Michael Webber

Dr. Michael E. Webber is the Sid Richardson Chair in the LBJ School of Public Affairs and the Cockrell Family Chair #16 in the department of mechanical engineering at the University of Texas at Austin. In addition to his role as a faculty member, from August 2021 to September 2024, Webber served as CTO of Energy Impact Partners, a $5 billion venture fund focused on investments in deep technology energy startups. Furthermore, from September 2018 to August 2021, Webber was based in Paris, France where he served as the Chief Science and Technology Officer at ENGIE, one of the world’s largest energy companies. <br /><br />Webber’s works spans research and education at the convergence of engineering, policy, and commercialization on topics related to innovation, energy, and the environment. His group’s research tackles complex energy systems analysis with a deep record of expertise on the following: 1) grid reliability in the face of electrification and the rise of variable sources in a warming world, 2) clean molecules and how they couple to other sectors such as the grid, transportation, and industry, 3) the built environment and 4) the food-energy-water-waste nexus. Among many executive advisory roles, he serves on the board of GTI Energy (an industry consortium formerly known as the Gas Technology Institute) and the Scientific Advisory Council for ENGIE in Paris, France.<br /><br />Webber has authored or co-authored more than 600 publications, including five full-length general interest books, and holds 6 patents. His essays have been published in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Scientific American and more. Webber’s scholarly articles have appeared in top journals such as Science, Nature, and Environmental Science & Technology.