New leadership for SMART

Dear colleagues,

I write today to announce the appointment of Chris Zegras, professor of mobility and urban planning, as the next CEO and director of the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART), effective September 1.

Established in 2007 as a partnership with the National Research Foundation of Singapore, SMART is MIT’s research enterprise in Singapore. It brings together MIT faculty with colleagues at institutions in Singapore to work on advanced, interdisciplinary research projects, and it includes an innovation center to translate ideas from the lab to the market.

A record of international collaboration and leadership

As a department head, former principal investigator on a SMART project, and a colleague with extensive international experience, Chris is extremely well-positioned to take on this important new assignment. 

Chris has served as head of the Department of Urban Studies and Planning since 2020. His own research spans inter-related areas critical to tackling metropolitan mobility challenges: leveraging digital technologies for understanding and modeling human behavior and enhancing strategic planning techniques and capabilities.

At SMART, Chris led collaborative research on next-generation mobility sensing and simulation systems. He was a PI on the Future Urban Mobility interdisciplinary research group from 2010 to 2020 and served as the group’s lead PI from 2016 to 2020. During this time, the group spearheaded Singapore’s first-ever public autonomous vehicle trials, developed and deployed large-scale urban simulation and visualization systems, and conducted research that evolved into spin-off companies, among other activities.

Chris has a long history of international work across Latin America, Europe, and Asia. He has led research and teaching initiatives in Chile, China, Mexico, and Portugal. He served for more than a decade as a member of the Executive Board of the Center of Excellence for Bus Rapid Transit and the International Scientific Committee for the Center for Sustainable Urban Development. From 2007 to 2016, he served as the transportation systems focus area lead for the MIT Portugal Program.

As CEO and director, Chris will guide SMART’s strategic direction and growth; strengthen its role in driving collaboration among MIT, Singapore, and the broader research ecosystem; and accelerate impactful research and innovation. I have no doubt he will support SMART’s continued advancement and reinforce its role as a leading interdisciplinary research enterprise that bridges translational research and real-world application to address society’s most complex challenges.

With gratitude

I am tremendously grateful to Bruce Tidor, professor of biological engineering and computer science, who has served as the interim CEO and director since January 2025. Bruce was integral in strengthening relationships with leaders in Singapore, cultivating connections between entities in Singapore and activities at MIT, reorganizing and reorienting SMART’s headquarters, and supporting MIT research by launching two new interdisciplinary research groups. Though Bruce had initially agreed to serve in the role for one year, he generously extended his tenure to stay on as deputy CEO this fall while Chris relocates to Singapore.

Please join me in thanking Bruce for his leadership and in congratulating Chris on his important new role.

Sincerely,

Anantha P. Chandrakasan
Provost