The anticipated yearly event, Connexion, took place on August 8 at the Chicago Connectory. This year, Connexion focused on the mobility industry, bringing together local mobility influencers, innovative companies, startups and more.
Connexion Mobility was a full-day event where attendees took the opportunity to learn, discuss and network with industry experts. The day was full of panel discussions, presentations, a pitch contest, and networking.
Over 20 amazing speakers spoke and dove into different topics within the mobility sector. Topics included the state of urban mobility, the city perspective of today’s mobility, autonomous & electric vehicles, and more.
Keynote speakers from Connexion Mobility included:
· Adam Hecktman, Directory of Technology and Civic Innovation at Microsoft Corporation Chicago
· Alexander Rieger, Director of LLC Automotive Electronics in North America at Bosch
· Audrey Wennink, Director at Metropolitan Planning Council
· Bernd Heinrichs, Chief Digital Officer Mobility Solutions at Bosch
· Beth Bond, Head of City Development in North America at Bosch
· Brenna Berman, CEO at City Tech
· David C. Woessner, Executive Vice President of Corporate Development and Regulatory Affairs at LM Industries
· David Leopold, Director of City Solutions at City Tech
· Dennis Boecker, Global Lead for IT Innovation at Bosch
· Elizabeth Irvin, Director of Transportation at Center for Neighborhood Technology
· Ellen Partridge, Director of Policy and Strategy at Shared-Use Mobility Center
· Eric Rask, Principal Research Engineer at Argonne National Laboratory
· Frank Sgambati, Director of Business Development at Bosch
· Hannah Martin, Planner III at Tri-County Regional Planning Commission
· Jacky Grimshaw, Vice President of Government Affairs at Center for Neighborhood Technology
· Jerry Quandt, Executive Direct at Illinois Autonomous Vehicles Association
· Jochen Renz, Managing Director of the New Mobility Studio at Rocket Wagon Venture Studios
· Katharina Hopp, Vice President of Business Urban Solutions at Bosch
· Klaus Uwe Roehm, Manager of Process Integration in North America at Bosch
· Kyle Whitehead, Director of Public Affairs at the Active Transportation Alliance
· Mark de la Vergne, Chief of Mobility Innovation at the City of Detroit
· Mike Mansuetti, President in North America at Bosch
· Nick Moran, General Partner at New Stack Ventures
· Nico Probst, Director of Midwest Government Relations at Lime
· Oliver Steining, Vice Preseident of Business Development and Corporate Strategy at Bosch
· Ryan D. Gammelgard, Counsel in the Law Department at State Farm
· Serhat Cicekoglu, Found of Sente Foundry and Anka Capital
· Sharon Feigon, Executive Director at Shared-Use Mobility Center
Along with the incredible speaker line up, there was an open exhibition floor for attendees to experience mobility-focused IoT technology first-hand. There were 10 interactive exhibits from large corporations and startups including:
· Illinois Autonomous Vehicles Association
· mLab
· Pivotal
· Sigfox
Finally, the pitch contest closed out the day and consisted of 8 early-stage companies, each being an IoT company with a focus on mobility. This contest focused on teams that have a mobility product or service (proof- of concept or in market) such as connected vehicles, smart cities, active/shared mobility, etc. Each team did an excellent job of explaining their solution, business model, and answering questions from the judges. Congratulations to Wise Mobility, the first place winner of the Connexion Mobility Pitch Contest!
To wrap up the event, speakers and attendees closed out the day with happy hour and networking.
Thank you to all our sponsors, speakers, and attendees for making Connexion Mobility a great success!
• Gowatham Kumar, UIC Student • Jigyasa Sachdeva, UIC Student • Meher Phani Ujwala Ambarkhana, UIC Student • Rachana Manjuath, UIC Student • Dave Turner, Co-Founder at Spacebot • Angelo
The Chicago Connectory is proud to announce our collaboration with Haworth, HumanSpace, and Spacebot! Together, we will conduct a research study using sensors, furniture and survey data. This project will
mHUB Accelerated Incubation is a six-month, hands-on startup accelerator focused on the product development and commercialization of early-stage, high-potential hardtech startups. mHUB will focus on startups building and growing demand-driven
