Canada-based auto parts manufacturer Magna International announced that Tony Fadell, the inventor of the iPod and an inventor on Apple’s iPhone, and founder of internet-of-things maker Nest, will join Magna’s tech advisory council.
The move is seen as further bridging the gap between Silicon Valley and the automotive industry.
“Magna’s deep vehicle systems knowledge and electronics capabilities, combined with its global engineering and manufacturing expertise, are remarkable,” said Fadell said in a Magna press release. “They are in a great position to help drive change in the auto industry and I am excited to be working with such an innovative company.”
Magna has 317 manufacturing operations, 102 product development, engineering and sales centers in 29 countries, and employs more than 155,000 people worldwide.
Magna’s tech advisory council also includes:
•Swamy Kotagiri, Magna’s CTO
•Mei-Wei Cheng, a member of the Board of Directors of Seagate Technology PLC and recently served as non-executive Chairman of Pactera. He was the former CEO and President for the Chinese subsidiaries of AT&T, Siemens Ford Motor Company and General Electric. He holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering/operations research from Cornell University and an MBA from Rutgers University.
•Dr. Ian Hunter, a professor of mechanical engineering and runs the BioInstrumentation Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
•John Maddox, the CEO of the American Center for Mobility. He began his career as a Research Engineer at Ford Motor Co.
•Paul Mascarenas, a member of the Board of Directors at ON Semiconductor and the United States Steel Corp.
