Dan Nicholson

Vice President of Strategic Technology Initiatives

General Motors

Dan Nicholson is General Motors Vice President, Strategic Technology Initiatives. Prior to this appointment, Dan was General Motors Vice President of Global Electrification, Controls, Software and Electronics where he led the organization from 2019 to 2022.

Prior to that, Dan was General Motors Vice President, Global Propulsion Systems. In that role he was responsible for all propulsion products including engines, transmissions, fuel cells, electric drive units and batteries.​ Dan began his General Motors career as a co-op student at Buick Motor Division. He has an extensive background in product engineering at GM and has progressed through a series of leadership positions including director of controller integration, director of engine calibration, chief engineer for V8 engines, managing director of GM Powertrain-Germany GmbH, executive director for global powertrain embedded controls, Vice President of Global Quality and Vice President of Global Powertrain. ​

Dan earned a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from General Motors Institute (now Kettering University), a Master of Science in mechanical engineering from Texas A&M University and a Master of Business Administration from Stanford University.​ Dan is a registered professional engineer in the state of Michigan. He is on the SAE Board of Directors and serves as Vice President Automotive. Dan also serves on the Board of Directors of SDVerse, the Connected Vehicle Systems Alliance (COVESA), and the Center for Automotive Research (CAR). Dan is the GM Member Company representative on the USCAR Council and member of the USDRIVE Executive Steering Group. He is also a past president of the Engineering Society of Detroit, a past president of FISITA and was recognized in 2019 as an Automotive News All-Star.