Dr. Aravind Kailas manages innovation and R&D initiatives to create and commercialize sustainable transport solutions for the Volvo Group. By promoting the company’s creative assets and key technology positions in various fora, he has been instrumental in establishing the Volvo Group as a trusted thought leader in California. Dr. Kailas has led Volvo’s engagement with the public and private sectors, and other outreach efforts in the connected and autonomous vehicles spaces. Dr. Kailas created a unique regional partnership to assess air quality improvements along freight corridors near the ports, and also spearheaded local partner development for the Volvo electric truck roll-out in the US. He has initiated many activities with startups and customers to address critically needed technologies and explore new business opportunities for the Volvo Group.

Dr. Kailas is also a part-time Instructor at California State University Long Beach, and has previously held positions at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, QUALCOMM, Inc., DOCOMO Innovations, Inc., and General Electric. Author of over 100 publications and quoted in many media outlets, Dr. Kailas has delivered more than 50 invited talks globally, and served on numerous international jury panels on research and technology, advisory boards of non-governmental organizations and academic institutions. His scholarly work has been recognized by numerous accolades, including the Patricia F. Waller and Deborah Freund Awards from the Transportation Research Board. He has earned degrees in Applied Mathematics and Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Georgia Institute of Technology.