Ansar Ali - Co-Founder, Zenos Cars

Martin Green - Technology Planner, Visteon

Martin Green (Visteon)

Roger Lanctot - Associate Director, Strategy Analytics

Mike Short CBE - Chief Architect, Satellite Applications Catapult, Chair of the Advisory Board, UKTIN

Dr Mike Short CBE, after 30 years in telecommunications with Cellnet / BT / O2 and Telefonica, joined the Department for International Trade (DIT) in December 2017 as the Department’s first Chief Scientific Adviser (now called Dept of Business and Trade). Since March 2023 he has been pursuing a portfolio career around innovation and research largely in telecommunications including as Chief Architect at the Satellite Applications Catapult and Distinguished Visitor at NPL.

Mike led the Science and Engineering profession and advised DIT on science, engineering and technology. He supported DIT on the technical aspects of trade, inward investment and international engineering collaboration, and worked with the UK’s research, innovation and academic communities to boost technology and engineering exports. He also represented DIT on many cross HMG committees such as Telecoms, Space, Health and Quantum, and on overseas delegations such as Mobile World Congress 2023 , CES and Web Summit 2022. He was an active member of GoScience CSA activities and a Board member on Innovate UK for 4 years to Q1 2023.

Mike has 4 decades of experience in electronics and telecommunications. This included a role as Vice President of Telefonica, the parent company of the O2 mobile phone network to the end of 2016. Since 1987, he has managed the launch of 2G (GSM) and 3G mobile technologies in the UK, helped win mobile licenses overseas, established an EU office in Brussels, and later led international research (including 4G / 5G), innovation and standards for Telefonica Europe. He also was the lead contact with the UK / EU Research programmes and International Standards, and managed the engagement with UK Universities. During this period he ran trials for Mobile TV, Smart metering, Driverless cars, and IoT.

He has also led the development and collaboration in areas such as Digital health, IoT, and cybersecurity including active participation in PETRAS and iSense multi year programmes linked to key Universities.  His career includes the promotion of international technical standards in mobile and digital technology. He is a former Chairman of the Global GSM Association, the UK Mobile Data Association, and was President of the Institution of Engineering and Technology in 2011/2012. Amongst other Board roles he has sat on the Boards of ETSI , Tech UK , Innovate UK, UK 5G and UK Telecomms Innovation Network Advisory Board.  He is currently a Visiting Professor at the Universities of Surrey and Strathclyde. He holds honorary doctorates from Brunel and Warwick Universities amongst others, and was honoured with a CBE in 2012 for his services to the mobile industry.

Nick Smith - Senior Policy Manager, Security Industry Engagement Team, OSCT, Home Office

Andre Burgess - Strategic Partnerships, Security and Resilience, National Physical Laboratory

NPL’s nominated SIG Champion, Andre Burgess runs Strategic partnerships for the Digital Sector at NPL where he is also leading on its activities in CAV R&D as well as the development of new testing infrastructure for future integrated communications networks. Andre has a long experience in product and service innovation in the TMT sector, including NTL (now Virgin Media) and Three. He subsequently established a successful business designing and deploying disruptive digital end user products and services. More recently he turned his focus on the energy and environment sector, working with distributed generators, housing providers and local authorities, to develop innovative data centric services to optimise localised energy generation and affordable smart home services. With a mission to ensure data can be trusted and shared openly in the future, he joined NPL in 2017.

John Okas - CCO, Real Wireless

John has worked in wireless and telecommunications throughout his career. Initially with Motorola and Racal in engineering and product marketing roles. He was a founding director of NTL (now Arqiva), initially as Business Development Director building and managing the complete commercial organisation. He also managed the R&D Group which developed one of the first commercially available MPEG video compression systems. Then as Managing Director - Telecommunications he was responsible for growing NTL's wireless business using NTL’s extensive tower portfolio and nationwide field operations capability and entering the fixed telecommunications and satellite services markets. Moving to Pell Frischmann, the consulting engineers, he started a telecommunications business and was involved in several large transportation projects including the Highways Agency's NRTS Project which updated the communication systems on the strategic Road Network and he first got involved in smart metering. Currently as CCO for Real Wireless he undertakes business strategy and development activities, as well as delivering various projects. Recent projects include assessing the implications of the sunset of 2G and 3G networks in the UK and analysing various aspects of smart metering in the UK. He takes a strong interest in the evolving NTN and M2M markets and the evolution of energy communication networks.

Tom Robinson - CPO, Conigital

Tom has worked in the software and advanced technology industry for over 35 years with 25+ years in automotive. During this time Tom has provided leadership in several world class automotive consultancies including Pi Technology, Ricardo, Applus IDIADA and Conigital. For 6 years Tom supported InnovITS (UK Centre of Excellence for Tranport Telematics and Sustainable Mobility) as a non-executive director, helping promote the establishment of UK ITS capability. He has championed and directed several world class innovation programmes in the ITS field including TfNSW’s Ute, EU’s SARTRE, InnovITS FaCITS, TSB’s ERTOC and Innovate UK’s MuCCA, CONNECTOR and MACAM projects.  Tom is currently working at EVIE Autonomous, a technology company developing and offering level four off-highway self-driving technology systems that can be installed into any vehicle.  In 2022 EVIE acquired the assets and IP of Westfield Autonomous Vehicles, adding the world’s most successful autonomous PRT platform (as run at Heathrow airport) to EVIES matchless CAVONIX autonomous vehicle stack. As CPO at EVIE, Tom is helping drive the future towards CAV.

Nigel Wall - Director, Climate Associates Ltd

Nigel has been involved with connected vehicle research since 1992 when he led BT’s mobile data research team – initially using modems on first generation analogue TACS mobile phones! Since 2001 he has provided consultancy complex-systems, with a primary specialism in connected vehicles. He acted as the Monitoring Officer for twelve of the Connected and Autonomous Vehicle research projects supported by Innovate UK and the Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles. Climate Associates provides consultancy on delivering pragmatic sustainable systems and services, based on life cycle assessments where wholesale replacement of current systems with lower footprint solutions may not be the most sustainable option.