Advanced Navigation has appointed Pawel Michalak as Chief Technology Officer to spearhead the development of next-generation autonomous systems and resilient positioning technologies.
The appointment comes as global reliance on satellite data faces increasing pressure from electronic warfare, harsh environmental conditions, and the demands of deep-sea and space missions. Michalak is tasked with transitioning the company toward a Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) architecture that maintains reliability without depending on any single signal source. This strategy includes the expansion of engineering teams across Europe to develop navigation capabilities for highly contested and extreme environments.
Advanced Navigation CEO Chris Shaw said, “There was once a time where we could rely solely on satellite data for navigation, however that’s no longer the case. In today’s world, we need to treat signal anomalies, disruptions and unreliability as a given. This requires a fundamental shift in the way we go about building resilience and autonomy.
“It demands the discovery of new innovations, new architectures, and new ways of thinking. Pawel has the acumen to translate empirical research into breakthrough technologies for the real world, at speed. He brings the rare combination of academic depth, industrial knowledge and long-term vision required to build the next generation of PNT systems – not just for today’s challenges, but for those yet to emerge.”
Michalak’s technical roadmap focuses on industrializing a multi-sensor, inertial-centric architecture. This framework fuses inertial sensing, photonics, robotics, artificial intelligence, and quantum sensing with underwater acoustics and advanced GPS receivers. These technologies function as a “nervous system” for autonomous platforms, allowing them to operate across land, air, sea, and space.
Michalak added, “There is no one silver bullet in navigation. The future of Position, Navigation and Timing will be fully resilient and autonomous, built on the fusion of raw data from inertial, laser, vision, quantum, and other advanced sensors.
“Together, these technologies form the nervous system of robotics, with inertial navigation acting as the central spine. Like the human body, this architecture feeds trusted signals to the brain, enabling the autonomy controller to understand where it is, how it is moving, and how to make decisions – even when GPS signals disappear.”
With a background that includes leading digital transformation at Fugro, Michalak has experience directing global engineering and AI programs for industries reliant on spatial intelligence. His expertise spans energy transition, infrastructure, and climate science. He holds a PhD in Satellite Geodesy and an MBA, with executive qualifications from Stanford University, Warsaw University of Technology, and Business School Lausanne.
Advanced Navigation aims to act as a catalyst for the autonomy revolution by transforming deep research into deployable systems. Under Michalak’s leadership, the company will focus on providing the technical foundation for humanity to operate in previously unreachable areas.
Michalak added, “The opportunity here is not incremental or blindfolded innovation. It is to change how the world navigates, from defence, humanitarian response, energy transition to climate science and autonomous exploration. Advanced Navigation is daring to do what others won’t, and I look forward to bringing this ambitious vision into reality with the team.”
