Co-Founder of Cambridge GaN wins RAEng award
Giorgia Longobardi named RAEng Engineers Trust Young Engineer of the Year
Giorgia Longobardi, co-founder and CEO of Cambridge GaN Devices Ltd (CGD), a spin-out from Cambridge University's Department of Engineering, was picked as one of five young female engineers by the UK's Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng) who have been outstandingly successful in their respective fields at an early stage of their careers. She received a £3,000 prize.
Longobardi spun out her company, CGD, after completing her PhD, in collaboration with NXP Semiconductors, and soon after receiving EPSRC IAA Follow-on-Fund support.
After spending a year in Japan sponsored on a JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowship, she led a successful seed fund investment round for CGD. The company now employs ten people and was recently selected as one of the best deep-tech startups to watch by the School of Entrepreneurship and Innovation in Turin.
CGD develops highly efficient power electronics for applications ranging from power supplies for consumer electronics to LED drives, data centres and wireless chargers. In 2016, the company shared first prize in the annual Postdoc Business Plan Competition run jointly by the Entrepreneurial Postdocs of Cambridge (EPoC) and Cambridge Enterprise.
Longobardi is also a Research Fellow in Electronic Engineering at Gonville and Caius College. Her research is focused on GaN technologies, including sensors and system solutions for efficient power management.
“I’m extremely honoured to be named RAEng Engineers Trust Young Engineer of the Year alongside four exceptional engineers,” she said. “I’m very grateful to all the people that have contributed to this prize by supporting my work at both the Department of Engineering and Gonville & Caius College. A special thank you goes to my team in Cambridge GaN Devices for their work and commitment towards this amazing venture.”
Longobardi is passionate about promoting STEM subjects to the next generation, especially women. She has been a STEM ambassador engaging with school students in countries all around the world, including Italy, the UK and Japan.
