About
Steve Schell
Principal, Schell Innovation Ventures
I’ve spent more than 25 years building hardware that has to work in the real world, including 15 years concentrating sunlight to make heat and power.
As CTO and Chief Scientist of Heliogen, I directed the technical scope of an $89 million first-of-a-kind concentrating solar facility and grew the company from 11 to over 200 people. Before that, I led engineering for eSolar’s small-heliostat power tower fields and Amonix’s concentrating PV trackers. I co-founded New Matter, a 3D printer company, and started my career designing robots at Evolution Robotics.
Since 2024 I’ve worked independently. I led the mid-term update of the DOE Heliostat Consortium’s technology roadmap, and I’m advising on ASGARD, a FEED study for solar industrial process heat.
I hold a BS in Engineering and Applied Science from Caltech.
How I work
Complex technology, explained so anyone can follow it.
The feedback I hear most from colleagues and clients is that I can explain complex technology so anyone can follow it. At Heliogen I spent about half my time with customers, as the technical lead our sales team brought in to build relationships. I’ve also given talks and interviews on TV, video and podcasts.
That matters on your project. Your engineers get a peer who has built the hardware. Your executives and board get straight answers they can act on.
Credentials
Training and record
- BS, Engineering and Applied Science (Mechanical Engineering), Caltech. Outstanding Engineering Student of the Year.
- U.S. patents on solar receivers, heliostat field cleaning and heliostat field layout (pending).
- Publications in Solar Energy, SolarPACES proceedings and National Laboratory of the Rockies technical reports.
Speaking and media
Concentrating solar, explained for a general audience
- Beyond Fossil Fuels: Concentrated Solar Energy’s PotentialIt’s a Material World podcast, episode 103, 2023 (52 min)
- How mirrors could power the planetFreethink, Hard Reset series, 2021
- Concentrated Solar Power Explained in 60 SecondsIt’s a Material World, 2023
Let’s talk
Tell me about your project. A short note is the best way to start.