Max Shtein earned his B.S. in Chemical Engineering from UC Berkeley in 1998 and his Ph.D. Chemical Engineering from Princeton in 2004; he is an Associate Professor (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 2004-pres.) of engineering, applied physics, art & design, and entrepreneurship. Shtein directs a research group working mainly on novel device architectures and processing methods for flexible electronics, and on energy conversion physics in novel materials. His innovation work is embodied in several licensed patents and, recently, a startup company for the commercialization of novel lighting technology. Shtein’s awards include the Materials Research Society Graduate Student Gold Medal Award, the Newport Award for Excellence and Leadership in Photonics and Optoelectronics, the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, and several prizes for excellence in teaching.