TITLE: Senior Vice President and President, Qualcomm Europe/Middle East/Africa

COMPANY: Qualcomm

BASED: Rome

NATIONALITY: Italian

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

Enrico Salvatori holds a master’s degree in electronic engineering from the University of Rome. Prior to joining Qualcomm in 2002, he was chief technology officer at Telit, a handset maker, and was technical director at Elsacom, a satellite service provider. At Qualcomm, he started as director of technical marketing in Europe, and he is now a senior vice president and president of the Europe/Middle East/Africa region.

REASON FOR WINNING

Much of the promise of the “software-defined car” relies on hardware and connectivity, and that is where Qualcomm is quickly becoming the go-to supplier for automakers. Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Digital Chassis, a set of open, scalable platforms for use in connectivity, digital cockpits and advanced driver-assistance systems, has led to a pipeline worth some $30 billion.

Qualcomm now counts Renault, Volvo, Hyundai, Mercedes-Benz, Stellantis and Volkswagen as customers. The collaboration with Stellantis, announced in April, will include vehicles across all of the automaker’s 14 brands, starting with Maserati in 2024. It is part of the chipmaker’s push to work directly with automakers rather than through Tier 1 suppliers, Salvatori says. “Tier 1s still have a role to play,” he said, “but now there is a direct channel established with the automakers.”