This episode comes from the panel discussion portion of the first Future of Mobility LIVE virtual event, recorded on November 11, 2021. The conversation features Chris Thomas, Co-Founder and Partner at Assembly Ventures and Gabriel Scheer, Director of Innovation at Elemental Excelerator.
Future of Mobility LIVE is designed to bring together individuals who are working towards the common mission of making transportation safer and more sustainable. The event includes live networking sessions designed to plant the seeds for future collaboration, as well as a panel discussion focused on having a transparent discussion about the optimal path forward.
If you missed this event, make sure to follow me (Brandon Bartneck) on LinkedIn to catch the next LIVE event in early 2022.
For now, please enjoy the audio from the panel discussion.
Key topics include:
- Why infrastructures and systems are critical as we seek to make transportation more sustainable
- What Gabriel and Chris look for in a promising founding team
- Why technology development alone won’t solve our problems
- How Gabriel and Chris are thinking about identifying the next round of impactful innovations, and how they can help these ideas come to fruition
Listen here:
Apple Podcasts: link
Google Podcasts: link
Spotify: link
Links:
- Gabriel’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabrielscheer/
- Elemental Excelarator’s website: https://elementalexcelerator.com/
- Chris’s LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/christopherthomas/
- Assembly Ventures Medium page: medium.com/assembly-ventures
Chris’s bio:
Chris Thomas is a Co-Founder of the Detroit Mobility Lab, an entity dedicated to helping Detroit become one of the world’s foremost future mobility ecosystems. He is also Co-Founder and Partner of Assembly Ventures. Prior to the Detroit Mobility Lab he co-founded Fontinalis Partners and worked to build it into one of the premier investment firms in next-generation mobility. While at Fontinalis Chris served as a Board Member for nuTonomy (acquired by Aptiv in October 2017) and Karamba Security and as a Board Observer at Parkmobile (acquired by BMW in January 2018), Life360 (IPO in May 2019), Ouster, and SmartKargo. Prior to Fontinalis Chris served in the U.S. Army as a Communications Officer in the U.S. and Iraq. Before joining the military, Chris worked as an Investment Banker at UBS within its Technology and Energy groups in New York and San Francisco.
Additionally, Chris advises a number of mobility startups around the globe, acts as a Senior Advisor to the COMMIT Foundation, and is a member of the Global Cleantech 100 expert panel. He is also a Co-Owner of Buddy’s Pizza, the birthplace of original Detroit-style pizza, and an avid angel investor. Chris has previously served as the Chairman of Read to a Child, a national children’s literacy and mentoring nonprofit, and as a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Personal Transportation Systems.
Chris earned his Master’s degree in Business Administration from the Yale School of Management. While at Yale he served on the Honor Committee and graduated with distinction in former Prime Minister Tony Blair’s seminar on Faith and Globalization. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in both Economics and International Relations from Michigan State University. Chris is a resident of the City of Detroit where he lives with his wife and sons. He is a staunch advocate of connected communities, early childhood literacy, and the doctrine of the strenuous life.
Gabriel’s Bio:
Gabriel Scheer is Director of Innovation at Elemental Excelerator, working with the organization’s energy and mobility portfolio companies and partners. He leverages his deep experience with mobility, renewables, and energy efficiency to help companies grow and thrive, with the aim of shifting the global paradigm away from carbon-based solutions. Prior to Elemental, Gabriel worked for three different micromobility companies, and was on the founding team at Lime as the first government relations staffer. He has also previously served as General Manager for car-sharing company Zipcar. Additionally, he spent three years at Frog Design and built his own social innovation consultancy.
He holds a bachelor’s degree from Luther College and master’s degrees in Public Affairs and Applied International Studies (both with a focus on environmental management) from the University of Washington. Gabriel is a frequent public speaker, a Marshall Memorial Fellowship recipient, was recognized by Seattle Magazine as one of the most influential people in the city, and selected as part of Chase Jarvis’ “100 Seattle Influencers.” Outside of the office, Gabriel enjoys traveling, connecting with people, reading, cycling, ultimate, making and listening to music, and exploring the great outdoors.
Future of Mobility:
The Future of Mobility podcast is focused on the development and implementation of safe, sustainable, and equitable mobility solutions, with a spotlight on the people and technology advancing these fields.