U-M EV Center Surge Session Webinar w/Larry Burns, former GM VP of R&D
U-M EV Center Surge Session Webinar:
Transforming Mobility with Autonomous Electric Vehicles at Scale
Date/Time: Monday, May 18, 2026, 2 p.m. ET
Autonomous electric vehicles at scale will transform how people move around. In anticipation of this change, the UM EV Center funded research to assess potential future mobility systems compared to today’s personal automobile centric system. This presentation summarizes the digital twin model developed to assess future mobility systems. This model uses automobile trip data from the seven-county region comprising Southeast Michigan and simulates mobility system opportunities to satisfy actual travel demand. Results from a case study for Ann Arbor suggest autonomous electric robo-taxi systems at scale can significantly improve mobility with lower consumer and societal cost. Potential impacts on fleet utilization, roadway safety and parking appear especially compelling.
About the Speakers
Larry is one of the foremost voices in mobility and innovation. A member of the National Academy of Engineering and author of Autonomy and Reinventing the Automobile, he has advised Waymo, Columbia University, and major companies on the future of transportation, and was a keynote speaker at the inaugural EVC Symposium.
Saif Benjaafar is the Seth Bonder Collegiate Professor of Industrial and Operations Engineering at U-M and Co-Director of the Tauber Institute for Global Operations, with deep expertise in shared mobility, on-demand services, and sustainable operations. Jingyuan Wan is a Ph.D. candidate in Industrial and Operations Engineering at U-M, where his research focuses on probabilistic models and on-demand service platforms. Bhavye Mathur is a U-M undergraduate in Computer Science and Honors Mathematics with expertise in simulation and optimization.
About the U-M EVC Surge Session Webinar Series:
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