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Detail of UC Berkeley seal on a tassel during the College of Engineering commencement

2024 Commencement speakers

Baccalaureate degree ceremony

Tuesday, May 14 | 2 p.m.

Headshot of Tony Xu in a white shirt in front of a tan background

Keynote speaker:

Tony Xu

B.S.’07 IEOR
Chief Executive Officer & Co-founder, DoorDash

Tony Xu is the CEO and co-founder of DoorDash, a technology company that connects consumers with their favorite local businesses in more than 25 countries across the globe. Born in China, Tony came to America with his parents and grew up working in a restaurant alongside his mother. He and his co-founders started DoorDash to help local businesses succeed.

Prior to co-founding DoorDash in 2013, Tony worked in product at Square, led special projects for the CEO and CFO at eBay, and began his career at McKinsey & Co.

Headshot photo of Abhinav Subramaniam smiling at the camera in front of a blurred brown background

Student speaker:

Abhinav Subramaniam

B.S.’24 ME

Born and raised in the Philippines, Abhinav Subramaniam has worked with UC Berkeley’s Invention Corps on numerous projects—such as designing and building solar-powered refrigeration in rural areas—and was a member of the Model United Nations Team. After graduation, he plans to work with social impact-oriented startups and eventually pursue a master’s degree in public policy.

Master’s degree ceremony

Tuesday, May 14 | 9 a.m.

Headshot of Alexia Aubault wearing an orange, black and white patterend-shirt in front of a tan background

Keynote speaker:

Alexia Aubault

M.S.’05 Ocean Engineering
Chief Technology Officer, Ocergy

Alexia Aubault has 18 years of experience in the offshore wind sector, specializing in the emerging field of floating wind technology. As a naval architect and offshore engineer, she embarked on her journey in offshore renewable energy before it became a thriving industry in the U.S. Now, as a founding member of Ocergy, she is dedicated to advancing offshore renewables by promoting smart products that reduce costs and foster industrialization.

In 2023, the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers (SNAME) awarded Alexia the prestigious Blakely Smith Medal for Outstanding Accomplishment in Ocean Engineering.

Headshot image of Ashwat Chidambaram smiling in front of a blurred yellow background

Student speaker:

Ashwat Chidambaram

B.S.’23, M.S.’24 EECS


Ashwat Chidambaram, a Bay Area native and solo-certified private pilot, is passionate about the applications of machine learning and computer vision. Having broad experience in the tech industry and in research labs, he aims to develop technology for safer autonomous vehicles and robotics, as well as advocate for responsible AI innovation.

Doctoral degree ceremony

Saturday, May 18 | 9 a.m.

Headshot of Ashok Gadgil in a light blue shirt and dark blue jacket in front of a gray background

Keynote speaker:

Ashok Gadgil

M.A.’75, Ph.D.’79 Physics
Andrew and Virginia Rudd Family Foundation Chair Professor of Safe Water and Sanitation and Professor of the Graduate School, Civil and Environmental Engineering


Ashok Gadgil is widely considered to be a “humanitarian inventor.” For decades, he has created low-cost engineering solutions — including water purifiers, arsenic removal technology and fuel-efficient cookstoves — that have proved transformative for low-resource communities across the world. In 2023, he was recognized with the National Medal of Technology and Innovation, the nation’s highest honor for technological achievement.

Headshot photo of Alicia Tsai smiling at the camera in front of a tree

Student speaker:

Alicia Tsai

Ph.D.’24 EECS


A Taiwanese native, Alicia Tsai is affiliated with the Berkeley Artificial Intelligence Research (BAIR) Lab. Her primary research interests include the theory, optimization and behavior of AI systems, and robustness and sparsity issues in machine learning algorithms. She is also the co-organizer of Women in Data Science, Berkeley.