Derek Phillips

Critic
DISC Type : C

Head of Perception Engineering at Kodiak

United States

Overview

Derek Phillips leads the perception engineering team at Kodiak, developing advanced sensor fusion and tracking systems for autonomous trucks. An alumnus of Stanford University, he specializes in leveraging AI to solve complex real-world problems in robotics, drawing from his experience at Lyft and Facebook.

Beyond his technical role, Derek is passionate about giving back to the community. He is particularly focused on creating opportunities and helping underrepresented minorities get involved in STEM fields, and he actively encourages outreach.

He was named a "Rising Star of Self-Driving Vehicles" for his significant contributions to the industry.

Personality Overview

Precise

Critic

Negotiator

They like to do things independently and don’t look for support from others.  It is very likely that they will negotiate pricing or other important terms. They choose to analyze logically and value facts to emotions.

Topics They Care About

Autonomous Perception
As Head of Perception Engineering at Kodiak, he oversees the development of robust perception systems combining classical and learned AI approaches for self-driving trucks.
AI Safety
His graduate research focused on characterizing the risk of human drivers, and his work at Kodiak involves deploying safe and reliable autonomous systems on public roads.
Building Technical Teams
He frequently posts about hiring senior engineers for his team, indicating a focus on attracting and developing top talent in the autonomy space.

Media Appearances

Derek has no verified media appearances

Work History

5-2019
Head of Perception Engineering at Kodiak
6-2018 - 9-2018
Autonomous Vehicle Software Engineering Intern - Lyft Level 5 at Lyft
1-2018 - 4-2019
Graduate Research Assistant - Stanford Intelligent Systems Laboratory at Stanford University
6-2017 - 9-2017
Software Engineering Intern at Facebook
6-2016 - 9-2016
Undergraduate Researcher - Stanford Intelligent Systems Laboratory at Stanford University

Education

2017 - 2019
Master of Science - MS from Stanford University
2014 - 2018
Bachelor of Science (B.S.) from Stanford University

More Information

Social Presence :

Prographics :

Exp : 7 Location : United States Job Level : Mid-senior Designation : Head of Perception Engineering at Kodiak
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Insights For Selling To Derek

During A Call Or A Meeting

DO's

  • Tell them what ROI they can expect
  • Leverage facts and figures wherever possible; use percentages, numbers etc.
  • If you can, show them industry reports or analyst comments instead of sharing anecdotal stories

DONT's

  • Don’t try to give too many examples of other users, they like to make their own decisions
  • Don’t rush them till they have clearly gotten all the necessary information
  • Don't give superficial answers, they are easily rattled by them

When Cold Calling

When Writing An Email

While Negotiating & Closing

    The secret to closing fast with Derek is

  • Proven ROI, pricing and objective proof points are the factors that sway their decision.
  • Will you ever get a clear answer from Derek

  • They are comfortable saying no if they are convinced that it is the correct decision.

Insights For Deal Planning

    How fast (or slow) will Derek move?

  • Their decision-making is neither very fast nor very slow, they are somewhere in between.
  • Can Derek take some risk or not?

  • They can take risks if their analysis shows that it would be worth it.

You And Derek

Personality Compatibility


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