Category: 2016

Slow and Steady Wins the Race: Other Models for Entrepreneurship – December 2016

I have been writing consistently about entrepreneurs who target disruption and force change in
markets, change that existing market leaders often will not initiate. This can lead to spectacular success or spectacular failure. Remember, every major transformative change typically occurs on the backs of three rounds of dead investors. Global communications operating at ultralow costs exist today because companies such as Lucent put fiber across the globe but could not recover their investments.
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Identifying and Avoiding Some Common Traps – June 2016

As new entrepreneurs, we love our novel, game-changing technology, the advantages of which are obvious when compared with the ancient relics made by global market leaders. We also know that
when we get to scale and can make a million pieces, we will have a cost advantage and will surely win. Time to do a start-up and begin planning that Caribbean vacation! Although this is somewhat satirical and an oversimplification, it shows some of the traps entrepreneurs, especially first-time entrepreneurs, often fall into.
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What’s the Difference Between a US$0 Million and a US$0 Billion Company? – March 2016

During last year’s Khosla Ventures Summit, leading tech venture capitalist (VC) Vinod Khosla raised a very interesting question: what is the difference between a US$0 million and a US$0 billion company? Companies that are just starting out do not have a product, employees, or revenue—only a promise. So why, then, do different companies end at up very different places? Why do some, like WhatsApp, become unicorns, with stratospheric valuations, while some become modest lifestyle businesses, and so many others fail? Is it purely chance, or is there a structured way to go about building a billion-dollar company?

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ARPA-E: Novel Power Electronic Systems Enabled by Wide Band-Gap Semiconductors

Novel Power Electronic Systems Enabled by Wide Band-Gap Semiconductors
September 13, 2016
Washington, D.C.

ARPA-E hosted a workshop entitled “Novel Power Electronic Systems Enabled by Wide Band-Gap Semiconductors” on September 13, 2016 in the Washington, D.C. area. The workshop convened leading experts in power electronics, power systems, circuit design, wide bandgap materials, semiconductor devices, packaging and module design, and end use applications to identify innovative research paths forward for the development of disruptive advanced circuit topologies that lead to higher efficiency, more reliable, reduced size and weight, and lower cost devices and/or system architectures.
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2016 First International Conference on Sustainable Green Buildings and Communities (SGBC)

2016 First International Conference on Sustainable Green Buildings and Communities (SGBC)
December 18 – 20, 2016
Chennai, India
Professor Divan was an invited speaker for this conference.

Use of DC electricity enhances system –wide efficiency and reduces the overall cost. DC and hybrid microgrids powered by distributed clean energy sources such as wind and solar systems can rapidly contribute to human development around the world. Electric vehicles powered with clean energy technologies have potential to dramatically impact the impending global climate changes.
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2016 IEEE Energy Conversion Congress & Expo

2016 IEEE Energy Conversion Congress & Expo
September 18 – 22, 2016
Milwaukee, Wisconsin

The 8th Annual IEEE Energy Conversion Congress & Exposition (ECCE 2016), sponsored by the IEEE Power Electronics Society (PELS) and the IEEE Industrial Application Society (IAS), was successfully held September 18-22, 2016 in Milwaukee, the heartland of North America’s electric drive and electrical equipment industry. As the world’s leading technical conference and exposition for energy conversion solutions, ECCE provides a unique opportunity to engineers, researchers, students, and other professionals from the broad spectrum of energy conversion for exchange of technical knowledge, networking, and exposure to the latest technology trends.
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Presentation 2016 – WEMPEC – Power Electronics Research

WEMPEC is an internationally renowned power electronics research and electric machines research group located at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. With the support of our 80+ corporate sponsors, our team of professors, graduate students, and international scholars work together to research and develop the newest technologies and techniques in electric machines, power electronics, actuators, sensors, drives, motion control, and drive applications.
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Low-Emissions Solutions Conference (LESC22)

Low-Emissions Solutions Conference
November 13, 2017
Bonn, Germany

This three-day Low-Emissions Solutions Conference (LESC) is aimed at problem solving, brainstorming, and global co-creation to inform nations about the latest technology developments. It will bring together technical experts and world-leading scientists, engineers and innovators from business, academia, and cities, to share knowledge, exchange information, identify bottlenecks, discuss best practices, and prioritize future research in order to set common technological trajectories for a decarbonized economy as well as the transformations necessary in each sector.
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7th International Symposium on Power Electronics for Distributed Generation Systems

7th International Symposium on Power Electronics for Distributed Generation Systems
June 27 – 30, 2016
Vancouver, Canada
Professor Divan was a keynote speaker for this conference.

This international symposium, sponsored by the IEEE Power Electronics Society and organized by the PELS Technical Committee on Sustainable Energy Systems, will allow experts on power electronics and distributed generation to meet, exchange ideas, and present on the latest technical advances.
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