The 2023 MB DART Symposium

The 2023 MBDart Symposium, held from October 11-13, featured an extensive array of sessions and workshops focusing on advanced air mobility (AAM), drone technology, and robotics. Highlights included a short-course on AAM integration, tours of Joby Aviation’s facilities, and workshops on economic and workforce development. Prominent speakers from industry, academia, and government led discussions on infrastructure, policy, and innovation. The event concluded with sessions on public-private partnerships and community engagement, emphasizing the future of workforce development in the Monterey Bay region.

Speakers Included:

Keynote Speakers

Senator Anna Caballero: California State Senator, 14th Senate District
Sarasina Tuchen: US Department of Transportation, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology
Raquel Girvin: FAA Western-Pacific Region Regional Administrator
Matt Field: Chief Financial Officer, Joby Aviation
Lori Pepper: Deputy Secretary for Innovative Mobility Solutions, CalSTA
Dr. Carl Dietrich: Founder/CEO/CTO, Jump Aero
Dean Donovan: Managing Director, Diamond Stream Partners
Daniel Theobald: Vecna Robotics / MassRobotics / Mekable / Twisted Fields

Featured Speakers

Adam Cohen: University of California, Berkeley
Adrienne Lindgren: Hyundai Urban Air Mobility
Alexi Sevastopoulos: Founding Member, Armature Systems | SCU Venture Accelerator | Santa Clara Ventures | Santa Cruz Ventures
Andrea Pesce: UC Santa Cruz | DART Board of Directors Member
Andrew Mearns: Multicopter Consulting
Becca Fenwick: CITRIS, UC Santa Cruz
Brad Barbeau: CSU Monterey Bay | DART Board of Directors Member
Brian Miller: Kern Career Technical Education Center
Chris Bley: Airspace Integration | DART Board of Directors Member
Clint Cowden: Hartnell College
Cody Cleverly: Joby Aviation
Darryl Wong: UCSC Center for Agroecology
Elizabeth Posey: The Irvine Foundation
Ethan Rublee: Founder, Farm-NG
George Kivork: Joby Aviation
J. Kent Morgan: J. Kent Morgan Consulting, LLC
Jennifer Kuan: CSUMB College of Business
John Eberhart: ATA, LLC
Jon Sisk: EVP Chief Banking Officer, Santa Cruz County Bank
Josh Metz: Monterey Bay DART
Ken Smith: Salinas Inclusive Economic Development Initiative (SIEDI)
Lawrence Samuels: Senior Advisor to the Chancellor of UC Santa Cruz
Lon Hatamiya: Hatamiya Group
Maria Elena Manzo: Mujeres en Acción
Marylou Shockley: Dean, CSUMB College of Business
Matt Beatty: Founder, Advanced Aviation Alignment (A3)
Matt Nelson: Marina Municipal Airport
Matthew Friedman: CalTrans Division of Aeronautics
Michael Gutierrez: Hartnell College
Peter Church: Joby Aviation
Raja Sengupta: UC Berkeley
Ricardo Sanfelice: UC Santa Cruz
Richard Vaughn: County of Monterey
Rosalyn Green: MPC Board Member
Shari Tavaf: Monterey Bay DART
Tom Horvath: Dean, CSUMB College of Science
Toni Gomez: GoBiz
Walt Duflock: Western Growers Innovation Center (WGIC)
Yolanka Wulff: Community Air Mobility Initiative