Click below to view the entire agenda and watch the recordings:
Agenda
12:00 PM - 12:05 PM ET I WELCOME
Host: Col John Flynn, US Air Force Reserve | VP of Admin, MGM Resorts & Nathan P. Diller, Colonel, Director, AFWERX, U.S. Air Force International & Col Charles P. Bris-bois, Division Chief, Innovation Solutions, AFWIC
View the recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVSLkBPwzI0&t=1211s
12:05 PM - 2:05 PM ET I ENERGY GENERATION
Host: Col John Flynn, US Air Force Reserve | VP of Admin, MGM Resorts International
View the recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVSLkBPwzI0&t=1211s
Lt Gen S. Clinton Hinote, US Air Force
View the Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qAKQgdmpcI&feature=youtu.be
>>> Panel (Concurrent)
Moderator:
Stephen Beaton, Energy/Biotechnology Solutions Strategist, Air Force Futures
Panelists:
Svetlana Boriskina, Research Scientist
MIT Dr Ken Wisian, Associate Director, University of Texas at AustinBureau of Economic Geology
Roland Dixon, President, Special Power Sources
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View the Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVSLkBPwzI0&t=2269s
>>> Panel (Concurrent)
Moderator:
Alex Saucedo, Director of Sales, Gencell Energy
Panelists:
Henry Brandhorst, Managing Director
CHZ Tech Bill Conlon, President, Pintail Power
Kobe Nagar, CEO, 374Water
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Video Coming Soon!
Dr James Kenyon, Program Director, Advanced Air Vehicles Program, NASA
View the Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVSLkBPwzI0&t=3919s
Dr Martin Lindsey, Principal Aerospace Engineer, US Pacific Command
View the Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVSLkBPwzI0&t=3989s
Meet and interact with fellow attendees
View the Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVSLkBPwzI0&t=7090s
2:10 PM - 4:15 PM ET | ENERGY DATA, POLICY, AND EQUIPMENT
Col John Flynn, US Air Force Reserve | VP of Admin, MGM Resorts International
View the Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVSLkBPwzI0&t=7440s
Dr Jennifer Gerbi, Acting Director and Deputy Director for Technology, ARPA-E
View the Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVSLkBPwzI0&t=7497s
>> Panel (Concurrent)
Moderator:
Frank Sullivan, Chief Business Development, Brainbox AI
Panelists:
John Eubank, Director AI Solutions
Alion Ken Morris, CEO, Knectiq
Colin Gounden, CEO, Via Science Inc
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Video Coming Soon!
>> Panel (Concurrent)
Moderator:
Dave Di Tota, Dynamic Innovations Director, AFWERX
Panelists:
Kipp Coddington, Director, Energy Policy & Economics, University of Wyoming
Kelly Houston, Director at Aerosolization Equity Investments, LLC
Ram Shenoy, Chief Business Officer, Energy Internet Corporation
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Video Coming Soon!
>> Panel (Concurrent)
Moderator:
Heather Wilde, Strategic Innovation Officer, AFWERX
Panelists:
Lauren Rosenblatt, COO, Uplift Solar Corporation
Scott Duncan, President, Conservant Systems
Matt Carlson, VP of Business Development, Wibotic
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View the Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVSLkBPwzI0&t=8603s
Panel
Moderator: Heather Richman, EIR, BMNT
Panelists:
Josh Posementier, Managing Partner, Congruent Ventures
Kyle Teamy, Member, Breakthrough Energy Ventures
Nneka Uzoh, Director of Energy Innovation, Elemental Excelerator
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View the Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVSLkBPwzI0&t=10547s
Meet and interact with fellow attendees
4:15 PM - 6:15 PM ET | ENERGY TRANSMISSION & STORAGE
Col John Flynn, US Air Force Reserve | VP of Admin, MGM Resorts International
View the Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVSLkBPwzI0&t=14894s
Dr Brian J. Anderson, Director of NETL, Department of Energy
View the Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVSLkBPwzI0&t=14904s
Dr Phil De Luna, Director, Materials for Clean Fuels Challenge Program, National Research Council of Canada
View the Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVSLkBPwzI0&t=16264s
>> Panel (Concurrent)
Moderator: Roy Ignacio, Project Coordinator, AFWERX
Panelists:
Johnny Huang, CoFounder & President, Teratonix
Sudip Mazumder, Professor at University of Illinois, Chicago
Johnny Kessler, Senior Account Executive, Govplace
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Video Coming Soon!
>> Panel (Concurrent)
Moderator: Peter Cattaneo, Vice President, Spin Storage
Panelists:
Mike Bowman, CTO, GE Renewable Hybrids
CK Kim, CEO, HIMCEN Battery
Shannon Sentell, COO, Stealth Power
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View the Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVSLkBPwzI0&t=16924s
>> Panel (Concurrent)
Moderator:
Amanda Caldwell, Project Manager, theDifference
Panelists:
Shawn Chandler, CTO, GridCure
Veda Galigekere, R&D, Oak Ridge National Lab
Kip Gering, Senior Director of Business Development, Xage Security
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Video Coming Soon!
Panel
Moderator:
Craig "Yogi" Leavitt, AFWERX
Panelists:
Elise Joseph, Army Futures Command
Dr Kenneth Schmieder, Research Scientist, NRL
Dr Michele Anderson, Program Officer, ONR
Lt Col Nathan Chang, Innovation Solutions Strategist, AFWIC
Rob James, Business Advisor, National Research Council of Canada
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View the Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVSLkBPwzI0&t=18655s
Meet and interact with fellow attendees
6:15 PM - 6:30 PM ET | LAUNCHING PRIME & WRAP UP
Dan Pike, Chief of Future Operations & Acquisition Manager (SAF/IEN)
View the Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVSLkBPwzI0&t=22299s
Host: Col John Flynn, US Air Force Reserve | VP of Admin, MGM Resorts International
View the Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVSLkBPwzI0&t=22995s

Background:
The Department of Defense (DoD) consumes an enormous amount of operational and facility energy to provide a combat-credible force. In fact, the DoD is one of the largest single consumers of energy globally, and the Air Force is the largest user of fuel energy in the US Government. The way the DoD generates, transmits, stores, and uses this enormous amount of energy today is both a paramount mission enabler and a potentially crippling vulnerability.
In the future, fossil fuels, the world's primary energy source, will become scarcer, while our energy needs grow. Our continued reliance on fossil fuels will lead to physical and geopolitical challenges in the security landscape, while alternative sources pose other risks of their own. As the Department continues to reorient itself for great-power competition, the need to build more resilient infrastructure and supply chains has become more urgent. The time has come to reimagine our usage, generation, transportation, and storage of energy.
Reimagining Energy Challenge:
AFWERX, the U.S. Air Force’s innovation catalyst, recently launched the Reimagining Energy for the DoD Challenge, an open crowdsourcing program that aims to reduce the U.S. military’s reliance on fossil fuels and accelerate it’s shift toward renewable and resilient energy sources. This effort supports the DoD’s mission to deter conflict and ensure the nation’s security, and it also stands to supercharge the clean energy industry.
Academics, entrepreneurs, and organizations of all sizes in the U.S. and allied countries were invited to participate in this opportunity to receive government funding. Solutions ranged from practical innovations that are deployable today to moonshot ideas that require decades-long development. On October 29th, 2020, participants were eligible to submit in up to six topic categories:
- Fixed and Mobile Energy Generation
- Energy Transmission and Distribution
- Fixed and Mobile Energy Storage
- New Warfighting and Operational Equipment
- Data Availability for Improved Planning and Decision Making
- Energy Culture, Policy, and Education
Nearly 1,000 applications were received from all over the world, including the United States, Canada, the UK, Romania, Argentina, Germany, and India. A thorough review process in mid December narrowed the selection down to the top 177 companies, who will have the opportunity to pitch their cutting-edge ideas to a panel of evaluators and subject matter experts. Selected submissions advance to formal agreements in less than six months on average, dramatically reducing the typical multi-year contracting process.
Since launching its first challenge in 2018, AFWERX has awarded more than $33 million in DoD contracts and investments in programming participants, resulting in 28 solution prototypes. Millions more slated to be awarded for solutions currently under review.
Benefits of engaging with us at this event:
For industry:
- Connect with as many government agencies as possible and learn about contracting and funding pathways
- Garner exposure to potential partners, investors, and customers
For DoD & Government Agencies:
- Find solutions that can address our short-term and long-term energy needs
- See where commercial tech is headed in energy
For investors and academia:
- Understand DoD priorities
- Get exposure to new technology and companies in this space