About
I currently lead the product intelligence and systems simulation effort at Wisk Aero, a joint venture between Kitty Hawk and Boeing that is at the forefront of advanced air mobility and urban air mobility (UAM). We are developing a fully autonomous electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft to be used in metropolitan environments as an efficient and sustainable new transportation mode.
Before Wisk, I completed my Ph.D at the University of California, Berkeley. My dissertation work was stationed at the intersection of city planning, computer science, and transportation engineering, in what is known as “urban computing.” More specifically, I developed simulation software to understand the effects of urban air mobility on travel behavior and congestion in metropolitan environments.
My background is in electrical engineering and computer sciences, with a focus on wireless embedded and IoT systems, machine learning, parallel computing, and data science. After my Master’s but before my Ph.D, I worked as a digital signal processing software engineer for several years at Tarana Wireless Inc., a startup developing high-capacity, non-line-of-sight wireless backhaul and fixed access.
I co-founded an NSF-funded company, Perpetual Systems Inc., that provided long-range wireless power for UAVs. We were too early, as UAVs had not yet become prevalent in industrial and commercial applications. We shall see as the market evolves.
My research interests include emergent urban mobility; urban air mobility; machine learning and deep learning in the context of urban computing and wireless applications; network science and graph theory; wireless systems; beamforming; and wireless communication. I also enjoy scholarship in urban macroeconomics, urban design, and urban morphology.
I have a passion for technology, cities, sports, travel, music, food, and learning about others. I tend to get lost in: (1) my thoughts, ruminating about the state of the world and how it can be improved, and (2) my surroundings, soaking in architecture, scenery, and people. Friends have called me an idealist, and I can’t argue with that.
I love neighborhoods, trees, trains, and coffee shops. I dislike long blocks, wide streets, freeways in cities, and giantism. Le Corbusier and Robert Moses aren’t the closest friends of mine.
I think switching words around in a sentence to make an idea seem profound is the biggest hack in the English language.
I was born and raised outside Columbus, Ohio (Dublin); have lived in the SF Bay Area and New York; and am currently based in San Francisco.
I love my wife and 2-yr old son (who always asks to see maps, even from day 1!); parents; brother, sister-in-law, and two twin nephews; the rest of my family; and my friends. They are my rocks.
LinkedIn: @pavyedav
Github: @pavyedav
Twitter: @pavyedav