Aichatou Sar Evans (born 1969), known professionally as Aicha Evans, is an American

chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

of Amazon's self-driving car subsidiary Zoox. In June 2020, Evans led the acquisition of her company by

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology c ...

for US$1.3 billion.

Early life and education

Evans was born in Senegal and spent her childhood in Paris. After immigrating to the United States, she studied at

The George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , preside ...

in Washington, D.C., where she received a bachelor's degree in Computer Engineering in 1996.

Career

Evans has held engineering management positions at companies including Rockwell Semiconductor,

Conexant Conexant Systems, Inc. was an American-based software developer and fabless semiconductor company that developed technology for voice and audio processing, imaging and modems. The company began as a division of Rockwell International, before bei ...

, and Skyworks Solutions. Evans joined

Intel Intel Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Santa Clara, California. It is the world's largest semiconductor chip manufacturer by revenue, and is one of the developers of the x86 seri ...

in 2006, and spent 12 years with the firm, specializing in leading wireless engineering projects utilizing technologies like

Bluetooth Bluetooth is a short-range wireless technology standard that is used for exchanging data between fixed and mobile devices over short distances and building personal area networks (PANs). In the most widely used mode, transmission power is limi ...

Wireless LAN A wireless LAN (WLAN) is a wireless computer network A wireless network is a computer network that uses wireless data connections between network nodes. Wireless networking is a method by which homes, telecommunications networks and bus ...

, XMM register, and 5G. In 2013, Evans assumed leadership of a communications and devices division with more than 7,000 employees. In 2017, Evans was promoted to Chief Strategy Officer. In a

Federal Trade Commission The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is an independent agency of the United States government whose principal mission is the enforcement of civil (non-criminal) antitrust law and the promotion of consumer protection. The FTC shares jurisdiction ov ...

case against

Qualcomm Qualcomm () is an American multinational corporation headquartered in San Diego, California, and incorporated in Delaware. It creates semiconductors, software, and services related to wireless technology. It owns patents critical to the 5G, 4 ...

, Evans served as a witness alleging unfair business practices and potential anti-trust violations. In February 2019, Evans joined Zoox as its new CEO. In doing so, she became the first Senegalese-American female CEO of an autonomous vehicle technology company. In June 2020, Evans led the acquisition of her company by

for US$1.3 billion. A ''Forbes'' analysis suggests that Evans' decision to pursue aggressive patent coverage in the mobility space led to Amazon's interest. Evans will continue to manage the company as a stand-alone business post-acquisition.

Volunteer and community work

Evans serves as a trustee for the Anita Borg Institute for Women & Technology. She was a co-signatory of an open letter written by the

Silicon Valley Leadership Group The Silicon Valley Leadership Group (abbreviated SVLG) is a non-profit advocacy group in Silicon Valley, California, in the United States. Its members are businesses that operate in the valley and its purpose is to influence public policy rela ...

addressing racial intolerance of Chinese Americans in the wake of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

Honors and awards

* 2019: Named to ''

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''s list of 100 People Transforming Business in the transportation category * George Washington University Engineering Hall of Fame * Evans was selected for the inaugural 2021

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...

50 Over 50; made up of entrepreneurs, leaders, scientists and creators who are over the age of 50.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Aicha 1969 births Living people Senegalese emigrants to the United States 21st-century American businesspeople American technology chief executives