Automobility LA™ Announces Its 2017 Advisory Board

Executives from Audi, General Motors, Los Angeles Department of Transportation, and Time Inc. Join Board of the Auto-Tech Industry's Only Trade Show

LOS ANGELES, March 21, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The Los Angeles Auto Show (LA Auto Show®) today announced the appointment of four new members to its AutoMobility LA Advisory Board. Partha Goswami, Manager of Technology Insights at General Motors; Anupam "Pom" Malhotra, Director of Connected Vehicles at Audi of America; Seleta Reynolds, General Manager of the Los Angeles Department of Transportation; and Alex Roy, President of Europe By Car and Editor-at-Large for Time Inc.'s The Drive join key executives and thought leaders from top companies in both the automotive and technology industries. Board members of AutoMobility LA, the convergence of LA Auto Show's Connected Car Expo® and its Press & Trade Days, will help shape the show's overall programming, including speakers, panels and competitions.

Alongside four-year veteran conference director, Andy Gryc, the advisory board will set the strategic direction and conference agenda for AutoMobility LA, which will be held November 27-30, 2017 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Additionally, members of the board will be instrumental in guiding thought leadership presentations taking place throughout AutoMobility LA and ensuring the speakers and topics delve into the most pressing issues shaping the future of transportation today.

"As the new automotive industry continues its rapid evolution, we are excited to have some of the most prominent minds in the auto-tech space to help shape the 2017 show," said Lisa Kaz, President and CEO of the LA Auto Show and AutoMobility LA. "With guidance and input from these experts, we look forward to assembling this year's lineup of speakers who will address new technologies transforming the automotive ecosystem and provide insight into its latest innovations."

Members of the 2017 AutoMobility LA Advisory Board include:

Bryan Biniak, Entrepreneur in Residence, Nokia Growth Partners
Bryan Biniak is an EIR at Nokia Growth Partners, where he serves as an investor in growth stage virtual reality, augmented reality, connected vehicle and IoT companies. Biniak previously served as General Manager of DX at Microsoft Corporation. He also served as Global Vice President at Nokia Corporation leading its worldwide application and developer ecosystem and store for its feature phones and smart devices. 

John Ellis, Lead, Ellis & Associates
John Ellis leads Ellis & Associates, a global management consultancy focused on embedded software and software strategy for the IoT with a concentration in transportation and autonomous movement. Formerly, Ellis was the Global Technologist of Ford Motor Company's connected car business unit. While there, he was involved in the specification, design and initial development of Sync Gen 3, next generation Sync services (Ford's connected car+cloud service) as well as SmartDeviceLink, an API system for integrating mobile devices into the car and the genesis for Apple's Carplay and Google's Android Auto.

Justin Fishkin, Chief Strategy Officer, Local Motors
Justin Fishkin is Chief Strategy Officer of Local Motors. He marries a lifelong dedication to sustainability and making a difference in the world with a background in finance and investing. Prior to joining Local Motors, he was the Senior Portfolio Manager of Carbon War Room, where he focused on incubating and scaling profitable solutions to climate change. He began his career in investment banking at Goldman Sachs and later became an investor.

Partha Goswami, Manager of Technology Insights, General Motors
Partha Goswami has over 24 years of experience in the automotive industry, with a background spanning product development, technology planning and a variety of business assignments including strategic planning and brand strategy. He has worked on various facets of technology strategy for the last eight years. Currently, as Manager of Technology Insights within GM's market research group, he is responsible for identifying technology trends, exploring future implications and cascading insights to stakeholders within the company.

Derek Kan, General Manager, Lyft
Derek Kan is the General Manager of Lyft and was recently nominated for the Board of Directors of AMTRAK. Previously, he was Director of Strategy at Genapsys, a DNA sequencing startup.  From 2012 to 2014, he worked at Bain & Company. Kan also served as an Advisor at Elliott Management. Previously, he was a Policy Advisor to Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, the Chief Economist for the Senate Republican Policy Committee and served as a Presidential Management Fellow at the White House Office of Management and Budget.

Roger Lanctot, Associate Director, Global Automotive Practice, Strategy Analytics
As Associate Director in the Global Automotive Practice at Strategy Analytics, Roger Lanctot has a powerful voice in the definition of future trends in automotive safety, powertrain and infotainment systems. He draws on 25 years of experience in the technology industry as an analyst, journalist and consultant. Lanctot has conducted and participated in major industry studies, created new research products and services, and advised clients on strategy and competitive issues throughout his career.

Anupam "Pom" Malhotra, Director, Connected Vehicles at Audi of America
Anupam "Pom" Malhotra is the Director for Connected Vehicles at Audi of America and is responsible for the business and operational growth of the Audi connect service and development of the company's digitalization portfolio for connected cars. Pom joined Audi in 2010 from General Motors where he was head of location based services for the company's OnStar brand. In his more than 20 years in the automotive industry, Pom has focused his efforts at the intersection of business and technology and is currently helping realize Audi's vision of the future of mobility.

Manuela Papadopol, Director, Business Development and Communications, Elektrobit
Manuela Papadopol is responsible for business development and global communications for Elektrobit. In her role, she identifies, articulates and oversees strategic partnerships for Elektrobit in the automotive and technology industries. She is an active member of Women in Automotive Technology, an organization created to connect, educate and drive the future of the automotive industry. Papadopol also holds a patent in voice-activated acquisition of non-local content. She was named a 2016 Woman Worth Watching by Diversity Journal and featured in Connected World Magazine's "Women of IoT Marketing" 2016.

Seleta Reynolds, General Manager, Los Angeles Department of Transportation
Seleta Reynolds is General Manager of the Los Angeles Department of Transportation appointed by the Administration of Mayor Eric Garcetti. Reynolds is responsible for implementing Great Streets for Los Angeles, a plan to reduce traffic fatalities, double the number of people riding bikes, and expand access to integrated transportation choices for Angelenos and the region. Reynolds has over 18 years of transportation experience throughout the United States.

Alex Roy, President of Europe By Car, Editor-at-Large for Time Inc.'s The Drive
Alex Roy is currently President of Europe By Car, Editor-at-Large for Autonomy/Mobility at Time Inc.'s The Drive, guest host of /DRIVE on NBC Sports, contributor to Jalopnik and Road & Track, and host of the Autonocast car tech podcast. Roy is also author of "The Driver" and Executive Producer and star of "32 Hours, 7 Minutes."

Danny Shapiro, Senior Director of Automotive, NVIDIA
Danny Shapiro is Senior Director of NVIDIA's Automotive Business Unit, focusing on artificial intelligence solutions for self-driving cars and in-vehicle co-pilots. Shapiro holds a BSE in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from Princeton University and an MBA from the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley. He also serves on the Advisory Boards for the Connected Car Council and the NVIDIA Foundation, which focuses on computational solutions for cancer research.

Conference Director:

Andy Gryc, Co-Founder, CX3 Marketing
Andy  Gryc  is  the  co-founder  of  CX3  Marketing,  a  company  that  provides  technology-savvy  marketing through  strategic,  tactical  and  content-creation  services  to  a  wide  range  of  clients  in  the  automotive space. His  reputation  in  the  industry  is  rooted  in  hands-on  experience  in  the  automotive  and embedded trenches – software architecture and engineering, technical sales and product marketing – for well  over two  decades  at  companies  like  QNX,  OnStar  and  HP.  With a solid reputation for  making complex  technology  easy  to understand  and  for bridging  technical  and  non-technical  stakeholders,  Gryc was the winner of the "Top Car Tech Celeb, Analyst, or Advocate" by Auto Connected Car News, 2015.

About the Los Angeles Auto Show and AutoMobility LA

Founded in 1907, the Los Angeles Auto Show (LA Auto Show®) is the first major North American auto show of the season each year.  In 2016, the show's Press & Trade Days merged with the Connected Car Expo (CCE) to become AutoMobility LA^TM, the industry's first trade show converging the technology and automotive industries to launch new products and technologies and to discuss the most pressing issues surrounding the future of transportation and mobility.  AutoMobility LA 2017 will take place at the Los Angeles Convention Center Nov. 27-30, with manufacturer vehicle debuts intermixed.  LA Auto Show 2017 will be open to the public Dec. 1-10. AutoMobility LA is where the new auto industry gets business done, unveils groundbreaking new products and makes strategic announcements in front of media and industry professionals from around the globe.  LA Auto Show is endorsed by the Greater L.A. New Car Dealer Association and is operated by ANSA Productions. To receive the latest show news and information, follow LA Auto Show on Twitter at twitter.com/LAAutoShow or via Facebook at facebook.com/LAAutoShow and sign up for alerts at http://www.laautoshow.com/. For more information about AutoMobility LA, please visit http://www.automobilityla.com/.

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