Mark has been a guest lecturer at MIT, Tufts University, Boston University, and other universities. At Tufts, Mark currently oversees four Master’s Candidates researching their thesis (capstone) projects on IoT topics and is leading his 16th Summer Practicum for a team of graduate students researching IoT issues.

He co-hosts the highly-rated “Failure the Podcast” series as well as many podcasts for MITEF Cambridge’s annual Connected Things conference. Previously, he co-hosted 29 podcasts called the “Tech Entrepreneur.

Nora Metzner is Senior Product Manager at Droniq GmbH, a joint venture of DFS Deutsche Flugsicherung GmbH and Deutsche Telekom AG. Her goal is to enable a safe and secure UAS operations within the regulatory framework.  In the last years at Droniq, she has been shaping the future U-space ecosystem within working groups in Germany and Europe. Prior to Droniq, Nora was working at RWTH Aachen University with a focus on exploring future air mobility concepts in the context of airport infrastructures.

Nora has a background in mechanical engineering and holds a Doctor of Engineering from RWTH Aachen University, where she was researching the resilience of airport infrastructures.

Marc Beltran is a the CEO & co-Founder of the EU Drone Port™. He holds a BSc & MSc in Aerospace Engineering. He has co-founded several drone businesses, worked at the Canadian Center for Aerospace Research in Vancouver, and at the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in a project in cooperation with NASA.

Elena Neira is Head of 5G Standards at MITRE Labs. She is responsible for technologies and strategies towards 3GPP, GSMA and other SDOs aim at demands of government sponsors and industry partners.

Elena is a recognized technology expert in the mobile communications industry and its standards, specification, and compliance groups – 3GPP, ITU, O-RAN, IETF, FCC, ARIB and GCF. Her career spans over 15 years and includes leadership, management and executive responsibilities in R&D, P&L, product design, standards development and supply-chain operations in Fortune 500 companies (Verizon, Texas Instruments, Ericsson) and in disruptive startups in the mobile communications space (Vanu Inc). Her in-depth expertise in telecom platforms, combined with her background in large-scale high-availability carrier-grade radio, core, and services, provide her a unique acumen to transform, lead and influence technology standards at-scale.

Elena holds a Dual Master’s Degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, an Engineer’s Degree from Universidad Politécnica de Madrid. She is an IEEE Senior Member and served in its Board of Governors as Director, and in IEEE Communications Technology News Board and Best Readings as Editor-in-Chief.

Francesca Stockton is an influential, results-oriented technology leader in the aerial cellular technology, drone, and robotics industries. She currently works as the Aviation Connectivity Product Manager for Skyward, a Verizon company. Through her keen business acumen and  unique background, she is leading efforts on the development of cellular network services for use in the aviation industry, with a special focus on the integration of drones into the National Airspace System (NAS). As an industry expert, she supports several teams including R&D, product development, policy and regulatory, and flight testing to assess how network features, services, and configurations work in the sky.

Prior to joining Skyward, Francesca was a hardware and applications engineer in contract product design and consulting. Currently, she is focused on 5G and advanced network services, and how this transformational technology can be applied to aviation. Francesca holds a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Washington State University. She is from the Pacific Northwest and is currently based out of Atlanta, GA.

Thomas Neubauer is VP of Business Development and Innovations at TEOCO.

He has about 20 years of experience in the management of wireless networks. Among other innovations, Thomas is a co-creator and inventor of AirborneRF, a software solution specialized for connecting cellular network operators with aviation (ATM/UTM/FIMS) systems.

On behalf of GSMA and GUTMA (Global UTM Association), Thomas is leading the “Interface for data exchange between Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) and UTM ecosystem” Work Group, focusing on global standardization of interfaces between cellular and unmanned aviation systems including 4G, 5G technologies.

He holds a Ph.D. in telecommunications engineering from the Vienna University of Technology.

ENG:

Lorena Senador-Gómez Lázaro is a Telecommunications Engineer by UPM (Universidad Politécnica de Madrid), MBA at IE and PMP. She has developed her professional career in Telefónica for 15 years, leading several positions of responsibility in the field of integrated technological security. Today, she is also the Global Sales Director at Telefónica Ingeniería de Seguridad for Spain and Latin America.

ESP:

Lorena Senador-Gómez Lázaro es Ingeniero de Telecomunicación por la Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, MBA por el Instituto de Empresa y PMP. Ha desarrollado su carrera profesional en Telefónica durante 15 años desarrollando varios puestos de responsabilidad en el ámbito de la seguridad tecnológica integral. A día de hoy es, además de directora Comercial y Desarrollo de Negocio en Telefónica Ingeniería de Seguridad para España y Latinoamérica.

Miguel Álvaro Fernández is a Telecommunication Engineer who works in Telefonica Ingeniería de Seguridad as Drone Sales Specialist. Drone pilot, robotic enthusiast and entrepreneur, Miguel has more than 10 years of experience in security and border surveillance, drone and Counter-UAS international projects.

Jorge is a seasoned executive with a strong international experience in Europe, US, and the Middle East with a special focus on strategic marketing in technology & innovation, enterprise business development, and branding. He has achieved successful multiple international engagements with Fortune Global 500 companies and leading public institutions and governments. Before joining Unmanned Life, Jorge was a Key Account Manager at one of the world leading advertising agencies, Saatchi & Saatchi, from Publicis Media Group, where he was responsible for key accounts across different B2C and B2B fields. He has a strong vision for marketing in the technology era which he has translated into a strong advocacy in pan-European non-profit activities dedicated to promoting diversity, entrepreneurship, and innovation in the tech ecosystem.

Svetlana Grant heads Vodafone’s Partnerships and Ecosystem team in Vodafone New Platform Business Development organisation, where her team manages strategic partnerships and develops innovative technologies and platforms. Svetlana joined Vodafone in January 2020 to lead the Strategic IoT Technology Partnerships team. Her passion is innovation and new technologies for connected machines, including blockchain, drones, 5G, edge computing, machine learning and AI. Prior to joining Vodafone in January 2020, Svetlana was the Director for the GSMA IoT / Connected Living programme, where she managed Mobile IoT / Low Power Wide Area initiative, Smart City and Smart Energy market development projects.

Since 2014, she has been the technical lead for several areas of focus within the GSMA such as 5G, IoT, automotive, aviation and more. Looking at how to best utilise new technologies and services from the constantly evolving mobile networks, like 5G-Advanced.

Barbara is also leading several activities and communities with the GSMA members, like the activities related to smart mobility, including automotive and advanced air mobility. The latter by leading the GSMA Drone Interest Group and the Aerial Connectivity Joint Activity, to investigate and help the mobile industry to create a trusted solution for commercial unmanned aircraft. Exploring features and capabilities of 4G and 5G needed for the aviation.

Barbara has over 20 years of experience in the mobile industry. Before joining the GSMA, Barbara worked in R&D in several areas of telecommunications. She also participates and actively contributed to, several standards.