Andrew Ponec
Antora Energy
Andrew Ponec is the co-founder and CEO of Antora Energy, a startup developing thermal energy storage that turns solar and wind into zero-carbon industrial heat and power. Antora Energy is backed by leading investors including Lowercarbon Capital and Breakthrough Energy Ventures. Mr. Ponec previously founded a solar energy company called Dragonfly Systems. Dragonfly developed and commercialized novel power electronics for utility-scale solar power plants, and was acquired by SunPower in 2014. Ponec led the team through concept generation, prototyping, validation testing, and manufacturing, and eventually oversaw the installation of over 10 MW of solar power plants that used the technology. He received his B.S. in energy systems engineering from Stanford University, where he researched advanced photovoltaics and power electronics.