I’m a Venture Coach at the Center for Entrepreneurship & Technology
Since about 2005 I have been a Venture Coach at the Center for Entrepreneurship & Technology at the College of Engineering at University of California at Berkeley.
I haven’t done much coaching recently, but when I was helping out regularly, it was a lot of fun. I sometimes had groups of six students in my office. The last time I met with students as a Venture Coach was in 2010.
I will make a special effort to participate in more events this coming academic year. I am very impressed with the quality of ideas from Berkeley’s engineering students.
One of the prototypes I saw in about 2006 particularly impressed me. A team made a refrigerator compressor as small as half my thumb. The compressor used so little electricity it could be powered by a single solar panel, yet it was so capable it could cool down an ice chest like you would take to the beach. The entire solar powered refrigerator would be able to be sold for USD $100.
I don’t know what became of the concept. I still think it’s a great idea. The team had in mind selling these eco refrigerators in the developing world, but I think they would sell well in much of the world, including at Target and Amazon. Who wouldn’t want to dispense with ice on a day at the beach?
