Jane Zhang
Business Fellow
Jane Zhang joins Breakthrough Energy’s Business Fellows program from Sugar Land, Texas. Jane has a background in mechanical engineering and extensive experience working on technology and product ideation, development, and delivery in the energy industry. As a Business Fellow, she will use her expertise to help Innovator Fellows take their climate technology ideas from the lab to the market.
Jane has spent most of her 30-year career working in the energy industry and has deep knowledge of energy system fundamentals, capital project life cycles, and the decision-making process for technology investment and maturation. Most recently, she oversaw a $500-million investment fund for technology research, development, scale up, and commercialization in energy and energy transition. She understands how to bring products to market on a global scale –from energy system fundamentals and techno-economic analysis to product launch, business planning, and profit and loss management.
In her free time, Jane enjoys going swimming, doing yoga, cooking, and deep diving into diverse cultures through travel. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Tsinghua University in Beijing, China and a Doctor of Philosophy in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics from Cornell University. In addition to her day-to-day work in the energy sector, Jane sits on the Board of Directors for the Asian American Academy of Science and Engineering.
Q&A
What did you want to be when you grew up?
An astronomer.
What is the most impactful book you’ve read?
“Madame Curie –A Biography”
What are you hoping to learn through your work with Innovator Fellows in the BE Fellows program?
I hope to learn their [the Innovator Fellows] challenges and concerns, views of the future, approaches to problem-solving, and what motivates them.