large_AdobeStock_268975850 (1) 1 (4).jpg

medium_AdobeStock_268975850 (1) 1 (4).jpg

small_AdobeStock_268975850 (1) 1 (4).jpg

thumbnail_AdobeStock_268975850 (1) 1 (4).jpg

xlarge_AdobeStock_268975850 (1) 1 (4).jpg

AdobeStock_268975850 (1) 1 (4).jpg

BOOK DEMO

Rich Sands is CEO of STELLA Automotive AI, Inc.  Rich is a passionate leader with an extensive track record of launching transformative industry solutions at Covisint, Ford, J.D Power and Microsoft which are in use today and power the global automotive industry.  Rich founded and ran True North Enterprises LLC, an industry advisory firm focused on driving Enterprise Value for automotive data and technology companies and served on the boards of Urban Science, Pursuit Alert and Autometrics. 

Rich Sands

Stephen Brown serves as Chief Technology Officer for STELLA Automotive. Stephen is an original member of the Telepathy Labs engineering team that built the underlying conversational AI platform for STELLA. Stephen oversaw bespoke solution delivery to Fortune 50 companies. Prior to joining Telepathy Labs, Stephen led worldwide teams in the development and roll-out of retail/inventory management systems and related analytics for the world's leading retail and hospitality brands. Stephen holds a BS from UCLA in Computer Science and an MS in Electrical Engineering also from UCLA.  He lives in Newport Beach, California with his wife and family.

Stephen Brown

Chief Technology Officer

Leadership

Geoff Pohanka is Chairman of the Board for the Pohanka Automotive Group, which is 104 years young! Geoff Pohanka recently announced an association with STELLA AI, a groundbreaking phone answering system that uses Automotive Intelligence to enhance the customer experience at the dealership level with their first point of contact. STELLA is an artificial intelligence digital voice assistant that can answer an unlimited number of calls simultaneously, route calls, answer frequently asked questions and book service appointments. “This technology is going to make things easier for our customers, as well as our employees,” stated Pohanka. “In an era where everyone is frustrated by extended hold times on the phone, we are excited about this opportunity for people to get the answers they are looking for quickly and without frustration, which is key to a positive customer experience,” he added.

Geoff Pohanka is a third-generation dealer in the oldest continually operating automotive group in the Washington, DC Metro, with roots dating back to 1919, with his Grandfather, Frank S. Pohanka at the helm. Geoff was preceded by his father, John J. Pohanka, who was a former NADA Chairman and founder of ASE, the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence. Geoff Pohanka is the current Chairman of the National Automotive Dealers Association for 2023.


Geoffrey Pohanka

Pohanka Automotive Group

Michael E. Maroone is an entrepreneur, investor and second
generation auto retailer. Beginning in May 2017, Maroone USA, where he serves as CEO, acquired four automotive franchises in Colorado Springs followed by acquisitions in West Palm Beach (Florida), Longmont (Colorado) and Boulder (Colorado). The group now includes seven locations and nine brands. The brands include Chevrolet, Honda, Ford, Volkswagen, Cadillac, Buick and GMC. 

Spanning more than four decades, his career in auto retail began with the Maroone Automotive Group (1975-1997), which under his leadership as president, grew to nine franchises in six locations with 900 associates. In partnership with his father Al, the Maroone Automotive Group was consistently recognized as one of the top-performing auto retail groups in America.

From 1997 to 2015, Mr. Maroone served as president, chief operating officer and director of AutoNation, Inc., a Fortune 500 automotive retailer. He was responsible for all retail operations of 280 franchises representing 32 manufacturer brands in 15 states with over 20,000 associates, including: the field organization; sales; service; parts; collision; marketing; e-commerce; corporate real estate; strategy; industry relations; information technology; corporate development; and internal communications.

As owner of Maroone Enterprises since 1997, Mr. Maroone works both independently and in partnership in multiple ventures. His business interests include automotive, healthcare, carbon capture, water, oil and gas, aviation, insurance and real estate where his investments include commercial centers, office buildings, cold storage, apartments, townhomes and land.

Mr. Maroone serves as the lead independent director of Carvana, a used vehicle e-commerce auto retailer (NYSE: CVNA). He is a member of the Cleveland Clinic enterprise board of directors, chairman of the board of Cleveland Clinic Florida and serves on both the investment and philanthropy committees. He serves as a director for MDH Acquisition Corp., a special purpose acquisition corporation (NYSE: MDH). He also serves as Strategic Advisor to the Board of motormindz, a highly specialized global automotive consultancy.

Recognition of his contributions to the automotive industry include being honored by Automotive News as an All-Star and one of the industry’s 50 Visionary Dealers of all time, receiving Time Magazine’s Quality Dealer Award as well as the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Boca Raton Concours d’Elegance and receiving the 2022 David F. Mungenast Lifetime Achievement Award from the American International Automobile Dealers Association (AIADA). Florida Atlantic University honored Mr. Maroone as Entrepreneur of the Year and he is a member of the Nova Southeastern University Entrepreneur Hall of Fame. 

Mike Maroone

Maroone USA

Dealer Advisory Board

Founder & Chairman of the Board, Josselyn Boudett, is a serial entrepreneur with 25 years working in the field of Artificial Intelligence.  


Josselyn Boudett

Chairman STELLA Automotive

William Knowles joined Maroone USA in early 2017 to help launch an automotive retail organization. He serves as the Chief Operating Officer for the Mike Maroone Automotive Group, which was founded in May 2017 with the acquisition of four franchised automotive dealerships in Colorado. The group has grown to nine franchises and Mr. Knowles has responsibility for profitability, strategic initiatives, and talent acquisition/development of the retail operations. He has direct oversight for the shared services teams, including human resources, marketing, training, technology, and facilities. Mr. Knowles is a member of the executive committee responsible for all key decisions and works on every level of acquisitions – from sourcing to underwriting and execution. 

Mr. Knowles is the Founder of WMKI Group LLC, a private investment firm rooted in value investing principles. WMKI Group is active in direct investments both in public and private markets.

Mr. Knowles has extensive board and advisory experience. He currently serves as a Board Member for PEAL Capital Group, a European-based private equity firm as well as for the Colorado Automobile Dealers Association. Prior involvement includes serving as an Advisor to Tred, a peer-to-peer pre-owned vehicle marketplace. 

Prior to joining Maroone USA, Mr. Knowles was an Investment Specialist for Cascade, the investment firm for Bill Gates and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust. At Cascade, he worked extensively on public equity investments across numerous geographies and sectors as well as on special situations.  

Mr. Knowles graduated from Claremont McKenna College with a BA in Economics and MA in Finance where he was the Captain of the NCAA Baseball Team. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation as well as an MBA from Duke University, The Fuqua School of Business. Mr. Knowles was recognized by Automotive News as a member of its 2019 class of 40 Under 40 for automotive retail.

William Knowles

 COO Maroone USA

Brodie Cobb provides strategic guidance and hands-on leadership in the dealership, auto tech, and principal investing businesses. His investment banking and asset management experience aids in creating sophisticated transactions for our clients, maximizing value, and meeting their individual goals. Brodie’s network reaches deep into the financial and automotive industries.

Brodie founded The Presidio Group in 1998 with the simple goal of bringing transparent and honest advice to entrepreneurs. The firm included private equity, investment banking, and wealth advisory businesses with offices in San Francisco, Dallas, and Washington, D.C.  In 2016 Presidio was reorganized. The private equity business was spun out. The wealth advisory business was merged with New York-based Tiedemann Advisors where Mr. Cobb remained a shareholder and sat on the Board of Directors until Tiedemann’s successful IPO and rebranding as Alvarium Tiedemann in January 2023 (ticker:  ALTi). Today, it is one of the largest global wealth advisory firms with over $60 Billion in assets.


The Presidio Group retained its merchant banking division and now focuses primarily on the auto retail sector where it provides investment banking advisory services to and principal investments in auto tech companies and dealerships across the country. The principals at Presidio have closed more than 200 transactions totaling approximately $15 billion in value.  Presidio is a national FINRA-registered broker-dealer.


Prior to Presidio, Brodie was with Montgomery Securities, First Boston Corporation, and Security Pacific Bank.


Brodie Cobb

CEO The Presidio Group

Board of Directors

STELLA Automotive AI helps dealers solve a major pain point which is answering telephones and engaging with customers.  STELLA is trained to deliver exceptional customer experiences through consistent branding, flawless dialogs, and the delivery and collection of essential data.  

large_Rectangle 2826 (4).jpg

medium_Rectangle 2826 (4).jpg

small_Rectangle 2826 (4).jpg

thumbnail_Rectangle 2826 (4).jpg

xlarge_Rectangle 2826 (4).jpg

Rectangle 2826 (4).jpg

STELLA is a trustworthy, multi-intelligent voice assistant that can seamlessly handle all dealership inbound calls, answer questions in a human-like approachable tone, find and book appointments with rapid speed, and send text messages and/or emails to individuals or entire departments. Similar to products like Alexa and Siri, STELLA integrates with existing auto dealer software (e.g., Cox Automotive and others) to deliver reliable communication solutions for both receptionist and BDC needs.

Who is STELLA Automotive AI?

Why choose STELLA?