More than 250 representatives from industry, government and academia gathered in Athens for the fifth annual Electric Mobility Summit on April 14 and 15 at the University of Georgia Center for Continuing Education & Hotel. Organized by UGA’s Georgia Network for Electric Mobility, the summit centered on how emerging technologies can be more effectively integrated into real-world transportation systems across Georgia and the broader Southeast “Battery Belt.”

This year’s summit, “Powering the Next Era of Mobility: From Early Momentum to Market Maturity,” began with remarks from Alton Standifer, vice provost for academic and community engagement and chair of UGA’s Electric Mobility Executive Council; Alessandro (Alex) Orso, dean of UGA’s College of Engineering; and Jaime Camelio, recently appointed GNEM executive director.

“At GNEM, the mission is to accelerate electric and future mobility adoption by advancing research and development, strengthening community partnerships, increasing EV and autonomous mobility awareness and preparing the next generation of talent,” Camelio said. “The vision is to cultivate a world-leading ecosystem for electric mobility here in Georgia.”

Founded in 2022, GNEM is a statewide and university-wide initiative focused on electric mobility and transportation innovation, research and economic development around Georgia and beyond. The network is led by council members from the Office of the Provost, the College of Engineering, the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, the Odum School of Ecology, the Office of Business Engagement, the School of Public and International Affairs, Public Service and Outreach and the Terry College of Business.

In his opening remarks, Standifer characterized the summit’s focus as “grounded in progress, but focused on what it takes to move forward from where the industry is today.”

“Through the Georgia Network for E-Mobility, we’re working to identify key gaps, support coordination and enable execution at scale,” Standifer said. “Our initial work here at UGA has evolved into a statewide effort including what is now Georgia’s premier cross-sector convening for electric, autonomous and future mobility.”

Speakers for this year’s summit included GNEM founding partners and board of advisors members Stuart Countess, president and CEO of Kia Georgia Inc., and Joe George, president of mobility at Cox Automotive Inc. Additionally, 35 panelists represented more than 20 industry organizations, five public sector entities and 10 academic units. The event featured a keynote presentation by Arthur Tripp Jr., vice president of economic development at Georgia Power. In total, the summit brought together participants from more than 15 UGA colleges, schools and units, along with more than 95 organizations from across the statewide and national electric mobility ecosystem.

In the conference’s plenary session, Gabrielle Pierre, GNEM director of strategy and partnerships and editor-in-chief of the GNEM think tank, highlighted how the industry is moving beyond early momentum into a new era defined by both technological advancement and system-level complexity and friction. She traced the path from infrastructure considerations and market dynamics to supply chain and workforce development challenges. 

“This is the end of easy tailwinds in electric mobility. The challenge now is system alignment, and autonomy will only intensify that pressure,” Pierre said. “The regions that win will be those that execute and coordinate the system most effectively, and Georgia is already demonstrating what that looks like.”

Day one ended with a poster session and reception sponsored by UGA’s Franklin College, featuring twelve projects from across UGA’s electric and future mobility ecosystem including the UGA Sustainability Certificate program, the Carl Vinson Institute of Government’s “Plug into Georgia” initiative, the College of Engineering Capstone Design program, the UGA E‑Mobility Seed Grant, the GNEM Think Tank and EV Summer Exchange Research Fellows.

On the second day of the summit, attendees participated in workforce-focused sessions and interactive demonstrations about the practical deployment of electric and future mobility technologies. Demonstrations included eight electric vehicles from major manufacturers such as Kia, Rivian, Lucid and Tesla, as well as robotics systems and fire safety technologies. A featured live demonstration showcased the ELSA liquid nitrogen battery fire suppression system from Carver Fire, offering a real-world example of novel safety solutions for electric vehicle infrastructure.  

Sponsors of the fifth annual Electric Mobility Summit were the Georgia Power Company; Cox Automotive; Kia Georgia Inc.; the Georgia Automotive Manufacturers Association; Worksource Georgia, an initiative of the Technical College System of Georgia; the UGA College of Engineering; the UGA Franklin College of Arts and Sciences; and the Georgia Automotive Dealers Association.

The full conference agenda, recorded plenary session and the Georgia State of E-Mobility 2026 whitepaper are available at emobility.uga.edu.