Yvenn Amara-Ouali: Planning Power Supplies for Charging Electric Vehicles in the Future

In the first year of his thesis at Orsay laboratory of mathematics (LMO - Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS), Yvenn Amara-Ouali is working on "spatial-temporal models for charging electric vehicles".

Tell us about your thesis subject and your research work.

The purpose is to understand how electric vehicles consume power and to determine at what time during the day they need to go to a charging station. There will be several million electric vehicles on French roads by 2030 or 2035. I make predictions about their consumption so that the electricity supply can be adapted accordingly. I use machine learning and statistical models to understand how their energy needs evolve over time and for given geographical areas.

What is your academic background?

I took a preparatory class in mathematics, physics and engineering sciences, and then joined the École des Mines de Saint-Étienne, where I followed a general engineering course. I then specialised in the energy sector, focusing on data science. I also went to London for a year to follow a Master's programme in management to acquire better understanding of business needs. As a result, I have worked as a data science consultant. But I am more interested in the predictive aspect. I then followed a Master’s programme in mathematics at Université Paris Diderot, and then continued with a PhD.

Why did you decide to participate in the My Thesis in 180 Seconds competition?

I found the exercise very interesting, especially the way it popularises science, making it more accessible to the general public. And when I checked out the subjects of participating PhD students, I realised that mathematics was insufficiently represented. People often imagine that maths is inaccessible because it is very abstract. I wanted to show that it is not necessarily true. I also enjoyed meeting people from very different fields.

What do you intend to do when you finish your thesis?

I would like to work in a public or private research laboratory on a subject similar to my current work... And have a good work-life balance.