Andra Keay
Oakland,USA
Summary
"The best way to predict the future is to build it."
Performance-driven community builder with a passion for innovation, impact, diversity and entrepreneurship. Highly experienced in planning and implementing programs, strategic initiatives and building new business units. Experienced at all aspects of building go-to-market functions, including sales, business development, technical support, programs, strategy, marketing, operations, team building and product. Exceptionally high standards with exemplary bias for action and ownership.
Overview
13
13
years of professional experience
Work History
Managing Director
Silicon Valley Robotics
06.2011 - Current
- Created and managed a 501c6 industry association for the world's largest cluster of robotics innovation and commercialization.
- Developed bylaws, Board of Directors, Chart of Accounts, finances, memberships and sponsorships.
- Ensured that the brand of Silicon Valley Robotics captured global relevance. SVR is the founding member of two global robotics associations and the founding member of the US Robotics Clusters Organization. I have been asked to speak at or curate content for many global innovation or robotics conferences, and national forums.
- Liaised with stakeholders from academia and industry, and developed business activity priorities relevant to our mission. I own the relationships with investors, accelerators, research labs, industry and government partners, as well as with robotics and deep tech startups at all stages.
- Organized events, expos, startup workshops and webinars, with high levels of engagement and positive outcomes reported from our target audiences. Helped robotics companies with recruitment, business development, brand awareness, professional development and skills building, and investment deal flow.
- Spearheaded successful business development initiatives aligned with company's strategy and core competencies.
- Updated and shared SVR's experience of being at the forefront of startup innovation practices for hardware and deep tech founders, advising governments, universities and CVCs on the creation of diverse entrepreneurial ecosystems, including developing a robotics entrepreneurship curriculum for IEEE Entrepreneurship and IEEE Robotics and Automation Society.
- Oversaw operations and provided corrective feedback to achieve daily and long-term goals.
- Created and maintained communication and policy strategies, growing our audience both locally and internationally, to tens of thousands of subscribers and followers.
VP of Global Robotics
AMT
04.2022 - Current
- The Association for Manufacturing Technology is partnering with Silicon Valley Robotics to better serve innovation in US manufacturing, the small to medium enterprises and workforce that comprise the majority of manufacturing industry, and emerging robotics technology startups.
- Working with AMT, I developed and implemented new strategies and product offerings in collaboration with executive partners to leverage emerging technology trends and achieve long-term business objectives.
- Informed the US manufacturing community of the impacts and opportunities with new robotics technologies, leveraging my speaking, writing and presentation skills and SVR's global reputation.
- Spearheaded cross-functional initiatives across departments to capitalize on emerging market trends, providing content and thought leadership, outreach to new business partners, and attending trade shows and conferences.
Founder & President
Women In Robotics
01.2012 - Current
- Created the organization's mission and vision statements.
- Conducted target market research to scope out industry competition and identify advantageous trends.
- Developed key operational initiatives, including communication and policy strategies, to increase impact and engagement, including participating in global standards development for diversity in tech.
- Oversaw growth of a global non-profit organization with 14 chapters, thousands of community members, an annual scholarship and award list, and a highly regarded Board of Directors.
Education
MA Digital Culture – Human-Robot Interaction -
University of Sydney
12.2011
BA Communications, Film/TV/Radio, and Writing -
University of Technology
12.1998
Production Operations Trainee -
ABC
12.1986
Skills
- Operational Leadership
- Organizational Management
- Community Building & Stakeholder Management
- Research & Industry Foresight
- Strategic Planning
- Communications & Storytelling
- Business & Deal Flow Development
- Mentoring Entrepreneurs
Additional Activities
- Venture Partner at The Robotics Hub, 01/01/18, PRESENT, Seed stage VC fund for science based in robotics, AI, AR/VR and quantum technologies
- Creative Destruction Lab, Associate or Mentor, Toronto and Seattle, 01/01/18, PRESENT, Seed stage program for massively scalable science-based companies.
- Circuit Launch, Advisor, Oakland, 01/01/18, PRESENT, Hardware co-work space for robotics, AR/VR, biotech and IoT startups.
- Singularity University, Faculty, Global, 01/01/15, PRESENT, Benefit corporation at NASA Research Park that supports startup and community development to solve humanity’s grand challenges.
- Retail Robotics and AI Lab, Advisor, North Western University, 01/01/18, PRESENT, Research driven advisory group for retail industry focused on new technologies.
- Mindfire Global, Advisor, Switzerland, 01/01/18, 12/31/19, Non-profit focused on understanding the foundational principles of human intelligence, applied to AI.
- Maker Faire, Advisory Board, SF Bay Area, 06/01/18, 12/31/19, The largest celebration of invention, creativity, curiosity & hands-on learning with featured faires in Bay Area, New York & global faires.
- Udacity, Advisory Board, Global, 01/01/18, 12/31/18, Anyone can learn the latest technologies with expert led MOOCs.
- Robohub, Co-Founder & Director, Global, 01/01/12, 12/31/16, Non-profit to connect the robotics research to the rest of the world.
- Robot Garden, Founder & Director, Tri-Valley, 01/01/11, 06/30/18, Family friendly makerspace for robotics.
Thought Leadership
My various roles at the forefront of emerging technologies, combined with a background in social sciences, have allowed me to be a global spokesperson for innovation in robotics and AI and how we can use technology for good, while avoiding or mitigating the negatives. My experience includes keynoting at conferences like: WebSummit, Collision, Lesbians Who Tech, Dell Technology World, Global Female Leaders, Ada Lovelace Festival, O’Reilly’s Solid and Design, the Future in Review, Hello Tomorrow and Singularity.
Volunteer Experience
- IEEE Standards P3400, Committee & Working Group Member, Global, 06/01/22, PRESENT, Developing an inclusive terminology standard for global technology documentation.
- IEEE Robotics and Automation Society, VP of Industry, Global, 01/01/22, PRESENT, Coordinating and developing industry forums at robotics conferences.
- GLOBAL IEEE Entrepreneurship, Deep Tech Lead, Global, 01/01/22, PRESENT, Coordinating and developing programs for Deep Tech startups.
- OCEANIS, Committee & Working Group Member, Global, 01/01/19, PRESENT, Open Community for Ethics of Autonomous and Intelligent Systems –standards coordination organization.
- IEEE Global Committee on Autonomous Systems, Member, Global, 01/01/17, 06/30/19, The IEEE Global Initiative for Ethical Considerations in Artificial Intelligence and Autonomous Systems strives to ensure that every technologist is educated, trained, and empowered to prioritize ethical considerations in the design and development of autonomous and intelligent systems.
- Various Chair or CoChair positions at IEEE Technology Conferences, Humanoids 2023, CORL 2022, ICRA 2022, HRI 2020, ICRA 2018, HRI 2017
Affiliations
- Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
- Association for Computing Machinery
- Women in Robotics
- HRI Pioneer 2010
Timeline
VP of Global Robotics
AMT
04.2022 - Current
Founder & President
Women In Robotics
01.2012 - Current
Managing Director
Silicon Valley Robotics
06.2011 - Current
MA Digital Culture – Human-Robot Interaction -
University of Sydney
BA Communications, Film/TV/Radio, and Writing -
University of Technology
Production Operations Trainee -
ABC