Paul Eremenko

Paul Eremenko is the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Airbus Group, the parent company of Airbus, Airbus Helicopters, and Airbus Defence and Space. Prior to his appointment as CTO, Paul was the founding CEO of A³ by Airbus Group, the Silicon Valley outpost of Airbus Group, charged with pursuing projects that can be disruptive to the core business. Before joining the Airbus family, he was director of engineering at Google, in the Advanced Technology & Projects (ATAP) organization, where he headed Project Ara, including all engineering, design, and go-to-market activities. Previously he was an associate vice president at Motorola, where he conceived and led the development of Ara, a project to create a modular hardware ecosystem--rivaling mobile apps in the pace and level of innovation--around smartphones, with the goal of delivering the mobile internet to the next 5 billion people.

Prior to joining Motorola and then Google, Paul headed the Tactical Technology Office (TTO) at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the Pentagon’s principal engine for disruptive innovation. TTO is DARPA’s systems office responsible for all X-plane, spacecraft, ground vehicle, and robotics programs, totaling approximately $500 million annually. Previously, Paul developed and led DARPA's advanced design and manufacturing program portfolio, and also served as program manager for several space efforts, including the 100 Year Starship. For his work at DARPA, Paul was awarded the Distinguished Public Service Medal by the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

Earlier in his career, Paul was an aerospace design engineer, the chief engineer for an unmanned aircraft program, and a management consultant focusing on technology, innovation, and M&A strategies. He has undergraduate and Master's degrees in aeronautics from MIT and Caltech, respectively, and a law degree from Georgetown University. Paul is also a licensed pilot.