Jim Chen leads a number of energy programs at Stanford Energy, including Stanford’s new Hydrogen Initiative; Stanford’s energy storage initiative, StorageX; and Stanford’s integrated energy program, Stanford Energy Corporate Affiliates (SECA). Dr. Chen was also the founding Managing Director of Bits & Watts, Stanford’s initiative focusing on the grid of the 21st century, launched in 2016.
Dr. Chen is enthusiastic about the global energy transformation and building a more sustainable society through innovation. At Stanford, Dr. Chen creates and expands impactful global communities of practice that enable industrial-academic-government collaboration in energy research and scale-up. Dr. Chen is also a leader in Stanford Energy’s global events including its regional roundtables and Global Energy Forum. Finally, Dr. Chen is deeply involved in Stanford’s innovation ecosystem, advising student groups, start-up companies, and accelerators. Dr. Chen’s research interests include hydrogen, energy storage, the circular economy, decarbonizing transportation, and integrated energy systems. Dr. Chen’s teaching roles include lecturing for Stanford’s Department of Materials Science and Engineering, and for Stanford Energy’s Hydrogen Economy Seminar.
Dr. Chen is passionate about global energy entrepreneurship and innovation. He works with energy agencies around the world promoting global collaboration, accelerating innovation, and sparking entrepreneurship. He also serves on a number of advisory councils, including on EPRI and GTI’s Low Carbon Research Initiative’s (LCRI) technical advisory board.
Dr. Chen came to Stanford University after 25 years in industry, bringing a broad background in energy and technology, with a specialization in technology and product development. He has held technical positions at Lawrence Berkeley Labs, GTE Labs, IBM, and AT&T Bell Labs, as well as technology executive positions at both starts-ups and Fortune 500 companies, including FormFactor and Eaton.
Dr. Chen received a PhD from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and MS from the University of California, Berkeley — both in materials science and engineering — and holds a BS from the University of California, Berkeley in electrical engineering.