Minnie Ho is an engineer working in the field of self-driving cars and currently serves as Director of Systems Engineering and Integration at Zoox (an Amazon company). At Zoox, she leads efforts to design and integrate AI software into purpose-built robotaxis and recently helped launch the company’s ride-hailing service in Las Vegas. She holds a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering (1995) and a Master’s in Computer Science with a focus on Artificial Intelligence (2023), both from Stanford University.

Beyond engineering, Minnie is an accomplished pianist. She has performed four times with orchestra at the California Concerto Festival, playing works by Bach (BWV 1052), Mozart (K.466), Schumann, and Beethoven (Op. 37). She participated in Piano Texas, including a master class with Yoheved Kaplinsky, and she was a competition winner at Carnegie Hall in 2017. Additional highlights include being selected to play in a master class for Olga Kern (2022) and chamber music appearances at Piano Sonoma, performing Franck’s Sonata in A minor and Brahms’ Trio in B major.

Her principal teachers have included Thomas Hansen, Sandra Shen, Gwendolyn Mok, and Jon Nakamatsu. Most profoundly, Ruth Slenczynska has been a guiding light since Minnie was thirteen. Ruth’s enduring lessons in music, integrity, and creativity continue to influence Minnie’s work and life. As Minnie writes, “Ruth will always be my role model.”