ADVANCED VEHICLE TECHNOLOGY COMPETITIONS
EcoCAR Innovation Challenge
UB is one of 20 universities across North America selected for the EcoCAR Innovation Challenge—part of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Vehicle Technology Competitions (AVTC) series. UB is also one of just four universities joining the challenge for the first time in 2026.
EcoCAR is a four-year automotive engineering competition where student teams use real vehicles and industry tools to design, test and present vehicle technologies through judged milestones and events.
UB will compete on the Stellantis track, working with a 2026 Jeep Cherokee hybrid.
Advancing electric vehicle innovation—while preparing the next generation of engineers
UB students will take on projects across the Jeep Cherokee hybrid platform—including high-voltage energy storage, electric-drive systems, advanced controls, simulation, AI-enabled engineering and advanced computing.
Hands-on Engineering
Students work directly with advanced EV technologies
Industry Mentorship
Guidance from engineers and experts across leading companies
Career Pathways
Connecting students to internships, placements and future careers
Applied Research
Solving current challenges through innovation and experimentation
Engage with EcoCAR
EcoCAR gives companies a chance to connect with UB students and faculty, share expertise and support the team throughout the competition.
Sponsor the Team
Contribute funding, equipment, software or other resources to the team’s vehicle development.
Mentor Students
Share industry expertise and help students understand how engineering decisions are made in professional settings.
Recruit Talent
Meet students early, see how they work and identify potential interns and future hires.
Product Innovation
Bring technical challenges, tools or emerging technologies into the program and explore new approaches with the team.
By the Numbers: National Impact
$280M
Industry investment as of 2025
New credit courses created
30K
Graduates placed into jobs
Placed in 2025 at 160 companies
Publications since 2015
Participating North American colleges
Partners
Industry engagement around UB’s EcoCAR effort is already taking shape—with automakers, national labs and technology partners connected to the team and additional partnerships in development.
UB Team
UB’s EcoCAR team brings together faculty from the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, students from multiple technical disciplines and BEP’s work connecting university projects with industry needs.
Chunming Qiao
Principal Investigator (PI)
SUNY Distinguished Professor
Department of Computer Science and Engineering
Jim P. Zheng
Co-Principal Investigator
SUNY Empire Innovation Professor, Department of Electrical Engineering
Stacey Johnson
Co-Principal Investigator
Director of Workforce and Industry Engagement, UB Business and Entrepreneur Partnerships
EcoCAR Faculty Advisory Board
Ziyad Shahin
Program Manager
PhD Student, Transportation Systems Engineering
Student Team Leaders
Student leaders help guide the team’s technical work, coordination and competition milestones.
PROJECT NEWS
Additional resources for industry collaboration
Explore more ways to connect with UB Business and Entrepreneur Partnerships.
Workforce Development and Industry Support
Our workforce development team is part of a Western New York workforce ecosystem that connects industry, cross-sector partners, UB resources and foundation support to bolster innovation pilots and real job placements that align with industry demand.
Leverage UB’s talented pool of over 30,000 students to solve your business challenges.
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