Rudy Powell is currently the Director of the Traffic Engineering and Operations Office for the Florida Department of Transportation. He has more than 32 years of engineering experience, including 29 years in the transportation industry in both the private and public sectors, including almost 19 years with the Department, where he has held the positions of Interim Director of the state Materials Office, director of the office of Maintenance, State Construction Engineer, State Specifications Engineer, and Structures Area Engineer.  

Rudy earned his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina and is a licensed Professional Engineer in Florida and South Carolina.

Rudy enjoys reading, going for long walks, learning new things, and just being outdoors. 

Jim Gregory is Dean of the College of Engineering at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s Daytona Beach campus. He is responsible for the vision, strategy and operations of the college’s education and research mission. The College is home to the largest undergraduate aerospace engineering program in the U.S. The program is also ranked in the top five nationally by U.S. News & World Report. His B.S. and Ph.D. are in aerospace engineering. Dr. Gregory is a Fellow of the AIAA and the Royal Aeronautical Society.

Philip Brady is a US Acquisitions and Partnerships Manager for Skyports Infrastructure. Philip heads up the company’s efforts in the US, where he leads on the acquisition, design & build, and operation of vertiports for air taxis.

Philip’s team addresses real estate agreements, local stakeholder engagement, regulatory approvals, airport planning, operational procedures, and enabling technology required to develop and operate safe, efficient, passenger-friendly vertiport infrastructure. Philip began his career as a tenant broker with Savills in Washington, D.C. Following that, he worked in property management and construction at industry leading companies, including Gilbane Building Company.

Philip holds a Masters in Real Estate Development from George Mason University.

Michelle Maikisch (MY-kish) is the Executive Director of the Central Florida Expressway Authority (CFX) – a dynamic transportation agency serving nearly 80 million residents and visitors on its 125-mile expressway network that connects Brevard, Lake, Orange, Osceola and Seminole counties.

Recognized for her high-energy, inclusive leadership approach, Maikisch has positively shaped and impacted the success of CFX, including spearheading the agency’s first performance-driven strategic business plan. Under her guidance, the agency is currently executing $4 billion in critical infrastructure projects through 2028.

With over 20 years of transportation experience, Maikisch is deeply committed to delivering a world-class, integrated mobility network to the Central Florida region. She continues to drive service excellence across every facet of the organization, while building on the partnerships, policies and opportunities that will enable CFX to help keep the Central Florida region moving for generations to come.

Originally elected to the House of Representatives in 2020, then again reelected in 2022, McFarland has served on a number of committees. Currently, she is the chair of the Transportation & Modals Subcommittee and is a representative of the Infrastructure Strategies Committee, Civil Justice Subcommittee, Energy, Communications & Cybersecurity Subcommittee, and the Regulatory Reform & Economic Development Subcommittee. 

Representative MacFarland’s thoughtful leadership in the Florida House of Representatives has propelled Florida towards a more innovative and tech-forward transportation landscape. 

Fiona is a 2008 graduate of the United States Naval Academy, where she majored in Political Science and was captain of the women’s crew team. She served for eight years on active duty as a Surface Warfare officer, completing tours of duty onboard the Arleigh Burke Class Guided Missile Destroyer USS Preble (DDG 88), as an inaugural crewmember on the Littoral Combat Ship USS Coronado (LCS 4) and in the Navy Office of Information in the Pentagon. While on active duty, she earned an MBA from the University of Chapel Hill’s Kenan Flagler Business School in 2013.

In 2016, Fiona transitioned to the US Navy Reserves. She participated in multinational antisubmarine warfare exercises above the Arctic Circle with the US European Command, as well as with the US Africa Command, promoting cooperation and understanding among regional African allies and partner nations.

In her civilian capacity, Fiona worked as a consultant with the global business management consulting firm McKinsey and Company, where she served clients across media, consumer goods, manufacturing, and advanced technology industries, among others, consulting directly with senior executives of Fortune 500 to solve business and operations challenges.

Fiona is married to fellow Naval Academy classmate and native Floridian Matthew Melton. They have three children. 

Dr. Taylor Lochrane is a respected leader and visionary in the fields of transportation safety, automation, and research. With extensive experience in both the federal and private sectors, he currently holds the esteemed positions of Deputy Director of Science and Technology and Chief Scientist for the USDOT Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology, Highly Automated Systems Safety Center of Excellence (HASS COE). Dr. Lochrane’s expertise lies in strategic and technical leadership, business development, and staff engagement, consistently guiding diverse teams to remarkable achievements. 

Motivated by a steadfast commitment to advancing the safety of highly automated systems, he has successfully led groundbreaking initiatives, including the development of Cooperative Driving Automation during his tenure at the Federal Highway Administration. Dr. Lochrane’s valuable insights as a respected speaker, combined with his strategic vision, technical proficiency, and collaborative mindset, play a vital role in shaping the future of transportation. Dr. Lochrane received a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering, M.S. in Civil Engineering and Transportation Systems, and B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Central Florida.

As senior vice president of new strategic markets and innovation leader of the mobility domain at Munich Reinsurance America, Mike Scrudato works with different startup companies and business units across Munich Re to develop new reinsurance and insurance opportunities, solutions, and services for mobility risks. Previously, he held various positions at the company in planning, finance, information technology, and internal audit. Before joining Munich Re, Scrudato was part of the information systems services and risk management groups at two multinational professional services firms.

Lesley Deutch is a Managing Principal based in Florida for John Burns Research and Consulting. She has more than 25 years of experience consulting with executives in the finance and real estate industries throughout North America. She works across a wide spectrum of industries, including apartments, for-sale housing, high-rise development, urban projects, single-family rental, building products, and commercial developments. The company is on retainer with executives at many of the largest companies in the industry, producing regular monthly reports on apartment and housing market conditions and customizing specific studies to help with strategic and community-specific decisions. Previously, Lesley was Vice President in the Global Real Estate division of Deutsche Bank in New York, where she authored reports on real estate and economic conditions in the major U.S. metropolitan areas and wrote due diligence reports for RREEF (owned by Deutsche Bank) acquisitions across the country. Lesley is an outspoken leader in the real estate industry. Her expertise has led to numerous speaking engagements at national and local events on strategic repositioning, real estate forecasts, and demographic trends. Currently, Lesley serves as a member of the Community Development Council (Green) for the Urban Land Institute (ULI) nationally, the Multifamily Development Council for ULI in Florida, and is a member of the UF Real Estate. UM Real Estate and FSU Real Estate Boards. Ms. Deutch graduated in 1996 and holds a B.S. from the Wharton School and a B.A. in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania.

David Feith is a Partner at Garnaut Global LLC, a leading open-source research firm that focuses on China and serves asset managers and corporate clients. He is a former U.S. deputy assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs and was previously an editorial writer for The Wall Street Journal. He is also an adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) in Washington, D.C. 

At the Department of State from 2017 to 2021, David helped create the U.S. Indo-Pacific Strategy and reorient U.S. policy toward China and Asia generally. As Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, he oversaw the Offices of Multilateral Affairs and Regional and Security Policy. Previously, as a member of the Secretary of State’s Policy Planning Staff, he advised on relations with China and countries across the Indo-Pacific region.

David has consulted for the U.S. Air Force and published a book entitled Teaching America: The Case for Civic Education (2011). He has testified before the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives, and his writing has appeared in The Washington Post, The New York Times, Foreign Affairs, Commentary, and other publications. He has a B.A. in history from Columbia University.

Joe Moye has over 35 years of experience as a business executive and entrepreneur across the technology industry serving both the private and public sectors.

As the CEO of Beep Inc., Mr. Moye leads their efforts in the safe testing of electric, autonomous vehicles to serve the needs of public and private communities seeking to extend mobility for all in the United States. He has actively engaged with the Department of Transportation and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to promote openness and transparency in the testing of autonomous vehicles across the industry to leverage data and learnings to advance this important area of innovation. Joe is a recognized expert and regular speaker in industry on the importance of U.S. leadership in autonomous transportation to positively impact safety, sustainability, mobility equity and technology innovation in our Country.

Eric Teoh is Director of Statistical Services at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Since joining the Institute in 2006, he has conducted and contributed to numerous studies quantifying the state of highway safety and identifying ways to improve it. Beyond his statistical role, his own research has focused on motorcycles, large trucks, passenger vehicle safety, and crash avoidance and driving automation technologies.

JC Asencio is the current Ecosystem Partnerships Manager at Wisk Aero, where he’s a key player in advancing Autonomous Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) across the Eastern USA. With roles ranging from Operations Systems Engineering Lead to establishing Model Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) processes at Wisk Aero, JC has been instrumental in shaping the future of electric vertical take-off and landing vehicles (eVTOL). A University of Florida alum with a BS in Aerospace Engineering, he’s deeply committed to sustainability and has a passion for educational outreach. JC’s expertise in partnerships management, policy analysis, and MBSE, combined with his fluency in Spanish and love for jazz vocals and piano, highlight his multifaceted skills and interests that extend well beyond the aerospace sector.

Jared W. Perdue was named Secretary of the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) by Governor Ron DeSantis on April 7, 2022. As Secretary, Perdue oversees the lead agency in state government with the statutory responsibility to coordinate the planning and development of a safe, viable, and balanced transportation system serving all regions of the state, and to assure the compatibility of all components, including multimodal facilities.

Secretary Perdue has devoted his career to the FDOT since entering public service through the Professional Engineer Training Program with FDOT District Three. After completing the program, he served in various leadership roles within the Department, including Geotechnical Engineer, Interim District Maintenance Engineer, District Traffic Operations Engineer, District Design Engineer, and Director of Transportation Development for District Three. Before being appointed as Secretary, he served as the District Five Secretary for two years during which he was responsible for projects and operations in the nine-county region, including SunRail, the multibillion-dollar I-4 Ultimate Project, and Wekiva Parkway.

Under Secretary Perdue’s leadership, the FDOT will continue to prioritize safety and embrace innovation to create and deliver a robust multimodal transportation system to support Florida.

Secretary Perdue received his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina. He is married to his beautiful wife Brandis and has five daughters.

Joe Lopano was appointed on January 1, 2011 as Tampa International Airport’s Chief Executive Officer. A true visionary of the industry with more than 40 years of commercial aviation experience, he has led tremendous growth and service expansions at TPA. Prior to accepting the CEO role at America’s Favorite Airport, he worked at the Dallas/Fort Worth Airport for 14 years as Executive Vice President for Marketing and Terminal Management and held leadership positions at Continental Airlines.
 
Lopano serves on the boards of the Tampa Bay Economic Development Council (2024 Chair) and the Hillsborough County Transportation Planning Organization. He is a member of the Tony Jannus Distinguished Aviation Society and a past Honorary Commander at MacDill Air Force Base. Lopano is a graduate of Leadership Florida Cornerstone Class 30. Nationally, he serves on the Airports Council International World Governing Board.

Michelle Mallory Peacock is Global Head of Public Policy for Waymo. Her team is responsible for policymaker and stakeholder engagement and advocacy to make it easier for people and goods to get where they need to be through deployments of autonomous vehicle technology.

Prior to Waymo, Michelle led Government Relations for Turo, the world’s largest peer-to-peer car-sharing company. Her work included building a program to address legislative initiatives in 43 states, and saw a tremendous track record of success during her 5 years with the company.

Before Turo, Michelle spent 12 years at eBay and PayPal, establishing eBay’s first state government relations program, PayPal’s first global government relations program, and integrated the two companies’ focus on public policy in emerging markets and new ventures. She later joined PayPal’s omnichannel business and led a team that developed commercial and association partnerships for the company’s in-person retail payments solution.

Previous roles included State Government Relations at Cisco Systems and Microsoft and federal and state roles with consumer finance company Beneficial Corp.

Michelle lives in the historic Willow Glen neighborhood of San Jose where her family makes regular trips to the SAP Center to cheer on their favorite San Jose Sharks.

Daniel Goff is Kodiak’s Director of External Affairs. In his role, Daniel is responsible for building Kodiak’s relationships with a diverse group of stakeholders, from federal and state policymakers, to industry organizations, to educational institutions. Daniel also manages Kodiak’s external communications with the media. Daniel joined Kodiak in 2019.

Prior to Kodiak, Daniel spent four years as a Managing Director at Tusk Strategies, a boutique consulting firm that advises technology startups on media and policy issues. Daniel earned his MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, and his Bachelor of Arts from Yale University. He lives in Chicago, Illinois with his wife and two daughters.

Matt Chesnut joined Space Florida in December of 2018 as a member of the business development team. Utilizing his experience in economic development in Florida, Matt works closely with economic development organizations, airport organizations, and local governments in utilizing Space Florida’s tool kit in the attraction of aerospace companies. Matt’s role also involves working with aerospace related businesses who are considering locating or expanding in Florida.

Before joining Space Florida, Matt worked with Team Volusia Economic Development Corporation in Daytona Beach as the Vice-President of Business Intelligence and Operations and as the Director of Economic Development for the City of Titusville, FL. Prior to working in the economic development field, he served as City Manager for Maryville, MO.

Sergey is the founder and CEO of Koop, an insurance technology company focused on robotics and autonomous vehicles. Prior to starting Koop, Sergey worked on asset-backed securitization and financing transactions on Wall Street. Sergey is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh and Boston College. 

Sean Poole is the President of Kyra Solutions’ IntelliRoad Division. Prior to joining the Kyra family in 2021, Sean served for four years at the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) under Secretary Elaine Chao. Sean held many roles, including Director of Intergovernmental and Tribal Affairs, and performed the duties of Deputy Assistant Secretary of Intergovernmental and Tribal Affairs. During Sean’s time at USDOT, he participated in both the technical review and senior review of over $9 billion of annual discretionary grants which included emerging technologies, smart cities, and connected vehicles projects. He also represented Secretary Chao on three White House Councils, including the Infrastructure & Technology Council, Native American Affairs Council, and the Governors’ Initiative on Regulatory Innovation. Prior to the USDOT, Sean served as an analyst for Connors & Company Financial Services, which focused on state pension funds and new emerging markets.

Sean received his bachelor’s degree from the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he earned a varsity letter on the baseball team and was a four-year letterman on the football team. He is a graduate of the Harvard Business School’s Program for Leadership Development and Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Sales. Sean currently lives in Tallahassee, Florida, with his wife, Heather, and son Devereaux.

Greg Slater is the Executive Director and CEO of the Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority (THEA) – a dynamic transportation agency that owns, manages, and operates the Selmon Expressway, Meridian Avenue, Brandon Parkway, and the Selmon Greenway. With over 100,000 daily expressway commuters and thousands of pedestrians that utilize the agency’s network of trails for last-mile commutes and urban walkability, Slater oversees an agency focused on adding value to the community and offering transportation options that enhance quality of life.

Slater is a transportation leader with over two decades of public service experience in a variety of transportation modes, most recently serving as Secretary of the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT).

He and THEA are committed to bringing the best technology and most progressive concepts possible to address transportation challenges. The agency processes 58 million toll transactions each year on the Selmon Expressway. It serves almost 2 million annual customers with an investment plan to deliver over $1.2 Billion worth of capital improvements to the Selmon Expressway over the next 10 years.

Throughout Nelson’s 40-year career with Aviation and interest as a Private Pilot, he has touched all aspects
of the aviation industry. He has managed several airports in the Miami-Dade Aviation system of airports;
last of which included Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport and Dade-Collier Training & Transition Airport.

Nelson is currently working as the Aviation Planning Administrator for the Florida Department of
Transportation and is responsible for reviewing Florida airport Master Plans and ALPs, Florida Aviation
System Plan, and FDOT’s AAM program.

Kevin A. Damoa is a servant leader, mechanical engineer, operations executive, inventor, master logistician, and veteran of the US military. He has developed technologies that have enabled the space exploration of mankind in our quest to be an interplanetary species, in addition to supporting the deployment of clean mobility solutions ranging from hydrogen-powered airplanes to battery electric self-shifting bicycles. His career began in the US Army at age 17, where he served in South Korea for 2 years before being forward deployed to Iraq with the 3rd Armored Calvary Regiment. After departing the US Army after his 2nd tour in Iraq, he joined the Air Force, where he would serve as a Logistics Officer and firefighter supporting

California’s MAFFS (Mobile Air Fire Fighting Systems) unit for 12 years before retiring in 2018.

From April 2012 to November 2015, Mr. Damoa served as the Flight Module Logistics Manager at SpaceX, developing their logistics systems and programs and designing and deploying the shipping apparatus used to transport the Rocket from production to the launch site. After a brief 1 year term at Northrop Grumman, where he served as an Integration Program Manager on the F35 fighter jet platform, he would then go on to work as an executive and early founding employee at start-ups; Romeo Power (Vice President, Industrialization), XOS Trucks (Vice President, Supply Chain & Operations), Canoo (In Charge of Logistics, Sustainment, Safety), and Serial 1 Cycle/Harley Davidson (Vice President, Operations) where he led product development and design, manufacturing deployment, and product launches.

His most recent entrepreneurial venture is as Founder & CEO of GITd Technologies, which he founded in 2022. GITd is developing a clean energy road-to-rail vehicle utilizing autonomous technologies. https://glidrail.com

Mr. Damoa holds an MBA in Project Management from Keller Graduate and an MS in Mechanical Engineering from Embry Riddle Aeronautical. He enjoys mentoring youth and veterans, reading, drawing/painting, playing the guitar and singing, dancing, designing and building custom race cars and airplanes, supporting disruptive deep tech through his consultant firm Vizira Global, residential construction, and spending quality time with family and loved ones.

linkedin.com/in/kevin-a-damoa-9b514770

Philipp is the co-founder of the McKinsey Center for Future Mobility and globally leads McKinsey’s Mobility Disrupter Practice. His client service focuses on helping startups, disrupters and incumbents to navigate through the challenges of the mobility revolution driven by the ACES (Autonomous, Connectivity, Electrification and Shared Mobility).

Michael K. Friedberg is a Washington, D.C., attorney who is a member of the firm’s Transportation & Infrastructure Industry Sector Group. Mr. Friedberg focuses on developing and implementing advocacy strategies for Holland & Knight’s transportation and infrastructure industry clients on a wide range of issues, including all modes of transportation such as aviation, rail and transit, autonomous vehicles, maritime, pipelines and the transportation of hazardous materials. 

In addition, Mr. Friedberg has experience assisting clients on developing support for infrastructure developments, especially with respect to getting prospectuses approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the House and Senate committees of jurisdiction on approval of prospectuses.

Mr. Friedberg most recently served as staff director of the Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials of the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. In this role, he served as the committee’s primary advisor on passenger rail, rail safety, the economic regulation of railroads, pipeline safety and the transportation of hazardous material. He assisted the chairman in managing various bills, including the Keystone XL Pipeline Approval Act and the Passenger Rail Reform and Investment Act of 2015.

Mr. Miles Thompson is the MITRE Corporation’s AI Assurance Solutions Lead and Lab Director for the AI Assurance and Discovery Lab inside the Artificial Intelligence and Autonomy Innovation Center.

His experience is in the verification, validation, and testing of unmanned autonomous vehicle systems and is specifically tied to the efficient, practical and comprehensive testing of these systems as vessels, automobiles, and aircraft. He was the draft lead on UL4600-2 (Safety Case guide for Autonomous Trucking) and advising UL4601 for Uncrewed, Autonomous Air Systems. Previously, he was the autonomous driving validation lead at General Motors, where he ensured proper verification and validation of the Cruise Automation self-driving cars. Before that, his work as a senior research engineer at Georgia Tech Research Institute was supporting the test and evaluation, including safety assessments, of autonomous military surface vessels, ground vehicles, and swarms of aircraft.

Always interested in exchanging ideas through professional societies, Mr. Thompson was the regional vice president of the Southeast region of the International Test and Evaluation Association (ITEA) and the president of the Atlanta Chapter of the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI). Mr. Thompson is a Certified Test and Evaluation Professional (CTEP) and a Certified Analytics Professional (CAP).

Mr. Thompson holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University, an M.B.A. in Engineering Management from Drexel University, and an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology.

J. Todd Inman, the 48th Member of the National Transportation Safety Board, who was sworn in March 13, 2024, brings a wealth of experience and expertise in transportation safety, management, and policy implementation.

Member Inman’s vast experience is unique in that he brings a combination of federal, state, and private sector work that allows him to consider things from a policy and implementation perspective. Prior to the NTSB, Inman served as Senior Director in the Office of the Executive Chairman at APCO Worldwide, a global public affairs consultancy. Before that, he served as Secretary of the Department of Management Services for the state of Florida, for which the Florida Senate unanimously confirmed him to oversee eight major operating divisions. In that role he managed over 1,000 employees with a $1 billion dollar budget which conducted over $25 billion of transactions annually along with the administration of the state of Florida’s 911 centers’ centers and grant programs. As Secretary of Management, he also was responsible for the procurement of the largest upgrade of the State Law Enforcement Radio system used by all first responders.

Racquel Asa is the Senior Director of External Affairs for The Central Florida Expressway Authority. CFX is a regional transportation agency committed to connecting and expanding access throughout Brevard, Lake, Orange, Osceola, and Seminole counties. Through it’s 125- mile expressway network, innovative programs and initiatives and customer-focused approached, CFX meets customers where they are, where they are going and where they are coming from.

Racquel brings nearly 20 years of storytelling experience with a customer and community focus to the Senior Director of External Affairs role. She is responsible for developing integrated, comprehensive and strategic engagement to all members of the Central Florida Community. She believes in a community-based approach that focuses on solutions that deliver benefits for all.

Kim Holland has more than 28 years of diverse infrastructure engineering experience. She joined the OneFDOT Team in 2023 as the Assistant Secretary of Strategic Development. She is responsible for strategic investments into Florida’s Transportation System including the Strategic Intermodal System. Her responsibilities include ensuring that Florida remains the leader in supply chain logistics in the country, maximizing strategic funding through competitive grant opportunities for Florida’s communities, creating strong partnerships with businesses and ports to maintain one of the nation’s strongest economies, as Florida remains a destination for many; and developing and implementing strategies to make sure Florida remains resilient to extreme weather while protecting our infrastructure investments.

Kim received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida, graduating as valedictorian of her civil engineering class. She is a registered professional engineer in Florida and Georgia. She is a Certified LEED Accredited Professional which is a globally recognized green building rating system that ensures sustainable design and construction. She is a Certified Floodplain Manager which a recognized national certification program that mitigates the challenges of flooding disasters on the country’s human, financial, and natural resources.

Her professional and community involvement has included leadership positions with the Florida Design-Build Institute of America, Florida Chamber, Leadership Florida, Jacksonville Women’s Network, and the University of North Florida. Most recently, she is a recipient of the Girl Scouts Woman of Distinction Award.

Kim is a proud wife to her husband and mother of five daughters and stepdaughters: Haley (20), Leah (19), Sasha (18), Emily (15), and Selena (15).

Tyler Duvall is Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Cavnue. Before joining Cavnue, Duvall was CEO of SH 130 Concession Company in central Texas. Prior to SH 130, he was a Principal at McKinsey & Company, where he advised a wide variety of private and public sector entities on strategic, operational and organizational topics. Duvall also served in several roles in the U.S. Department of Transportation, including as Acting Under Secretary for Policy, the agency’s third highest ranking official. He led the Department’s efforts to modernize transportation infrastructure through new procurement, technology and financing approaches. Duvall earned a B.A. in economics from Washington and Lee University and a J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law.

Mr. Easterling currently serves as the District Traffic Operations Engineer for Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise, part of the Florida DOT. In his position, he is responsible for the Turnpike’s Traffic Operations and TSM & O Program, including the planning, operations, and maintenance elements of ITS and the Traffic Management Centers. He is heavily involved in the development and operations of the Turnpike’s emerging transportation technologies for the 511-mile Florida’s Turnpike System; including Connected Vehicle projects and the SunTrax facility recently constructed for CAV testing in Auburndale, Florida. 

John has a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Miami, is a registered Professional Engineer, and a Professional Traffic Operations Engineer (PTOE). He has been with the Turnpike for 20 years, and previously worked as a transportation engineering consultant for approximately 10 years. John is a member of ITE, and also a past President of ITS Florida, the state chapter of ITS America.

Daniel Silverberg serves as Capstone’s Managing Director of Corporate Practice and co-leads the Capstone National Security Team.  He helps clients predict the trajectory of national security regulation and policy.   

Silverberg has strong relationships in the Executive Branch and Capitol Hill based on 16 years of service in international security. Daniel has provided commentary on CNN, NPR, The Atlantic, Newsweek, and other media on key foreign policy matters.

Prior to joining Capstone, Silverberg served as the National Security Advisor to House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, working to coordinate foreign policy legislation and inform Congressional leadership on major geopolitical developments. He previously served as Majority counsel to the House Foreign Affairs Committee, where he provided legal advice regarding sanctions, arms procurement, and foreign assistance. He additionally served as an attorney for the Department of Defense, working with counterterrorism and partnership strategy offices. Silverberg has a JD from Stanford Law School and an AB in Comparative Study of Religion from Harvard College. Silverberg is a lifetime member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Lando Juarez is the Head of Legal for Uber’s Autonomous Mobility & Delivery and Global Fleets businesses. In this role, he is focused on creating the cross-industry partnerships, regulatory pathways and operational capabilities necessary to deploy and commercialize AVs at scale on the Uber platform. His scope also includes Uber’s automotive partnerships, vehicle solutions, fleet infrastructure and electrification efforts.

In addition, he leads Uber’s legal teams dedicated to its rapidly growing Grocery and Retail marketplace and Uber Direct (a B2B offering for delivery). He previously led the legal team and served on the executive leadership team at Uber ATG.

Alix Miller is the President and CEO of Florida Trucking Association, the sole state liaison between the trucking industry and the legislative, regulatory and judicial branches of state and federal government. She serves on a number of state and national committees, including FDOT’s Florida Transportation Plan Committee; Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association’s Supply Chain Committee; American Trucking Associations’ Legal Reform Advisory Committee and Women in Motion. In 2021, Senate President Wilton Simpson reappointed her to the Florida Council on Arts and Culture. She was recently named to the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta’s Transportation and Logistics Advisory Council. She holds a Bachelor’s degree from Tulane University and both an MFA and Ph.D. from Florida State University.

Mike McGhan is RRAI’s Commercial Growth Lead and Head of Business for the yard truck vertical, focusing on OEM and customer partnerships, and adoption of automated vehicles into revenue service. Prior to joining RRAI in 2022, Mike led the Navy business and worked with multiple government customers over 6 years with Palantir. He was previously a US Navy pilot, including a tour as an operational test pilot with manned and unmanned aircraft.

Mike holds a Bachelor of Science in Information Technology from the United States Naval Academy, and an MBA from the University of North Carolina Kenan Flagler Business School.

Crystal Stiles is executive director of development for Distributed Technologies and Mobility (DT&M) at Florida Power & Light Company (FPL). In this role, Crystal leads DT&M functions that enhance programs and offerings for customers. Under her leadership, DT&M is expanding FPL EVolution, a growing electric vehicle (EV) network including public charging, residential charging and fleet electrification. Crystal is also responsible for microgrids and emerging technologies.

Crystal joined FPL in 2012 and led FPL’s Office of Economic Development. Under her guidance, the economic development team received repeat recognition by national economic development organizations and helped hundreds of companies locate or expand in Florida, resulting in over 30,000 new job opportunities. She also led the 2020 launch of 35 Mules, an innovation hub powered by FPL. 35 Mules provides resources and support to invited startups to grow Florida’s next generation of world-changing companies.

Crystal serves on the board of directors for Enterprise Florida, the Aerospace Alliance and the Electric Drive Transportation Association. She is vice-chair of the Florida delegation of the Southeast U.S./Japan Association and a past chair for the Florida Economic Development Council.

Crystal is a graduate of Leadership Florida Cornerstone Class XXXVII. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in communication from Mary Baldwin College in Staunton, Va., and a Master of Business Administration with a focus in international business from Florida Atlantic University.

Lee White is an Autonomous Trucking & Logistics expert with deep strategy and operations expertise in the AV trucking space. With four decades of experience, he works at the forefront of the autonomous trucking industry to position stakeholders in the AV ecosystem for long-term success.

Lee’s own career is an authentic success story. Starting out as a peak-season driver for UPS during college, he went on to progress through multiple leadership positions to be the senior engineering leader in multiple operating areas. He has a track record of achieving improvements in service, production, and cost results. He developed and led programs that laid the foundation for future successful deployments. Directing the transportation technology projects required him to work across technology, strategy, and engineering disciplines, and his successes include managing the Autonomous Trucking Project Charter, leading the platooning project, and deploying systems and new business models globally.

More recently, as the Vice President of Strategy for TuSimple, he built the autonomous freight network business model, partnerships, operations, and ecosystem, enabling multiple customers to test autonomous trucking for hundreds of thousands of miles with real freight on real lanes. His mandate spanned all aspects of the network—from defining the business model to engaging and onboarding partners—resulting in a $9 million network with 15+ customers across 11 states.

Today, as the President of LM White Consulting, Lee works with fleets, OEMs, and carriers in developing forward-looking strategies, business models, and roadmaps for AV operations. His unique background allows him to bring all systems, planning, operations, and structures together to allow his clients to rapidly adopt, integrate, and scale the technology.

Lee earned a bachelor’s degree in economics at the University of Georgia. He is a recognized expert in the autonomous vehicle space and has given numerous media interviews, as well as presentations at industry conferences.

Brad Templeton founded ClariNet Communications Corp., the first internet-based content company. (Sold to Individual Inc/Newsedge Corp.) ClariNet published an online electronic newspaper delivered for live reading on subscribers machines. He has been active in the internet community since 1979, participated in the building and growth of USENET from its earliest days and in 1987 he founded and edited rec.humor.funny, the world’s most widely read computerized conference on that network, and today the world’s longest running blog, and declared by the BBC as the first subject of an internet cancel campaign. He has founded 2 software companies and is the author of a dozen software packages.

He is Chairman Emeritus of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the leading civil rights advocacy group for cyberspace. He is the founding computing faculty at Singularity University, a new school of rapidly changing technology, and was chair for computing starting in 2010. He writes and researches the future of automated transportation at Robocars.com and Forbes.com and worked for two years on Google’s team building these cars, now Waymo. He is a fellow and former board member of the Foresight Institute (A nonprofit Nanotech/Futurist think-tank) and technical advisor to Starship Technologies (Delivery Robots), Deepen.AI (AI Tools), Tilt5 (AR) and others. He is also a well known photographer and artist at Burning Man, and a popular speaker at international events on cars, online rights and other topics.

Gina Evans Dew has served as the Director of Government and Community Relations for the Hillsborough County Aviation Authority since December of 2012.  In this role, Mrs. Dew represents the Authority’s four airports at the local, state, and federal level while managing the airport’s community efforts.  She Co-Chairs the Authority’s internal committee on Advanced Air Mobility and oversees the airport’s minority contracting efforts.

In addition to her duties at the Authority, Mrs. Dew was recently appointed by Governor DeSantis to the Florida Commission on Community Service.  She also serves as Chair of the Development Committee for the Museum of Science and Industry, Policy Committee member for the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay, member of the Hillsborough Transportation Policy Organization, and is a member of both The Junior League of Tampa and Florida Blue Key.

Mrs. Dew earned her Bachelor of Science in Public Relations and Master of Arts in Mass Communications degrees from the University of Florida. She was named one of Tampa Bay Business Journal’s Up and Comers for 2015, Top 10 under 40 for South Tampa Magazine in 2019, and is a graduate of Leadership Tampa Class of 2019.

Trey serves as the Florida Department of Transportation’s (FDOT’s) Executive Director of Transportation Technology. In this role, Trey provides statewide technology leadership for the Florida Department of Transportation, including information technology, operational technology and emerging technology initiatives. Trey is responsible for FDOT’s Office of Information Technology and Civil Integrated Management Office, including groups providing statewide leadership in data analytics, geographic information systems, and surveying and mapping. He also provides strategic leadership in the areas of automated vehicles and data governance.

Previously, Trey served as FDOT’s Director of Traffic Engineering and Operations and State Traffic Operations Engineer for over six years. Trey also has expertise in the areas of traffic engineering, traffic safety, transportation systems management and operations, connected vehicles, managed lanes, commercial vehicle operations, and incident management. Over his career, he has managed the planning, design, deployment, integration, operations, and/or maintenance of dozens of intelligent transportation systems and traffic signal projects in Florida. During emergencies, Trey is part of the transportation and engineering support team for Florida’s State Emergency Operations Center and has worked many hurricane events.

Trey’s transportation career spans over 30 years in the public and private sectors. Trey received his Civil Engineering degree from Georgia Tech and is a registered Professional Engineer in Florida and Georgia. He is a member of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials Committee on Data Management and Analytics and the Transportation Research Board Vehicle-Highway Automation Committee, as well as having served on many National Cooperative Highway Research Program project panels.

Ariel Wolf

Ariel Wolf leads Venable’s Autonomous and Connected Mobility group, where he counsels clients facing complex legal and policy issues at the intersection of automation, electrification, connectivity, data privacy, and cybersecurity. Ariel is a recognized thought leader who works closely with vehicle manufacturers, technology companies, advanced equipment suppliers, and software developers to navigate the emerging landscape being transformed by autonomous vehicles (AVs) and mobility technology.

Ariel’s legal work includes serving as general counsel to the Autonomous Vehicle Industry Association (AVIA), the nation’s leading coalition of AV developers, to advance federal, state, and international regulatory priorities for the AV industry. He provides sophisticated legal counseling to clients through the application of general transportation law to novel use cases and technologies and is a seasoned advocate who represents clients before agencies that include the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Previously, as a senior official in the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT), Ariel launched the Department’s Non-traditional and Emerging Transportation Technology (NETT) Council, oversaw the Department’s efforts on spectrum policy, and developed policies governing automated vehicles, drones, hyperloop, and other innovative technologies.

In addition to his legal work, Ariel leverages nearly two decades of government affairs experience to engage with federal and state policymakers and negotiate regulatory frameworks that govern AVs and related emerging mobility technology. He has testified before the U.S. Congress and across the country on autonomous and connected vehicle legislation and is frequently quoted by national media outlets on transportation developments. Ariel is a member of Venable’s Privacy Group and his work has been recognized by Legal 500.

Senator Jeff Brandes is a highly respected and accomplished leader who served in the Florida Legislature from 2010 to 2022. He represented District 24, which covered a majority of Pinellas County, and was known for his innovative and independent policy-making. Throughout his tenure, he consistently advocated for solutions to address Florida’s most challenging issues.

Brandes is a strong advocate for free market principles and has worked to reduce regulations and taxes to promote business development in Florida. He is a vocal supporter of cutting-edge technologies and has played a vital role in the state’s advancing self-driving vehicles, rideshare, and other emerging technologies. For over a decade, he has hosted the Florida Automated Vehicle Summit, which assembles industry leaders from around the world to address transportation technologies, operations, and policy issues.

He is a veteran, having served as an Army officer in the 101st Airborne Division in Iraq. This experience gave him a unique perspective on leadership and public service. He has also been an advocate for prison reform and worked to increase public safety through improvements in the criminal justice system. The former Senator continues to be an expert leader in property insurance reform.

Brandes is a business owner and serves on the boards of several community organizations. Senator Brandes lives in St. Petersburg and is dedicated to making Florida a better place to live, work, and raise a family. Since leaving office, he has founded the Florida Policy Project, a not-for-profit, non-partisan organization that researches best practices and better outcomes in housing affordability, property insurance, criminal justice, and transportation. The Florida Policy Project is working to impact state policy-making on these pillars.