Advanced Manufacturing Boston Announces Former Verb Surgical CEO and Boston Dynamics’ Vice President of Product Engineering as 2019 Keynote Speakers

Former CEO of Verb Surgical, Scott Huennekens, and Vice President, Product Engineering of Boston Dynamics, Kevin Blankespoor to headline two-day event


SANTA MONICA, Calif., March 26, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Advanced Manufacturing Boston, comprised of BIOMEDevice, Embedded Systems Conference and Design & Manufacturing New England, today announced Scott Huennekens, former president and CEO of Verb Surgical, and Kevin Blankespoor, vice president of Product Engineering at Boston Dynamics, will headline the two-day conference and expo as keynote speakers for its 2019 edition. The event takes place May 15 and 16 at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center in Boston, MA. To apply for a media pass to attend, please visit: boston.am.ubm.com/2019/registrations/Media.

“We are excited to host distinguished leaders from two of the most influential companies in the design engineering and medical space, Verb Surgical and Boston Dynamics, who will illuminate what it takes to succeed in these increasingly intertwined markets,” said Amy Sklar, Group SVP, Advanced Manufacturing Communities, UBM.

About Scott Huennekens:

A successful medical device entrepreneur, Scott Huennekens has held positions including CEO, board member and investor at more than 10 startups with market valuations totaling over $5 billion. He most recently served as president and CEO of Verb Surgical, Google and Johnson & Johnson’s surgical robotics startup. Huennekens graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science in business administration from the University of Southern California and earned an MBA from the Harvard Business School.

Huennekens’ keynote address, Fireside Chat with Scott Huennekens, Serial Entrepreneur, Former CEO Verb Surgical, Volcano Corporation, will take place Wednesday, May 15 at Center Stage from 1 p.m. to 1:45 p.m.

In this address, Huennekens will sit down with Massachusetts Medical Device Industry Council (MassMEDIC) President Brian Johnson to discuss Medtech 4.0 and how the intersection of robotics, artificial intelligence and medical devices will change the future of care. Huennekens, fresh off this tenure as the founding CEO of Verb Surgical, will discuss lessons learned from the front lines of leading disruptive medical technology companies like Verb and Volcano, and what all medtech needs to know about the future of care. 

“The medical technology sector is a collaborative and open landscape and we are thrilled to play a part in continuing the spread of the latest ideas and information to support those contributing to the growth of the space,” said Brian Johnson, president, MassMEDIC.

About Kevin Blankespoor:

In his current role as Vice President of product engineering at Boston Dynamics, Kevin Blankespoor has led development of the BigDog, LS3, Atlas and Handle robots in addition to writing the control software that first enabled Boston Dynamics’ legged robots to dynamically balance and walk outside in real-world situations. He received his bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Virginia and his master’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Colorado.

Blankespoor’s keynote address, Exploring Real World Applications for Dynamic Robots, will take place Thursday, May 16 at Center Stage from 1:15 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Building off of years of research and development as well as experience transitioning Boston Dynamics’ robotic prototypes into real-world applications and functional products, Blankespoor’s address will highlight different working applications for mobile robots in the real world. Blankespoor will also discuss core capabilities in dynamic mobility, mobile manipulation and systems engineering that are relevant not only to research robotics, but also to building the first generation of mobile products. The address will also feature a live demo of Boston Dynamics’ robot, Spot.

For more information on the 2019 Keynote speakers visit here: https://esc-boston.com/

Connect with Advanced Manufacturing Boston: #AdvMfgExpo #BIOMEDevice #ESCconf

Media Contacts:
Audrey Uchimoto, advmanufacturingpr@ubm.com, (310) 496-9423
Lauren Lloyd, advmanufacturingpr@ubm.com, (310) 266-4792
Tam Nguyen, advmanufacturingpr@ubm.com, (424) 410-9797

About Advanced Manufacturing Expos & Conferences:
UBM's Advanced Manufacturing portfolio is the leading B-to-B event producer, publisher and digital media business for the world's $3-trillion advanced, technology-based manufacturing industry. Our print and electronic products deliver trusted information to the advanced manufacturing market and leverage our proprietary 1.3-million-name database to connect suppliers with buyers and purchase influencers. We produce more than 50 events and conferences in a dozen countries, connecting manufacturing professionals from around the globe. The Advanced Manufacturing portfolio is organized by UBM, which in June 2018 combined with Informa PLC to become a leading B2B information services group and the largest B2B events organizer in the world. To learn more and for the latest news and information, visit www.ubm.com and www.informa.com.


            

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