Chief Technology Officer (CTO), Smartenergy
Christian Pho Duc is the CTO of Smartenergy Group AG and Member of the Board at SolarPower Europe. He holds the a Physics Degree from Munich Ludwig Maximilian University and a Masters in Microelectronic Engineering and Semiconductor Physics from Cambridge University. Christian has accumulated 30 years of working experience in Semiconductors, Electric Mobility and Renewable Energies & Hydrogen in various management positions.
Christian has been active in introducing new technologies to the market. This started with research at the Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics into high-resolution detectors that today orbit the earth in satellites. At Siemens Semiconductors in the 1990s he and his colleagues launched what were then the most highly integrated memory chips. In the early 2000s at with Giesecke & Devrie he introduced the first chip cards at the major European banks. At Infineon Technologies he designed into the major IT systems globally advanced memory solutions including highly parallel graphics which today are known for its AI processing capabilities. In his solar PV times with Solyndra, Nanosolar and Smartenergy from 2009 he was selling and realizing advanced thin film solar and first MW scale rooftop solutions. With Torqeedo he fostered globally advanced electric propulsion systems both to the leisure and commercial maritime market, supporting this nascent industry also as a board director of the German Boat and Shipbuilding Association. End of 2019 he started the hydrogen and derivatives activities and projects of Smartenergy as Managing Director.
OPENING PANEL
Financing landscape for hydrogen projects, including venture capital, private equity and accelerators. What role do these models play in catalyzing the growth of hydrogen startups and fostering vibrant ecosystems of collaboration and entrepreneurship?