Skip to content

WAVE Equity Partners Welcomes Former Panasonic Corporation of North America Chairman and CEO Joe Taylor as New Advisory Board Member

Share:

PR NEWSWIRE/Boston, MA, September 27, 2023 – WAVE Equity Partners (WAVE), a sustainability-focused investment firm that invests in early-growth companies whose proven cleantech solutions can bring transformational and immediate financial and environmental impact to global industries, today announced it has appointed Joe Taylor to its Advisory Board. With an illustrious career spanning more than three decades at Panasonic Corporation, Mr. Taylor brings a wealth of experience and leadership to the board and will provide exceptional strategic and operational support to WAVE and its funds.

Mr. Taylor joins the WAVE Advisory Board following a nearly 35-year career at Panasonic Corporation. He most recently served for seven years as the first non-Japanese Chairman and CEO of the firm’s North American subsidiary, Panasonic Corporation of North America. During his tenure as Chairman and CEO, Mr. Taylor transformed Panasonic Corporation of North America from a consumer products company to a dynamic B2B technology enterprise, overseeing remarkable growth, a near doubling of its revenue to $12 billion and a fivefold increase in profits.  Prior to that he served as Managing Executive Officer for 12 years, where he was appointed the first American on the company’s executive board.

“We are delighted to welcome Joe as the newest member to our Advisory Board,” said Praveen Sahay, Founder & Managing Director at WAVE Equity Partners. “His unparalleled experience transforming a traditional corporation into a thriving B2B technology leader illustrates his incredible leadership and vision. Joe’s insights and strategic acumen will be invaluable as we continue to invest in and support innovative companies that are delivering economic and environmental benefits to the world’s largest industrial manufacturers.”

An avid investor, he has invested in Factorial Energy, a Boston-based developer of polymer-based, solid-state batteries for EVs, a portfolio company in which WAVE has been one of the lead investors. Mr. Taylor was appointed as Executive Chairman of the company in 2021.  He is also a board member and investor in two other innovative startups, Ceribell and Folio Photonics.

Mr. Taylor served on the Board of Trustees of the New Jersey Institute of Technology for 8 years where he was awarded an honorary PhD in Engineering and led the Audit and Finance committee as well as serving as acting Vice-Chairman of the Board of Trustees. Additionally, he served on the Board of Trustees of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, was on the Advisory Board of Plug and Play, a startup accelerator, was inducted into the New Jersey Business Hall of Fame and has been honored with Newark’s Social Justice Award.

“I’m thrilled to join WAVE and look forward to furthering their ability to identify and support leaders whose innovative, proven solutions are driving meaningful bottom-line impact and environmental benefits for companies around the world,” said Taylor.

In addition to Mr. Taylor, WAVE Advisory Board members include Dr. Joseph Stanislaw, Rebecca Ranich and Patrick Solomon. Additional information about WAVE board members can be found at: www.WAVEep.com/our-firm/team/

About WAVE Equity Partners

WAVE Equity Partners (WAVE) is an independent sustainability-focused investment firm. We partner with early-growth companies whose proven clean technologies drive meaningful bottom-line impact and environmental benefits for large industrial manufacturers. Our industry knowledge and dedication to true partnership allow us to work effectively with leaders whose innovative solutions are commercially accepted, deliver immediate impact and are poised to scale. WAVE is currently investing out of its third institutional fund and has approximately $440 million under management (AUM) as of June 30, 2023. For more information please visit https://waveep.com/ or by following the company on Twitter or LinkedIn.

Media Contacts:

Zach Kouwe

Dukas Linden Public Relations wave@dlpr.com

Share:

WindESCo

WindESCo is a provider of wind turbine optimization systems intended to ensure that every wind turbine is optimized for maximum energy. The company’s systems maximize assets’ performance, energy production, and reliability to ultimately discover the hidden value of renewable energy plants, enabling clients to increase revenue by increasing annual energy production.

QiO

In a world where energy demand escalates alongside digital growth, QiO Technologies offers a beacon of innovation. Their DC+ software, powered by advanced machine learning, intelligently fine-tunes power management in data centers at the granular level of CPU operations. QiO technology is a testament to their capability to significantly enhance energy savings while ensuring peak performance.

Novolyze

Novolyze is a developer of a tech-enabled system designed to empower food and beverage companies to enhance food safety and quality performance. Their surrogate microorganisms technology specializes in food safety microbiology. It offers monitoring of steam pasteurizers, sterilizers, dryers, roasters, extruders, and ovens, enabling food companies to produce and provide clean food products to customers.

Micatu, Inc.

MICATU is a provider of next-generation optical sensing solutions for the measurement of voltage, current, vibration, and temperature for next generation grid intelligence solutions. Its solutions provide enhanced data fidelity, accuracy, precision, and the ability to sense harmonic disturbances in the grid before they become a problem for grid operators.

MayMaan Research Inc.

MayMaan is at the vanguard of addressing the 21st century’s critical global energy challenges. Their commitment to creating alternative energy solutions led them to develop an innovative engine/fuel combination. Their award-winning technology, running on a mix of 70% water and 30% ethanol, is set to replace traditional Internal Combustion Engines with a commercially viable, energetically superior, and less polluting alternative.

Living Greens Farm

Living Greens Farm has developed and commercialized an efficient semi‑automated system for indoor farming of leafy crops such as lettuce, spinach, kale and other crops. Like other indoor farms, LGF uses 98% less land, 95% less water than traditional farms, and eliminates pesticides, herbicides, and chemicals. In addition, it has been able to grow superior, robust, full sized plants at low cost.

Intellihot

Intellihot is a leading manufacturer of high-efficiency water heating systems for commercial and industrial markets. Their on-demand gas/propane-fired heaters operate at 95% efficiency, surpassing traditional products. Intellihot’s reliable and space-saving solutions reduce operating expenses by 30-60%, cut capital expenditures by 50%, and contribute to a sustainable future. 

Intelligent Fluids

Based in Leipzig, with a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Leuna, Intelligent Fluids employs and partners with top notch researchers to conduct cutting edge research and launch groundbreaking innovation. They have pioneered green impact chemistry for cleaning. A new era of professional cleaning materials for industrial applications that combine the highest performance with sustainability.

Gradiant

Gradiant is a water recycling company with broadly patented processes to purify and recycle toxic water with a global customer base in multiple industries, including desalination, power generation, textiles, oil and gas, leather tanning, and mining. After spinning out of MIT in 2013, the Company has quickly established a diverse business footprint while significantly impacting the world’s water supply.

Factorial Inc.

Factorial is a manufacturer of nano-engineered batteries designed for electric vehicles, homes, and critical applications. The company’s batteries increase energy density and improve capacity, have an extended life, and recharge faster than any other existing material, enabling battery manufacturers to use more environmentally friendly, safer, and less expensive materials.

CHASM Advanced Materials

CHASM produces a range of advanced materials, including carbon nanotubes, transparent conductive films, and nanometal inks, which are used in various applications, such as cement production, EV batteries, antennas, heaters, and flexible electronics. In addition to their advanced materials, CHASM also offers development and manufacturing services to help their customers bring their products to market quickly & efficiently.

Carbon Clean Solutions

Carbon Clean is a developer of carbon capture technology designed to help industries decarbonize and leverage the growing value of captured carbon. The company’s technology offers an energy-efficient process that provides improved capture rates and delivers industrial-quality carbon dioxide for reuse or sequestration, enabling clients to have easy, affordable, and scalable carbon capture.

AeroSafe Global

AeroSafe is a leading provider of ‘Cold Chain as a Service’ (CCaaS) to ensure safe, sustainable delivery and effective use of pharmaceuticals. Its reuse program includes high-tech reusable thermal packaging, outsourced supply chain services, and a temperature monitoring control tower, reducing carbon usage and landfill by 65% and 90%, respectively, compared to traditional Styrofoam containers.

Let us get to know a little bit about you

Please provide your pertinent details and we will send you a download link.

Subscribe to the
WAVE Newsletter

Keep in touch & stay up-to-date on the latest
news & insights from WAVE.