Embark CEO Alex Rodrigues Donates 2022 Salary, Launches Robotics and STEM Education Fund
- Little Robots grant fund to give young roboticists a head start to pursue projects and launch careers in STEM.
- First donation goes to the Afghan Girls Robotics Team to support its education and fund its robotics competitions.
SAN FRANCISCO, March 16, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- (Nasdaq: EMBK, “Embark”), a leading developer of autonomous technology for the trucking industry, today announced that CEO Alex Rodrigues will take a $0 salary and bonus in 2022, with funds instead being used to launch Little Robots, a grant fund dedicated to youth robotics and STEM education. In addition, Mr. Rodrigues’ 2022 equity compensation will be contingent on the company achieving specific price-based milestones, including reaching a share price of $20 or more.
The Little Robots fund empowers aspiring roboticists to pursue their passion for technology and gives them a head start on their careers in the field. The fund will accept individual and group applications for eligible projects on a rolling basis.
The first donation made by the Little Robots fund has been dedicated to the internationally-celebrated , hosted by . The “Afghan Dreamers” have won numerous international robotics competitions, and recent members applied their skills to address immediate needs in Afghanistan, such as developing a low-cost ventilator derived from widely-available used car parts at the height of a regional COVID outbreak. In the aftermath of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, members of the team relocated to Qatar to continue their education, with support from the Digital Citizen Fund. The Little Robots donation will support their schooling and fund future robotics competitions.
"Girls' STEM education should be seen as a breakthrough technology, as transformative as autonomous vehicles or advanced robotics,” said Roya Mahboob, cofounder and CEO of the Digital Citizen Fund. “Expanding access to learning is about extending an invitation to a new world of new possibilities for everyone. Digital Citizen Fund is grateful for support from Embark, and its commitment to genuine innovation.”
“My early start in competitive robotics played a pivotal role in founding Embark. With supportive mentors as a child, I was able to build my first robots and organize my own robotics team. Now, my mission is to pay that forward,” said Alex Rodrigues, CEO of Embark.
The Little Robots fund will accept submissions beginning on March 25, 2022. The application form, along with eligibility criteria, will be available at .
About Embark
Embark Trucks, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Nasdaq-listed Embark Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq: EMBK), is an autonomous vehicle company building the software powering autonomous trucks, focused on improving the safety, efficiency, and sustainability of the nearly $700 billion a year trucking market. Headquartered in San Francisco, CA since its founding in 2016, Embark is America’s longest-running self-driving truck program. The company partners with some of the largest shippers and carriers in the nation, collectively representing over 35,000 trucks and $22 billion in annual freight spend.
Embark’s mission is to realize a world where consumers pay less for the things they need, drivers stay close to the homes they cherish, and roads are safer for the people we love. To learn more about Embark, visit .
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