NEDO SV Foresight Seminars: Inventing the Future: Session 14

NEDO Representative Office in Silicon Valley

Plug and Play Tech Center

<h3>NEDO Silicon Valley Foresight Seminars: Inventing the Future:</h3>You are cordially invited to an in-person seminar exploring Innovation in Innovation in Solar Technology. This is the14th NEDO Silicon Valley Foresight Seminar Series featuring solutions to advance the goal of a sustainable future with Net Zero emissions by 2050. <h3>~Innovation in Solar Technology~</h3>Join us for an insightful, in-person seminar diving into the future of Solar Technology.This in-person seminar will explore cutting-edge research, development, and practical applications of technology for solar energy harvesting and management. Technologies that cover both residential and utility scale applications will be presented. While most of the world’s solar energy is produced using the well known and ubiquitous silicon cell technology, new and innovative alternatives will be discussed including their promise and challenges. Today, the production of most of the solar system components as well as the supporting supply chains are highly concentrated in just a few locations worldwide. Since the expansion of solar energy is key to the energy plans for many countries, it is expected that either policy or technology changes will be required to enable local and at scale production of the solar systems needed in the near future. The audience will have a chance to learn about the opportunities in solar technology, as well as to network in person to share their thoughts and experiences with peers and to speak in-depth with each panelist after the formal panel presentation. Date: Monday, December 2, 2024Time: 5:30 PM - 7:30 PM (Registration and networking begin at 5:00PM)Location: Plug and Play Tech Center (440 North Wolfe Road, Sunnyvale, CA, 94085)Cost: Free but registration is requiredYou will have an opportunity to network in person to share your thoughts and experiences with peers and to speak in-depth with each of the panelists after the formal presentation, while enjoying refreshments. Agenda:5:00 - 5:30 PM -Registration and Networking5:30 - 7:00 PM -Program Panel Presentations and Q&A7:00 - 7:30 PM -Networking and Holiday Cheer (Seminar speakers and attendees only) Speakers :Arnold Leitner, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, YouSolar Joel Jean, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Swift Solar Scott Wharton, Chief Executive Officer, Tandem PV Tamara Mullings, Senior Vice President of America Sales, FTC Solar Moderator:Richard Weinberg, Sr. Consultant, USAsia Venture Partners Speakers &amp; Moderator's Bio: Arnold Leitner, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, r, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, <a href="https://yousolar.com" title="https://yousolar.com" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">YouSolar</a>Dr. Leitner earned his PhD in Physics from the University of Colorado at Boulder, where he worked on “exotic” superconductors at ultra-low temperatures, and an MBA from Columbia Business School in finance and entrepreneurship. Growing up, Dr. Leitner worked for a decade in wildlife conservation. He has observed firsthand the detrimental changes global warming has brought to the natural world. Early in his career, he authored the seminal report <a href="https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy02osti/32160.pdf" title="https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy02osti/32160.pdf" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Fuel From the Sky: Solar Power’s Potential for Western Energy Supply</a> for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), demonstrating the potential and feasibility of large-scale solar power development in the Desert Southwest. This report was instrumental in shifting perceptions of solar power and highlighting its potential to meet the growing energy demands in the Western United States. Dr. Leitner brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to discussions on global warming and renewable energy. He offers unique insights into the challenges and opportunities of the energy transition, the role of solar power in reducing carbon emissions, and the critical importance of investing in resilient energy infrastructures to combat climate change. His mission with YouSolar is to remove barriers to solar penetration, democratize access to power, and build a more sustainable and resilient world. Joel Jean, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, <a href="https://www.swiftsolar.com" title="https://www.swiftsolar.com" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Swift Solar</a>Joel is above all an advocate for climate change action, likes running marathons, and buys new books faster than he can read them. Before co-founding Swift, Joel served as Executive Director of the Tata-MIT GridEdge Solar research program, which focuses on scale-up of new solar photovoltaic technologies for India and other developing countries. As a researcher and NSF Fellow at MIT, he developed ultra-lightweight and flexible solar cells that were recognized by the 2017 Katerva Award. He was named a Forbes 30 Under 30 Fellow in Energy and one of Business Insider's Rising Stars of Clean Energy. He co-authored the MIT Future of Solar Energy Study and has worked extensively on emerging PV materials and devices, techno-economic analysis, and energy and climate policy. Joel holds a PhD and SM in electrical engineering from MIT and a BS with distinction from Stanford University. Scott Wharton, Chief Executive Officer, <a href="https://www.tandempv.com" title="https://www.tandempv.com" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Tandem PV</a>Scott is the CEO of Tandem PV, a disruptive solar panel company based in Silicon Valley. Prior to Tandem, Scott was the Vice President and General Manager of Logitech B2B, a division that generates ~$2 billion in annual revenue and includes all products, software, and services for business and enterprise customers. Before leading the B2B group, Scott drove 25x growth in the Video Collaboration division, starting as a small player in 2015 ($62m) to over $1 billion in revenue, becoming the global market leader for video equipment. Under his leadership, Logitech has developed award-winning products recognized by CES, iF Design, Red Dot, TIME, and Fast Company for design innovation. Scott has held market-leading roles throughout his career in the communications space including as the founder of Vidtel, a pioneer in cloud-based video conferencing services. Vidtel had a successful exit in 2013. Scott was an early executive at BroadSoft (IPO; acquired by Cisco) and VocalTec (IPO) where he spearheaded numerous groundbreaking initiatives, including the development of the first commercial VoIP product, the creation of the cloud PBX market, and the VoIP service provider industry. Scott holds an MBA from Yale University. Tamara Mullings, Senior Vice President of America Sales, <a href="https://www.ftcsolar.com" title="https://www.ftcsolar.com" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">FTC Solar</a>Tamara Mullings is the Senior Vice President of North America Sales at FTC Solar, a top U.S. racking manufacturer, known for its highly differentiated tracking systems designed to streamline solar installation with fewer bolted connections, greater safety, and fast installation times. Tamara has been actively connecting with solar energy developers and construction companies to introduce FTC’s 1P Pioneer tracker, a breakthrough in solar technology engineered with proprietary dampeners that enable a flat stow that maximizes energy yield and a suite of hardware solutions that preserve environmental integrity by minimizing earth disturbance. FTC Solar's 1P Pioneer represents a shift towards more sustainable and cost-effective solar infrastructure, aligning perfectly with Japan’s 2050 Net Zero Emissions goal.Tamara joined FTC Solar upon its IPO in 2021 as a Board Observer and later as a Board Director. Tamara stepped down from her Board role to promote FTC’s mission to improve the competitiveness of solar by minimizing capital and operational expenses and increasing energy production at solar power plants. Her career includes serving as Assistant Vice President for MetLife’s Global Technology Services, Chief of Staff at SunEdison, and Business Strategy Consultant at IBM, where she helped U.S. utilities invest in transformational technology such as smart metering. Richard Weinberg, Senior Consultant on Sustainability, <a href="https://usasiaventurepartners.com/en/" title="https://usasiaventurepartners.com/en/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">USAsia Venture Partners</a>Richard has led the technical development and global product management for thin-film solar modules that have been used on buildings, vehicles, and power plants. While at Miasole as Director of Engineering, his CIGS thin-film solar modules were installed on thousands of delivery trucks throughout Europe. He is also an Ambassador for Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST) in Palo Alto, California. Additionally, Richard developed Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD) systems for the semiconductor industry for over 20 years at Varian and Novellus (since acquired by Lam Research). He has a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and an MS in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University. <a href="https://usasiaventurepartners.com/en/" title="https://usasiaventurepartners.com/en/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">USAsia Venture Partners</a> is a premier Silicon Valley strategic consulting company. They help their clients discover and exploit new opportunities for innovation and market disruption across a wide range of industries, from high tech and cleantech to healthcare and finance. Their consultants are renowned experts in their fields. They conduct market research and due diligence; formulate alliance, marketing, and business development strategies; and partner with the clients to plan and execute for their success.