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Bill Russo
Founder & CEO of Automobility LimitedBill Russo is the Shanghai-based Founder and CEO of Automobility Limited, a strategy and investment advisory firm helping its clients to create the future of mobility. His over 35 years of experience includes 15 years as an automotive executive, including 14 years of experience in China and Asia. He has also worked nearly 12 years in the electronics and information technology industries. He has worked as an advisor and consultant for numerous multinational and local Chinese firms in the formulation and implementation of their global market and product strategies.
In his current role, Bill advises start-ups, corporations and investors on how to maximize their participation in China’s Automobility Revolution. In order to achieve success, he believes they must expand their focus from the product (the automobile) to the utility derived from the product (“automobility”), and create a business model and digital ecosystem optimized to provide digitally enabled solutions for both car owners and mobility services users.
Bill was previously the regional head of Chrysler in North East Asia, where he successfully negotiated agreements with partners and obtained required approvals from the China government to bring six new vehicle programs to the market in a three-year period, while concurrently establishing an infrastructure for local sourcing and sales distribution.
Brian Gu
Vice Chairman and President at Xpeng MotorsDr. Gu is Vice Chairman and President of Xpeng Motors, a leading electric vehicle company in China. He is responsible for XPENG's strategy, finance, fundraising, investments and globalization efforts.
Prior to joining Xpeng, Dr. Gu was a managing director, Chairman of Asia Pacific Investment Banking and a member of J.P. Morgan’s Global Strategic Advisory Council, and was instrumental in building J.P. Morgan’s franchise in the Asia Pacific region. Between 1998-2004, Dr. Gu also served as an M&A banker at Lehman Brothers in New York.
Dr. Gu has advised numerous global leading companies on their strategy and landmark transactions totaling over $200 billion volume. He currently serves as a co-Chairman of JPMorgan's Asia Pacific Council. He is a member of the Greater China Advisory Committee of Yale School of Management, as well as a trustee of Yale China Association.
Dr. Gu holds an MBA from Yale University, a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Washington Medical School, and a bachelor degree in Chemistry from the University of Oregon.
Junyi Zhang
Managing Partner at NIO CapitalMr. Junyi Zhang has over 15 years of working experience in strategic consulting and investments, focusing on automotive and mobility related sectors. He is an established veteran with keen industry insights.
Before joining NIO Capital, Mr. Zhang served as the Global Partner of Roland Berger, in charge of automotive and related practices. He has successfully led the business of Roland Berger in Greater China covering sectors including OEMs, auto parts, innovative products, technical engineering, NEV, etc. He is well experienced in corporate strategic planning, restructuring, R&D, marketing and operations. Involved in more than 50 global automotive related M&A and due diligence projects, Mr. Zhang has provided tremendous value to various strategic and PE investors.
Throughout his career, Mr. Zhang has developed close working relationships with state-owned enterprises, multinational corporations, and listed companies. He serves as a consultant and think tank member for SoE Electric Vehicle Industry Alliance, Investment Promotion Agency of Ministry of Commerce and other similar committees. In addition, Mr. Zhang is also a part-time professor to both Tongji University and Fudan University.
Mr. Zhang holds a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in automotive engineering from Tongji University.
Ben Li
VP Sales at EyesightBen joined Eyesight with over 25 years of sales and business development experience in high-tech companies. Ben managed business activities for IT industry, software companies, telecommunication and system integration solutions in China and the global market. Working for multi-national companies in China, Ben served as sales director /General manager/chief representative across the greater China region.
Ben在加入Eyesight之前，曾供职于多家以色列高科技公司以及知名外企，拥有超过25年的管理、销售和业务开发经验，主要在其担任大中华区的销售总监/总经理/首席代表等职位。 Ben主要负责管理中国以及全球市场的IT行业、软件公司、电信和系统集成解决方案等各项业务活动。
Hanlu Fan
Account Manager at DataMeshHanlu Fan is the Account Manager at Datamesh, a mixed reality + data science solution provider, the first firm of its kind in China. Lu’s vast and extensive education in marketing and event management has contributed to her success as an account manager at Datamesh as she is responsible for the marketing and business development sectors. Datamesh has an impressive client association with companies such as Microsoft, Henkel, Equinor, Walmart, and many more.
Hanlu is also the co-founder of VideoGod, a product that enables easy and efficient creation of videos with a variety of features including motion capturing and facial recognition. She is in charge of all marketing and financing operations associated to the firm.
Ker Gibbs
President at AmCham ShanghaiKer Gibbs first came to China in 1985 and has worked in various roles giving him broad exposure to US-China relations and business issues facing American companies operating in Asia.
In the 1990s Mr. Gibbs worked for the Boston Consulting Group in Shanghai. Since then he has split his time between Asia and Silicon Valley, serving in executive positions with Apple, Disney, and high-growth Internet businesses. He moved to Shanghai in 2002 as head of Asia Pacific for a Nasdaq-listed network security company that was acquired by McAfee. His career in high tech led him to banking; he became head of technology and media in greater China for HSBC. As an investment banker he worked with Alibaba, Baidu, and other firms advising on mergers and cross-border transactions.
From banking Mr. Gibbs moved to direct investments. He was a founding investor in the Crystal Orange hotel group, helping grow the company to 130 properties and 1,500 employees in China. He also led successful investments in real estate, e-commerce, and medical technology companies.
Before his appointment as president, Mr. Gibbs was elected three times to the Board of Governors of the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai and served as chairman for 2016 and 2017. He also sits on the board of the United Way in China and volunteers with Renewal, a local homeless shelter. He is an op-ed contributor to the Wall Street Journal, South China Morning Post, and other publications.
Ker Gibbs holds a BA in economics from UCLA and an MBA from the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley.
Gautam PATHAK
Managing Director of DT (Shanghai) Co., Ltd.Gautam is a seasoned and passionate leader with a career spanning 25 years in the automotive industry. His professional journey has led him from engineering start-ups to multi-billion dollar industry leading enterprises that continue to feed his desire for deeper knowledge, global experience and thoughtful leadership.
Gautam is presently the Managing Director for DT (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., a division of Dealer Tire LLC out of Cleveland, Ohio. In his 11 years at Dealer Tire, he has held key leadership positions touching many areas of the business, from developing and managing large Commercial relationships to managing a Sourcing group responsible for >$1.5 billion in annual purchases and, over the past 4 years, spearheading the China market entry efforts for the company.
Graduating from GMI Engineering & Mgt. Institute (now Kettering University) with a degree in Mechanical Engineering, Gautam started his career as a Systems Engineer for Tecstar Inc., a provider of concept vehicle engineering solutions to various global car manufacturers.
He then transitioned into Business Development and Engineering Management, leading new product development for CORSA Performance, a company specializing in designing and manufacturing high performance, components for automotive and marine use.
Kyle Lobo
Co-founder/VP of Electrical Engineering at Auto Motive PowerKyle Lobo is a co-founder of Auto Motive Power and serves as the VP of Electrical Engineering. He is responsible for AMP’s product solution strategy, sales, business development, manufacturing, and technical design. Armed with a diverse technical background from Emulex, Broadcom, Parker Hannifin, and Faraday Future, he has a rich experience in a variety of industries and applications.
Kyle graduate from UC Irvine with a Bachelors of Science in Electrical Engineering. He started his career at Emulex writing python test scripts to automate fiber channel host bus adapter testing. In 2008, he joined Broadcom, testing DSL and Cable modems. Desiring something more interesting to work on, he spent the next five years designing flight control systems for Parker Hannifin. He is proud that his designs are flying in many aircraft types around the world. It is at Parker that he learned how to design high reliability, safety critical products. Seeking a more fast paced environment, Kyle joined Faraday Future where he was responsible initially for the Battery Management Systems hardware. After a supplier could not deliver on a project, Kyle moved quickly to insource that effort and single handedly designed all of the Body Controls Hardware. After two years at Faraday Future, Kyle learned that the industry needed a disruptor in the Tier 1 Electronics and Software space and so he co-founded Auto Motive Power.
Kyle is an engineer at heart and still engages in schematic design on a regular basis. He is always excited to engage in passionate discussions about technology and the future.
Thomas Wetzer
Head of Equity Investments at Jebsen CapitalThomas heads the equity investment activities of Jebsen Capital in Greater China. Jebsen Capital is the strategic investment division of the Jebsen Group, a large family-owned conglomerate based in Hong Kong. Mobility represents a core investment focus of Jebsen Capital.
Prior to joining Jebsen Capital, he was with McKinsey & Company, where he was a member of the Corporate Finance practice. Originally from Germany, he has been living in Asia for over 6 years.
韦同现主要负责领导捷成资本在大中华区的股权投资业务。捷成资本是捷成集团的投资业务线。该集团是一家位于香港的大型家族集团企业。汽车行业是捷成资本的核心投资重点。
在加入捷成资本之前，他曾任职于麦肯锡公司企业金融部门。他来自德国，在亚洲生活已超过6年。
Chris Li
Co-Founder and CFO of NeolixChris Li is the co-founder and chief financial officer at Neolix, a leading autonomous vehicle company in China. He is responsible for Neolix’s finance and fundraising.
Prior to joining Neolix, Chris was a senior associate of assurance at PWC, served as senior-in-charge for the statutory audit of Xiaomi and NetEase. He then joined China Renaissance as senior associate of investment banking department and joined China Yintai Investment Group as a vice president. Chris led the investment from Yintai during Neolix’s angel round fundraising in April 2018 and then joined Neolix officially in July 2018.
Mr. Li holds a bachelor degree in Electronics Engineering from Tsinghua University.