Finch Fulton

Finch was also previously deputy assistant secretary for policy, and the nominee to be assistant secretary for transportation policy, at the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT). There, Finch co-led the development of the USDOT's infrastructure proposal, which set the foundation for the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, organized and advised on the department's discretionary grant programs, and developed the department's automated vehicle, drone, and advanced technology policies.

• Board Member and Treasurer: BEST Robotics (May 2021 - May 2025)
• Board Member and Treasurer: Partners for Automated Vehicle Education (PAVE) (Oct 2021 - Present)
   

• November 2025: Vehicle Automation: Exploring Fundamentals, Policy Challenges, and Opportunities for Level 3 Vehicles; Alliance for Automotive Innovators
• November 2025: Workforce and Automated Driving Systems: At the edge of industrial transformation; Automted Transportation Symposium, The Society of Automotive Engineers
• October 2025: Partners for Automated Vehicle Education Annual Summit
• June 2025: National Summit on AV Leadership; Panel on Clearing the Road–Investment, Regulation & Policy Alignment; Safety21, the US DOT National University Transportation Center for Promoting Safety.
• May 2025: Roundtable on Emerging Automotive Technologies; Hudson Institute
• April 2025: Regulating an Autonomous Present and Future; Advanced Clean Transportation Expo
• April 2025: Accelerating Infrastructure Development Through Private Partnerships; Meridiam
• March 2025: Safe and Connected Autonomous Transportation; USDOT University Transportation Centers National Safety Summit 
• March 2025: Kickoff Keynote; ITS America Policy Summit
• February 2025: The Road Ahead: Navigating AV Policy and Progress in 2025; Partners for Automated Vehicle Education Virtual Panel
• February 2025: Trump, China & Autonomous Vehicles: Inside Look at U.S. Transportation Policy, The Road to Autonomy podcast
• February 2025: Realistic View of New Funding Landscape; National Association of Regional Councils
• February 2025: US V2X Vision: Bridging Gaps and Accelerating Deployment in the US; 5G Automotive Association 
• February 2025: Road Dog News, Road Dog Trucking Radio with Mark Willis
• January 2025: Post-election changes in the mobility and transportation policy landscape; Council on Future Mobility and Electrification
• January 2025: Autonomous Vehicle Roundtable; Consumer Technology Association and Partners for Automated Vehicle Education
• October 2024: Embedded System Software Engineering Lecture, Carnegie Mellon University
• September 2024: Episode 227 | Autonomous Vehicles, Regulation and the 2024 Presidential Election; The Road to Autonomy podcast
• June 2024: Driving Equity: The Benefits and Impact of AVs on Underserved Communities; Bipartisan Policy Center
• April 2024: Episode 195 | Navigating Policy and Labor Challenges in The Autonomy Economy; The Road to Autonomy podcast
• April 2024: The Future of federal efforts around vehicle electrification; S&P Global Mobility Council Meeting
• July 2023: the History of automated vehicle policy and what is coming next from the Federal government; Automated Road Transportation Symposium
• May 2023: AVs, EVs and the Future of Trucking; International Foodservice Distributors Association
• August 2022: Tomorrow Today podcast on re-engineering the supply chain with automation; The Society of Automotive Engineers
• April 2022: Fireside Chat with FMCSA Chief Council Earl Adams Jr. on automated truck regulations
• May 2021: Fireside Chat hosted by Ohio LG Jon Husted and featuring Brett Roubinek, President of the Transportation Research Center; Partners for Automated Vehicle Education
• January 2020: Roundtable discussion on automated vehicle development and data sharing the Governors Meeting; Automotive and Autonomous Mobility Policy at the World Economic Forum in Davos
• January 2020: What's Next for Vehicle Automation; Consumer Electronic Show
• October 2019: Automated Vehicles and the 5.9GHz Spectrum; ITS World Congress
• October 2019: Regulatory Perspectives on Autonomous Mobility; Autonomous Mobility Summit in Singapore 
• October 2019: Inclusive Design Challenge; USDOT Access and Mobility for All Summit
• September 2019: The Hill's Future of Mobility Summit panel discussion
• May 2019: Drones and Aerial Mobility Global Council roundtable; World Economic Forum
• March 2019: SXSW fireside discussion with Secretary Elaine Chao introducing the New and Emerging Transportation Technology (NETT) Council
• December 2018: Artificial Intelligence on “Unleashing Innovation - Reducing Barriers to Innovation” discussion paper breakout session in Montreal; G7 Multistakeholder Conference
• October 2018: USDOT unveiling of Automated Vehicles 3.0: Preparing for the Future of Transportation 
• July 2018: Plenary speech on USDOT's AV research activities; Automated Vehicle Symposium
• March 2018: FAA UAS Symposium speech “Legislation and Regulation -- Who's in Charge of What?”
• January 2018: The Key to UAS Integration; Consumer Electronics Show
• December 2017:  Federal AV efforts; Western Governors Association Winter Meeting

• Locomation’s Voluntary Safety Self-Assessment (May 2022)
• Eno Guest Op-Ed: The Current State of Public Policy for Autonomous Trucking (May 2021)
   

• Featured, “(video) Panel Discussion: Regulating an Autonomous Present and Future,”Self-Driving Cars 360, 21 June 2025
• Quoted, “What does Trump 2.0 mean for Autonomous Vehicles?,” Automotive World, 14 March 2025
• Quoted, “Transportation Regulation & Legislation To Watch In 2025,” Law360, 1 January 2025
• Quoted, “Trump win may mean doubling SALT cap,” The Bond Buyer, 11 November 2024
• Quoted, “The self-driving industry fumbled away public trust. Now it seeks a remedy,” Automotive News, 14 May 2024
• Quoted, “Self-driving truck rule to address safety, human supervisors,” CQ News, 20 February 2024
• Quoted, “New ITS America resources consolidate autonomous vehicle best practice,” Traffic Technology Today, 9 November 2023
• Quoted, “In California, the specter of self-driving trucks brings a backlash,” Automotive News, Auto Jobs Now, 4 May 2023