#210 – Chris Borroni-Bird – How the Developed World Can Learning from the Developing World for a Better Mobility Future

Building Better with Brandon Bartneck

Chris Birroni-Bird joins for a Round 2 discussion on the Future of Mobility podcast. Summary

The conversation explores the broken transportation ecosystem and how the developed world can learn from the developing world. The focus is on creating a transportation system that is accessible, affordable, and sustainable. The discussion highlights the need to right-size vehicles, embrace solar power, and rethink mobility in city centers.

Links:

• Show notes: http://brandonbartneck.com/futureofmobility/chrisborronibird
• Edison Manufacturing Exchange: https://brandonbartneck.substack.com/publish/home

Takeaways

• The transportation ecosystem needs to be accessible, affordable, and sustainable.
• Right-sizing vehicles can meet 90% of transportation needs and reduce costs.
• Solar power can extend the range of vehicles and reduce emissions.
• Rethinking mobility in city centers can improve safety and create local manufacturing opportunities.
• Low-speed or banned cars and smaller form factor vehicles can enhance the urban environment. Implementing speed limits in city centers can improve safety, noise, and air quality.
• Electronically governing the speed of vehicles can create opportunities for low-speed vehicles to provide affordable mobility for underserved populations and cheaper delivery of goods.
• Building locally with locally available materials can create good quality jobs and promote sustainability.
• Right-sizing vehicles and leveraging solar power can make mobility solutions more affordable and environmentally friendly.

Chris Birroni-Bird

Dr. Christopher Borroni-Bird is Founder of Afreecar LLC and an expert on sustainable and affordable mobility for ALL the world’s people. This builds on his 25-year career leading advanced mobility initiatives at several major organizations as well as volunteering in sub-Saharan Africa.

At Afreecar he is a senior advisor on future mobility to McKinsey and is also sought out to provide independent technical due diligence on future mobility solutions and companies in vehicle autonomy, connectivity and electrification.

Separately, Afreecar is also developing an e-kit that power assists non-motorized vehicles while also transforming them into mobile power sources, which has many applications in both the developing and developed worlds.

He served as Waymo’s Chief Engineer for Future Vehicle Programs and has been a Research Scientist at MIT Media Lab. From 2012 to 2017, he was Qualcomm’s VP of Strategic Development, responsible for wireless automotive solutions. Prior to this, he led GM’s Electric Networked Vehicle (EN-V), the world’s first drivable vehicles to demonstrate today’s accepted vision of future mobility (and extensively deployed at the 2010 Shanghai World Expo). He led GM’s Autonomy, Hy-wire and Sequel “skateboard” electric vehicle concepts, now widely adopted by the Auto Industry, and has 50 patents. He is co-author of “Reinventing the Automobile: Personal Urban Mobility for the 21st Century”, with Larry Burns and the late Bill Mitchell (MIT Press, 2010). Before joining GM in 2000, he led Chrysler’s gasoline fuel cell vehicle development. He was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame as a Young Leader in 2000 and was one of Automotive News’ inaugural “Electrifying 100” in 2011

Future of Mobility:

The Future of Mobility podcast is focused on the development and implementation of safe, sustainable, effective, and accessible mobility solutions, with a spotlight on the people and technology advancing these fields.

Edison Manufacturing and Engineering:

Edison is your low volume contract manufacturing partner, focused on assembly of complex mobility and energy products that don’t neatly fit within traditional high-volume production methods.