Founder & CEO, Automobility Ltd

Bill Russo is the Shanghai-based Founder and CEO of Automobility Limited, a strategy and investment advisory firm helping its clients to build and profit from the future of mobility. His 40+ years of industry experience includes 15 years as an automotive executive with Chrysler, including 22 years of experience in China and Asia. He has also worked nearly 12 years in the electronics and information technology industry with IBM and Harman. He has worked as an advisor and consultant for numerous multinational and local Chinese firms in the formulation and implementation of their global market and product strategies. He has served as a Board Director for AGP Group, one of the world’s leading automotive glazing suppliers. Mr. Russo is also the Chairman of the Automotive Committee at the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai.

In his current role, Mr. Russo advises start-ups, corporations, and investors on how to maximize their participation in China’s Smart Mobility Revolution. To achieve success, he believes they must expand their focus from the product (the automobile) to the utility derived from the product (“automobility”) and create a business model and digital ecosystem optimized to provide digitally enabled solutions for both car owners and mobility services users.

Prior to this, Mr. Russo was the regional head of Chrysler in Northeast Asia, where he successfully negotiated agreements with partners and obtained required approvals from the Chinese government to bring six new vehicle programs to the market in a three-year period, while concurrently establishing an infrastructure for local sourcing and sales distribution.

Mr. Russo has a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from Columbia University in New York, and a Master of Science in Manufacturing Systems Engineering from Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Mr. Russo is a highly sought after opinion leader on the development of the China’s market and its automotive industry.