About The Event

Nicolas Sauvage is the President of TDK Ventures. Nicolas Sauvage is committed to invest and serve entrepreneurs – the ultimate Impact Scalers – to build innovative and meaningful solutions in Digital, Energy & Environmental Transformations that will bring positive impact to society and the planet.

Nicolas believes in the value of focusing on what really matters in one’s life and removing the noise around us as much as possible; he created the concept of the “8 words” to capture in just 8 words what matters the most to someone, and prioritize their life’s choices and activities, every day. His 8 words starts with his wife: “Sheila first. Scaling Impact Scalers. Patience and Impatience.” and are engraved on his iPad.

Nicolas is an alumnus of the Stanford GSB, INSEAD, London Business School, and microelectronics ISEN school.

Geetha Dholakia is a Portfolio Program Manager at TDK Ventures. She is responsible for strategic engagements between Portfolio Companies and global TDK business groups. She is committed to identifying, enabling and nurturing nascent technical ideas to grow into successful business collaborations that improve lives and build a sustainable world.

She brings many years of scientific, technical program management and business development experience. In prior technology management roles, she has worked at NASA Ames Research Center, supporting NASA’s $200 million SBIR/STTR program and in enabling partnerships, business development and technology transfer of NASA Ames’ vast technology landscape. As a scientist, her deep research focus was in two areas, one at the cross-section of physics, materials science and electrical engineering in studying nanoscale systems and another in instrumentation for space missions.

She has a Ph.D. in Physics from the Indian Institute of Science and a Masters in Physics from Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, driven by a lifelong curiosity to understand how nature works.

Michael Pocsatko serves as a Corporate Officer and the Senior Vice President, General Manager of Corporate Marketing & Incubation at TDK Corporation in Tokyo, Japan. In this role, he acts as a vital link between TDK and the market, focusing on fostering innovation and introducing new products and solutions to enhance the company’s portfolio. Michael also serves as the Managing Director at TDK Management Services GmbH in Munich, Germany, to provide essential HR, Corporate Communications, and Corporate Marketing & Incubation services to TDK Corporation, Japan. With his leadership skills, strategic insight, and unwavering commitment to innovation and customer satisfaction, Michael plays a pivotal role in shaping TDK’s reputation as a pioneering force in the industry, driving the company towards a future marked by growth and positive social impact.

Previously, Michael held various leadership positions within TDK Corporation, Japan, and EPCOS Ltd., which was acquired by TDK Corporation in 2009, where he served as President & CEO and then Chairman of the Board.

Joe Lam is the General Manager of TDK China, Corporate Officer of TDK Japan, and the Executive VP of Amperex Technology Limited (ATL), the world’s leading producer and innovator of lithium-ion batteries. With a career spanning more than three decades, Joe is a seasoned executive who has consistently demonstrated exceptional leadership skills and strategic acumen. Over nineteen years with ATL, he held various positions within Sales & Marketing and Corporate Planning. Prior to his current role, he served as COO and VP of Corporate Affairs and Planning, contributing significantly to ATL’s growth and innovation. In past few years, Joe focuses on VC investments relating to battery technologies and materials, as well as M&A and JV projects at mega scale.  Earlier in his career, Joe gained valuable experience in magnetic recording heads and optical communication components at SAE Magnetics and excelled as an Account Manager in San Jose, California. He holds an MBA from Santa Clara University and a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering with First Class Honors from The University of Hong Kong.

Georg received his PhD in Physics at the University of Technology in Graz, Austria. In 1992, he joined Siemens Matsushita Components, which later became EPCOS and is now part of TDK Corporation.

Georg’s professional background lies in ceramics, where he was always involved in the development of new materials, components, and systems. Aside from conducting research and development, he was always interested in improving R&D methodology. This led him to agile development and lean startup methodologies.

Georg is now Deputy General Manager of the Technology and IP Headquarter of TDK Corporation. He also runs TDK Kindergarten which is TDK’s internal venture building program.

Michael Pocsatko serves as a Corporate Officer and the Senior Vice President, General Manager of Corporate Marketing & Incubation at TDK Corporation in Tokyo, Japan. In this role, he acts as a vital link between TDK and the market, focusing on fostering innovation and introducing new products and solutions to enhance the company’s portfolio. Michael also serves as the Managing Director at TDK Management Services GmbH in Munich, Germany, to provide essential HR, Corporate Communications, and Corporate Marketing & Incubation services to TDK Corporation, Japan. With his leadership skills, strategic insight, and unwavering commitment to innovation and customer satisfaction, Michael plays a pivotal role in shaping TDK’s reputation as a pioneering force in the industry, driving the company towards a future marked by growth and positive social impact.

Previously, Michael held various leadership positions within TDK Corporation, Japan, and EPCOS Ltd., which was acquired by TDK Corporation in 2009, where he served as President & CEO and then Chairman of the Board.

Joe Lam is the General Manager of TDK China, Corporate Officer of TDK Japan, and the Executive VP of Amperex Technology Limited (ATL), the world’s leading producer and innovator of lithium-ion batteries. With a career spanning more than three decades, Joe is a seasoned executive who has consistently demonstrated exceptional leadership skills and strategic acumen. Over nineteen years with ATL, he held various positions within Sales & Marketing and Corporate Planning. Prior to his current role, he served as COO and VP of Corporate Affairs and Planning, contributing significantly to ATL’s growth and innovation. In past few years, Joe focuses on VC investments relating to battery technologies and materials, as well as M&A and JV projects at mega scale.  Earlier in his career, Joe gained valuable experience in magnetic recording heads and optical communication components at SAE Magnetics and excelled as an Account Manager in San Jose, California. He holds an MBA from Santa Clara University and a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering with First Class Honors from The University of Hong Kong.

Albert Ong is a seasoned C-Level executive with a remarkable track record on a global scale, marked by his exceptional leadership and strategic acumen. With extensive experience in leading multicultural teams and managing complex strategies, Albert’s career is defined by a relentless pursuit of success, marked by his ability to drive revenue growth, navigate intricate M&A events, and consistently achieve successful outcomes.

As the CEO of TDK Corp’s Magnetic Heads Business Company (MHBC), Albert manages a $2 billion business with 20,000 employees worldwide, expanding market share and revenue significantly. At Magnecomp Precision Technology (MPT), he led growth from $60 million to over $650 million, successfully navigating 8 M&A events, including acquisitions and divestments.

Georg received his PhD in Physics at the University of Technology in Graz, Austria. In 1992, he joined Siemens Matsushita Components, which later became EPCOS and is now part of TDK Corporation.

Georg’s professional background lies in ceramics, where he was always involved in the development of new materials, components, and systems. Aside from conducting research and development, he was always interested in improving R&D methodology. This led him to agile development and lean startup methodologies.

Georg is now Deputy General Manager of the Technology and IP Headquarter of TDK Corporation. He also runs TDK Kindergarten which is TDK’s internal venture building program.

Ain McKendrick is the founder and CEO of Faction.  Prior to forming Faction, Ain was VP of Engineering at Starsky Robotics which became the first company to operate completely driverless semi trucks on public roads in North America.  He was the Senior Director of Netflix’s partner products team which brought Netflix Instant Streaming to connected consumer products and has co-founded a number of startup technology ventures.  Ain began his technology career as one of the founders of Palm Computing developing the original PalmPilot PDA and holds a degree in Computer Science from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

Lie Shi is the CEO of AM Batteries. Prior, Shi served as President of Celgard, a world-renowned battery separator company that invented and commercialized a solvent-free process to produce microporous membranes for lithium-ion batteries. Over his twenty-six-year stint at the company, he worked his way from technical manager, leading its lithium battery material development, to Vice President of R&D, to Chief Technology Officer, to Chief Operations Officer, and ultimately, ascending to President. He also served as the Global Head of Separator Business Development for Asahi Kasei Corporation, Celgard’s parent company. Shi received his B.S. in Physics from Kyoto University, Japan, M.S. in Physics from the University of Michigan, and an MBA from the University of North Carolina – Charlotte.

Vishal is the Founder, President, and CEO at Analog Inference. He has over 25 years of experience in semiconductor industry with extensive success building product lines from inception. Visal has been leading teams creating ground-breaking technology in analog/slc/mlc/tlc/qlc non-volatile memory, associative memory compute architectures for network processors, analog & in-memory compute processors for AI, at such companies as Micron, Fast-Chip, Information Storage Devices, SST/Microchip, and National Semiconductor. He has successfully built product lines with over billion dollars in revenue. Vishal holds over 100 patents, an MSEE from University of Michigan and an MBA from UC Berkeley.

Ray Owen is Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing at TDK-Lambda Americas. Part of the TDK Energy Solutions Business, TDK-Lambda is a global leader in power conversion products for a broad range of industrial applications. Ray is based at TDK-Lambda Americas headquarters and manufacturing facility in Neptune, New Jersey. Having joined TDK-Lambda Americas in 2002 and previously spending 13 years in the semiconductor manufacturing equipment industry, Ray brings substantial experience in high power and high voltage power supplies which has been valuable in interacting with a number of TDK Ventures Portfolio Companies who need high power and high voltage for their applications.

Ellen has spent more than twenty years in the tech and venture ecosystem and leverages her broad network and deep understanding of both the tech sector and legal landscape to effectively and strategically advise emerging companies and investors on a wide range of critical needs.

Matthew Gemello, a corporate partner in the Silicon Valley office, leads our global Corporate Business unit.

Nicolas Sauvage is the President of TDK Ventures. Nicolas Sauvage is committed to invest and serve entrepreneurs – the ultimate Impact Scalers – to build innovative and meaningful solutions in Digital, Energy & Environmental Transformations that will bring positive impact to society and the planet.

Nicolas believes in the value of focusing on what really matters in one’s life and removing the noise around us as much as possible; he created the concept of the “8 words” to capture in just 8 words what matters the most to someone, and prioritize their life’s choices and activities, every day. His 8 words starts with his wife: “Sheila first. Scaling Impact Scalers. Patience and Impatience.” and are engraved on his iPad.

Nicolas is an alumnus of the Stanford GSB, INSEAD, London Business School, and microelectronics ISEN school.