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 Infineon Technologies

Manfred Harrer sitting in a car and smiling

Dr. Gutheit has a degree and a Ph.D. in physics from the TU Munich. He began his career in 1992 in the Daimler-Benz Research Center in Ulm. In 1996, he joined Infineon (then Siemens Semiconductors) and has since held various leadership roles across R&D and Operations.

Today, he is responsible for Technology & Innovation of Infineon’s Automotive division and handles the division’s innovation and pre-development strategy, including roadmaps for technology and development methodologies, the global development center footprint as well as the development of the skills and competencies of the R&D staff.

In his function as “Country R&D Officer Germany”, he represents Infineon’s R&D staff in Germany, around 5000 engineers at 10 locations. With his deep expertise in automotive semiconductors and innovation strategy, Dr. Gutheit will offer insights into key technological trends shaping the future of vehicles – from electrification and software-defined architectures to AI-enabled features and sustainable mobility.

Manfred Harrer

President & Head of R&D Division, Hyundai Motor Group

Manfred Harrer sitting in a car and smiling

Dr. Manfred Harrer is a globally recognized authority in automotive R&D. He specializes in the mission-critical convergence of hardware and software architecture.

As President and Head of R&D at Hyundai Motor Group, he leads a world-class global organization responsible for shaping the next generation of Hyundai, Kia and Genesis vehicles. With over 25 years of leadership experience at the industry’s most prestigious engineering centers, his expertise lies in complex vehicle integration and large-scale global product development. Dr. Harrer represents the modern R&D executive - balancing mechanical precision with digital agility.

From driving advanced product innovation in Silicon Valley to orchestrating large-scale engineering operations in Seoul. He has guided global technical teams through profound industry transformation. His insights provide a technical roadmap for how engineering excellence and software innovation must merge to define the future of global mobility.

Carsten Helbing

Co-CEO and COO of RV Tech

Carsten Helbing standing and looking into the camera.

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.

Marco Liccardo

Chief Technology & Digital Officer

Marco Liccardo standing in front of a white wall.

Marco Liccardo has worked for IVECO since the beginning of his career in 2001, which makes him an experienced leader with extensive knowledge of the Company and its products.Mr Liccardo graduated with a degree in Engineering from University Federico II of Naples, Italy, and holds an MBA in Management Systems from Consortium Qualital University in Pisa, Italy.Beginning his career at IVECO as a Quality Change Agent and Senior Testing Specialist, Mr Liccardo then moved to IVECO Latin America from 2009 to 2012 where he assumed the role of Engineering Director, leading the creation of a new R&D centre in Brazil. Following this, from 2012 to 2013 he worked as Product Development and Engineering Director for the full CNH Industrial product portfolio for the APAC region.The following year he became Vice President of Product Development and Engineering for the Medium and Heavy truck range, heading up the design and development of the new IVECO Way vehicle line-up. He was appointed Director of Commercial & Specialty Vehicles, Technology and Digital Segment in 2019, taking responsibility for all product development and engineering activities including the digital transformation of the entire IVECO product portfolio worldwide.Marco Liccardo is currently the Chief Technology & Digital Officer at Iveco Group.

Yuan Shen

SVP & CTO, Geely Holding Group

Yuan Shen standing in front of a light background.

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.

Wil van der Aalst

Chief Scientist, Celonis

Manfred Harrer sitting in a car and smiling

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.

Plenary Speakers 2025

Participants of the Opening Plenary Session

Group photo of Dr. Sabine Klauke, Dr. Holger Klein, Shunichi Inamijima, and Ruiping Wang at the Opening Plenary Session 2024.

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"

Group photo of Dr. Sabine Klauke, Dr. Holger Klein, Shunichi Inamijima, and Ruiping Wang at the Opening Plenary Session 2024.

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"

Closing discussion with Gerrit Marx, Michael Kuhn and Martin von Hoyningen-Huene

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

Group photo of Dr. Sabine Klauke, Dr. Holger Klein, Shunichi Inamijima, and Ruiping Wang at the Opening Plenary Session 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"

Closing discussion with Stephan Durach, Prof. Dr. Ralf G. Herrtwich, and Nikolai Ardey.

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

Panel of speakers at the Opening Plenary Session 2023, including Arnd Franz, Gürcan Karakas, Atsushi Ogawa, and Dr. Frederik Zohm 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

Closing discussion with Matthias Jurytko, Dr. Peter Laier, and Dr. Gerrit Marx Matthias Jurytko, CEO, Cellcentric
Dr. Peter Laier, Member of the Board, ZF Group
Dr. Gerrit Marx, CEO, IVECO Group

Plenary Speakers 2022

Panel of speakers at the Opening Plenary Session 2022, featuring Hans Schep (General Manager, Ford Pro, Europe) and Kai-Uwe Wollenhaupt (President, SVOLT Europe and Vice President, SVOLT Energy Technology). Opening Plenary Session 2022
Hans Schep General Manager, Ford Pro, Europe
Kai-Uwe Wollenhaupt, President SVOLT Europe and Vice President SVOLT Energy Technology

Closing discussion with Axel Gern (Senior Vice President of Engineering and Managing Director of Torc Europe GmbH) and Gerrit Marx (Chief Executive Officer of IVECO Group). 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

Panel of speakers at the Opening Plenary Session 2021, featuring Markus Duesmann (Chairman of the Board of Management, AUDI AG) and Dr.-Ing. Stefan Hartung (Member of the Board of Management, Robert Bosch GmbH) 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 discussion with Prof. Dr. Ralf G. Herrtwich (Senior Director Automotive Software, NVIDIA, Berlin) and Dr. Byung-Ki Ahn (Senior Vice President, Electric Powertrain BU, Hyundai MOBIS, Korea). 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

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