Dr. Patrick Chapman, co-founder and CEO of Stormentum, a leader in power electronics, systems engineering, energy storage, renewable energy, intellectual property and entrepreneurship, will speak at S&T as part of the Kummer Keynote Speaker Series. He has been shaping the future of solar for decades and now leads a startup focused on making solar + storage radically more affordable and scalable.

After earning his S&T bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering (1996, 1997) and a Ph.D. from Purdue (2000), he spent a decade on the faculty at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. During that time, in the residential solar power, a single large inverter was connected to multiple rooftop solar panels. If that device was damaged or failed, the entire rooftop array stopped producing electricity.

Chapman and colleagues developed a robust, highly reliable microinverter paired to each panel so one device’s failure wouldn’t take the system offline. He and three Illinois ECE colleagues, including a former college roommate, co-founded SolarBridge Technologies to manufacture and sell panel-level microinverters directly to module companies, bringing simple plug-and-power functionality that helped make solar more accessible. Within a short time, SolarBridge microinverters captured about 10% market share and helped move the industry away from centralized inverters.

Since then, Chapman has held executive engineering roles at Enphase Energy, SunPower, Redwood Materials, and Mainspring Energy. He is a Fellow of IEEE and was recently elected to the National Academy of Engineering, one of the highest honors in the field of engineering. He holds 75 U.S. patents and has published 100+ academic papers.

At S&T, Chapman will speak about his path, from his time in Rolla to turning a spark of an idea into a product on a roof, what he learned moving between university labs and startups, and how home energy is evolving as batteries join the mix.

Kummer Keynote Speaker Series:

The Kummer Keynote Speaker Series brings accomplished leaders, innovators, and alumni to Missouri S&T to share hard-won lessons at the intersection of technology, entrepreneurship, and leadership. Designed with students in mind, the series highlights real-world decision-making, career pathways, and emerging trends across industry and research. Each event features actionable takeaways plus time for Q&A and networking, giving attendees chances to connect with mentors and explore internships, research, and career opportunities. The series is presented by the Kummer Vanguard Scholars Student Steering Committee and is open to all students, faculty, and staff.