Plenary Speakers 2026
The plenary speakers of this year's Aachen Automotive Colloquium will be published here bit by bit. Follow us also on LinkedIn so you don't miss anything.
Tim Gutheit
Vice President Technology & Innovation Automotive of Infineon Technologies
Manfred Harrer
President & Head of R&D Division of Hyundai Motor Group
Carsten Helbing
Co-CEO and COO of RV Tech
Carsten Helbing is Co-CEO and COO of RV Tech, the joint venture between Rivian and Volkswagen Group building the software-defined vehicle platform for the next generation of vehicles. At RV Tech, Carsten leads the organizational and operational execution behind one of the most closely watched technology partnerships in the automotive industry — bringing together the rigor of deep systems expertise and the pace of a startup to solve a genuinely hard problem.
RV Tech is developing a scalable zonal architecture and software operating system designed for Volkswagen Group brands and Rivian, with the ambition to set a new reference standard for the industry at large. The work sits at the intersection of complex systems engineering, cross-cultural collaboration, and a conviction that the next generation of vehicles will be defined by software. Carsten brings more than two decades of R&D experience at Volkswagen Group, where he previously served as Chief Technology Engineer and as a member of the Executive Board of Volkswagen Group's AI-LAB. His career spans the full arc of automotive transformation — from mechanical engineering fundamentals to the software-defined era — giving him a grounded perspective on both what the industry has built and where it needs to go.
A graduate of Technische Universität Darmstadt, Carsten joined Volkswagen as a graduate engineer and spent over two decades shaping the company's most critical technical decisions before stepping into his current role. Today, he is focused on building the infrastructure that will define how the next generation of vehicles is developed, scaled, and experienced.
Peter Holdmann
Chief Technology Officer of ZF Friedrichshafen AG
Dr. Peter Holdmann is a mechanical and automotive engineer and earned his doctorate at RWTH Aachen University. After research and teaching roles at RWTH Aachen’s Institute of Automotive Engineering (ika), he joined ZF Friedrichshafen AG in 2000, entering industry as a program manager and very quickly assuming leadership responsibility. Over the following years, he held international management positions in car chassis technology and led the global chassis modules business from 2008 to 2015.
Following the acquisition of TRW Automotive, Holdmann moved to the United States in 2015, where he served as Chief Operating Officer (COO) for ZF TRW’s chassis business until 2018. Since 2019, he has been leading ZF’s global chassis division.
The Division Car Chassis Technology under his leadership was expanded to include steering and braking activities and was transferred into the newly established Division Chassis Solutions at the beginning of 2024.
Dr Peter Holdmann has been a member of the Board of Management of ZF Friedrichshafen AG since May 2024, responsible for the Division Chassis Solutions, the North and South America regions, and Research and Development. In addition, he assumed the role of Chief Technology Officer (CTO) in March 2026. In this function, he consolidates group-wide technology and engineering governance at Board level.
Frank Kaleck
Director Industry Advisory Automotive Microsoft
Frank Kaleck is a Director and Industry Advisor Automotive at Microsoft with 15 years at the company, supporting automotive OEMs, suppliers, and tech-companies across EMEA and worldwide. Over those years he has guided large enterprises through the cloud transition - modernizing core IT and standing up the large-scale enterprise platforms that now underpin their digital business. He works at the intersection of automotive engineering, enterprise IT, and applied AI, with a relentless focus on turning technology into measurable business value.
His current work centers on agentic AI and agentic workflows: autonomous, goal-driven agents that accelerate engineering, IT operations, and customer-facing processes. A signature theme is reimagining the automotive engineering V-model through agentic and spec-driven development, where requirements, specification, and validation become AI-assisted and continuous rather than document-bound. He advises OEMs, commercial-vehicle manufacturers, and their suppliers on large-scale connected-vehicle platforms and the analytics that turn fleet and vehicle data into decisions. He has also led in-car business productivity initiatives, bringing secure, enterprise-grade apps and AI assistants directly into the vehicle.
Across every engagement he pushes past proofs of concept toward architecture-led solutions with a clear return - and the security, identity, and governance needed to scale them in safety-critical industries. On this panel, Frank brings a practitioner's perspective on where AI genuinely creates value in automotive and mobility today and where hype still outpaces reality.
Antonio Krüger
CEO & Scientific Director, DFKI Head, Cognitive Assistants at Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Künstliche Intelligenz GmbH and Prof. of Computer Science, Saarland University
Antonio Krüger is the CEO and Scientific Director of Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Künstliche Intelligenz GmbH (DFKI), as well as the Scientific Director of the Cognitive Assistants research department at DFKI.
He has been a professor of computer science and head of the Ubiquitous Media Technology Lab at Saarland University since 2009 and is an internationally renowned expert in human-machine interaction and artificial intelligence (AI).
His research focuses on intelligent user interfaces, user modeling, cognitive sciences, and ubiquitous computing. Professor Krüger studied computer science at Saarland University, completing his doctorate in the subject in 1999.
Marco Liccardo
Chief Technology & Digital Officer at Iveco
Rakash Rao Malathkar
Head of Product Development – Powertrain Engineering, COEs & Test Facilities at Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd.
Prakash Rao Malathkar is Head of Product Development – Powertrain Engineering (ICE + EV), COEs & Test Facilities at Mahindra Research Valley, M&M Ltd., Chennai, India. He is responsible for product development for ICE and EV powertrains, vehicle NVH and crash development, and leads a team of 2,000 engineers at MRV. He is also responsible for product development facility infrastructure, labs and test tracks.
His areas of expertise include gasoline and EV powertrains, engine performance and emissions optimization, and motorsports. He has 34 years of experience in automotive powertrain development and application. He has been associated with Mahindra for more than 30 years and has immensely contributed to M&M Auto Business’ success and transformation journey, especially through the delivery of highly acclaimed products such as the XUV 700, Thar, Scorpio, 3XO, 7XO, BEV 9E, 6E and 9S.
He holds 20 patents in the powertrain area, has published six SAE papers and presented several papers at domestic and international conferences. He has also held key positions in SIAM and government committees and is currently Co-Chair of the EV Mobility Group of SIAM and the Regulatory Committee.
Andreas Nauerz
Member of the Executive Board & CPO of IONOS
With more than two decades of leadership experience in the technology and software industry, he has built deep expertise in cloud computing, AI, and digital platforms. Before joining IONOS, he served as CTO and member of the Executive Board at Bosch Digital, leading technology, product, and innovation initiatives for Bosch’s global digital division with around 12,000 employees worldwide. His work focused particularly on generative AI and large-scale digital transformation.
Prior to this, Dr. Nauerz held leadership positions at Bosch.IO, including CEO, Co-CEO, and CTO, where he helped shape the company’s IoT and AI-driven platform strategy. Earlier in his career, he spent more than a decade at IBM and played a key role in the launch of IBM Cloud Functions, IBM’s serverless computing platform.
Having led international teams across Europe, Asia, North America, and South America, Dr. Nauerz brings a global perspective on cloud technologies, AI, and digital innovation to the Aachen Automotive Colloquium.
Yuan Shen
SVP & CTO at Geely Holding Group
Dr. Shen obtained his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Michigan State University. He currently serves as Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at Geely Holding Group, overseeing product and technology management, investment incubation, and innovation initiatives.
He has long been dedicated to the research of automotive powertrain technologies, with extensive experience in internal combustion engines, and is now leading the development of next-generation power battery technologies.
Dr. Shen has led three national-level projects and over 30 key research and technology development programs. Three engines developed under his leadership successively won the "Top 10 Engines of China Heart" awards in 2014, 2017, and 2018. He has received five provincial and ministerial-level awards, published more than 70 academic papers, and holds 484 patents.
Takashi Uehara
President Powertrain at Toyota Motor Corporation
Takashi Uehara is President of the Powertrain Company at Toyota Motor Corporation and a senior leader in powertrain technology and product strategy.
He began his career at Toyota in 1991 and has since led and supported development programs spanning motorsport engines, hybrid systems, and electrified powertrain systems, with a focus on advancing powertrain performance, efficiency, and technology integration. Appointed Chief Project Leader for the Powertrain System Development domain in 2022, he assumed his current role in July 2023 and drives Toyota’s multi-pathway strategy, including electrification and future energy collaboration initiatives.
Wil van der Aalst
Chief Scientist, Celonis
Professor Wil van der Aalst is Chief Scientist at Celonis and widely recognized as the founding father of the process mining discipline. The techniques he pioneered are now embedded in more than 50 commercial process intelligence tools and are used by many of the world’s leading companies.
His academic journey began with pioneering work at Eindhoven University of Technology, where he developed foundational concepts for process mining. Over the years, Prof. van der Aalst has played a central role in advancing research on process analytics, influencing various industries including manufacturing, healthcare, and finance. His contributions have significantly shaped the field of process intelligence.
Peter Waldmann
Vice President of automated driving at BMW
Dr. Peter Waldmann is Vice President for development of automated driving functions and expert in advanced driver assistance systems at the BMW Group. With a background in mechanical engineering and control engineering, he earned his Ph.D. from BTU Cottbus and has been working for many years on vehicle automation, customer functions development and driver assistance technologies in different leadership positions. Throughout his career, Dr. Waldmann has contributed to the development of advanced customer functions for autonomous driving, including L3 systems, cooperative L2+ features and L2++ urban functions. He is responsible for series projects such as BMW’s Personal Pilot L3, BMW’s hands free “Highway Assistant” and “Symbiotic Drive,” which explore new forms of interaction between driver and vehicle in next-generation mobility platforms. One of his most spectacular projects is the “TrackTrainer” research vehicle, which demonstrated high-precision autonomous driving on the Nürburgring Nordschleife in the early 2010s. The project became a major milestone in the development of automated vehicle control under demanding dynamic conditions. Dr. Waldmann is also responsible for the development of driver safety systems, including emergency braking functions that bring a vehicle to a safe stop if the driver fails to react and all kinds of automated and remote parking features. His work combines in-depth expertise in systems engineering with practical experience in implementing advanced technologies for automated driving in real-world vehicle applications.
Plenary Speakers 2025
Participants of the Opening Plenary Session
Nicolai Ardey, Executive Director, Volkswagen Group Innovation
Emilio Scervo, CTO and Member of the Board, Bugatti Rimac
Lutz Eckstein, President, VDI e.V.
Participants of the Start-Up Plenary Session -"Start-Ups in Mobility: Chances and Challenges"
Marcus Behrendt, Managing Partner, BMW i Ventures
Daniel Garnitz, CEO & Co-Founder, FAAREN
Lorenz Kopp, COS, tozero
Peter Mertens, Executive Director, Mertens VC
Participants of the Closing Plenary Discussion - "Sustainable Future in Industrial Applications"
Gerrit Marx, CEO, CNH Industrial
Michael Kuhn, Vice President Development Vehicles, Kässbohrer Geländefahrzeuge AG
Martin von Hoyningen-Huene, Member Executive Board, CLAAS Group
Plenary Speakers 2024
Opening Plenary Session 2024
Dr. Sabine Klauke, CTO, Airbus
Dr. Holger Klein, CEO, ZF Group
Shunichi Inamijima, Corporate Vice President, Nissan
Ruiping Wang, CEO, Aurobay
Participants of the closing plenary discussion on the topic
"The Use of Artificial Intelligence in Automotive Applications"
Stephan Durach, Senior Vice President in the Connected Company Development, BMW
Prof. Dr. Ralf G. Herrtwich, Senior Director Automotive Software, NVIDIA
Nikolai Ardey, Exceutive Director, VW Group Innovation
Plenary Speakers 2023
Opening Plenary Session 2023
Arnd Franz, CEO, MAHLE GmbH
Gürcan Karakas, CEO, TOGG
Atsushi Ogawa, COO, Honda Motor R&D
Dr. Frederik Zohm, CTO, MAN Truck & Bus SE
Participants of the closing plenary discussion on the topic
"Sustainable Transport under ESG Perspective" 2023
Matthias Jurytko, CEO, Cellcentric
Dr. Peter Laier, Member of the Board, ZF Group
Dr. Gerrit Marx, CEO, IVECO Group
Plenary Speakers 2022
Opening Plenary Session 2022
Hans Schep General Manager, Ford Pro, Europe
Kai-Uwe Wollenhaupt, President SVOLT Europe and Vice President SVOLT Energy Technology
Closing Plenary Session 2022
Axel Gern, Senior Vice President of Engineering und Managing Director of Torc Europe GmbH
Gerrit Marx, Chief Executive Officer of IVECO Group
Plenary Speakers 2021
Opening Plenary Session 2021
Markus Duesmann, Chairman of the Board of Management and Board of Management Member for Product Lines at AUDI AG
Dr.-Ing. Stefan Hartung, Member of the Board of Management, Robert Bosch GmbH
Closing Plenary Session 2021
Prof. Dr. Ralf G. Herrtwich, Senior Director Automotive Software NVIDIA, Berlin
Dr. Byung-Ki Ahn, Senior Vice President der Electric Powertrain BU, Hyundai MOBIS, Korea
