David Tew
Founder and CEO, StepFunction
David Tew joins the Breakthrough Energy Fellows program from Step Function in Fairfield, CT. David is the CEO and Founder of Step Function. Previously, he was the Acting Deputy Director for Technology and a Program Director at ARPA-E, where he launched and/or led the INTEGRATE, DIFFERENTIATE, REEACH, and GENSETS programs. Prior to ARPA-E, he worked in a number of technical and business leadership roles at United Technologies Corporation.
Step Function’s fuel production technology offers the potential for the synthesis of low-cost carbon-negative fuels at globally relevant scales – without the use of significant amounts of electricity, or any biomass. Furthermore, in industrial waste conversion applications, it will also potentially recover valuable critical minerals while rendering reactive mine wastes inert. The Fellows program will enable a laboratory scale demonstration of fuel production concepts and support refining the designs of Step Function’s systems.
David has a Bachelor of Aerospace Engineering, summa cum laude, from the University of Michigan, Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy in Aeronautics and Astronautics degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a Master in Business Administration from the Columbia Business School. In his spare time, David enjoys spending time with family and exploring new places. He is also an avid – but slow – runner, biker, and swimmer.
Q&A
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
“The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.” I think that this is great advice for someone who is naturally curious . . . and sometimes too easily distracted from the “main thing”.
What did you want to be when you grew up?
I wanted to be an astronaut and visit Mars. (I am still open to the idea . . . but would like to bring family and friends . . . and return home after a brief stay.)
Share a fun fact about yourself
I have been living in the Netherlands for the past year, where I have learned to very much appreciate the extensive biking infrastructure . . . and to “enjoy” biking in the rain.