Our Team - Zen Energy

Our Story

Ravi discovered the benefits of electric bikes during his Ph.D. and was deeply influenced by the transformative research done at Dalhousie University by Dr. Jeff Dahn. Inspired by Dr. Dahn's work, Ravi teamed up with Paul and Somu to bootstrap Zen into an Electric Bike company in Canada in November 2021. Recognizing that Battery Technology is at the core of every form of electrification, Zen Electric Bikes evolved into developing batteries for light electric vehicles.

Advised and supported by highly-accomplished mentors and investors, Zen is on a mission to build the best batteries for transportation and storage.

Advisors

Chris Burns

Dr. Burns co-founded Novonix in 2013, having developed Ultra-High Precision Coulometry at Dalhousie University during his Ph.D. Today, Novonix is a publicly traded (NASDAQ: NVX) company developing advanced graphite, cathode, and electrolyte materials to improve the performance and lifespan of Li-ion batteries.

Jeff Dahn

Dr. Jeff Dahn is a leading researcher in the field of Li-ion batteries and materials and currently holds the NSERC/Tesla Canada Industrial Research Chair. Dr. Dahn has co-authored over 800 papers and is well-known for inventing Li(NiMnCo)O2 or NMC cathode material and his work with Tesla.

Ted Graham

Ted Graham is a Principal with GM Ventures. Ted also holds the position of Head of Open Innovation based at GM’s Canadian Technical Centre (CTC). His work has encompassed startups, incubators/accelerators, VCs, and academia. Ted's insights on strategy and networking have helped Zen immensely.

George Nwangwu

Dr. George is a lawyer with over 18 years of transactional experience cutting across legal practice, financial services, and academia. He also has a wealth of experience in the consultancy sector for infrastructure finance and public-private partnerships, with a particular interest in electric power and renewable energy.

Management

Ravi Kempaiah

Ravi is passionate about e-mobility, batteries, and sports. After completing his Ph.D. in Chicago, he moved to Canada to work with Dr. Dahn and commercialize the battery technology for light electric vehicles. Ravi's training as an academic and Yoga teacher has helped him identify the challenges faced by North American, Asian and African markets and offer technical solutions through Zen Energy.

Kriti Yadav

Dr. Yadav is leading the strategy and operations at Zen. Trained as a dental surgeon, her work in India inspired her to take up public health and policy making. Dr. Yadav then completed her MPH from the University of Florida and an MBA from the University of Toronto. She is acutely aware of what it takes to build systems that propel startups and make an impact.

Somu Kumar

Somu is strategic business consultation leader with 20+ years of experience in Technical innovations, Digital transformation and business expansion. With his experience of help growing a previous start-ups to Series-B round investment, Somu supports Zen's hypergrowth stage through strategic investments and product partnerships.

We are uniquely positioned to accelerate light electric vehicle battery technology.

Our Story

Advisors

Management

There is no playbook for disruptive technology development.