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THE TEAM
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Michael Epstein

Michael Epstein is an accomplished  entrepreneur in multiple sectors including power/energy, mobility and device technology.   He is the co-founder, President and CEO of Lightening Energy, a defense contractor and pioneer in ultra-rapid recharging, long life batteries, advanced materials and advanced controls. Prior, he was instrumental in founding and senior management of PlasmaSol, a pioneer in plasma physics technology that was acquired by Stryker Medical.  Earlier, Michael was a member of the co-founding team of USCAR, a joint venture of Chrysler, Ford and General Motors.  As Program Director and a member of USCAR's Management Committee, he chaired its business and policy groups, and co-drafted the original program plan for the “Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles.” PNGV included automakers, national laboratories, and the White House in collaboratively achieving an 80 mpg sedan with advances in electric and hybrid technology. He was awarded by USCAR "for many accomplishments and tireless effort."  Michael holds undergraduate and graduate degrees from Carnegie-Mellon and Boston University. 

President & Chief Executive Officer

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George Joseph

George Joseph is Sr. Vice President of Development and Strategy and has also served as Advisor to the Company for over a dozen years. In his 35-year career at Ford, Mr. Joseph held a variety of Corporate Finance and Technology Acquisitions assignments, retiring as Director, Global Technology M & A with responsibility for worldwide technology mergers, acquisitions and business development. Mr. Joseph was a co-founder of the U. S. Advanced Battery Consortium with Ford, GM, Chrysler and U. S. Department of Energy and served as Ford’s Business and Strategy Director for the Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles, a Clinton-Gore sponsored auto consortium between the Big Three and the U.S. government to develop an 80 MPG family sedan. He purchased the Think Electric Vehicle in Norway to support a common US electric vehicle platform for the development of a number of electric vehicle products for Ford. He also directed Ford’s internal technology Venture Capital Fund and was responsible for several technology partnerships and acquisitions with firms such as Qualcomm to co-develop a full-system, on-board vehicle Telematics platform. He entered into joint venture partnerships with 3M, Boeing and American Airlines to develop the first parallel processor Super Computer and was a key, day-to-day interface with Wall Street and managed Ford domestic and European public debt offerings.

Senior Vice President, Development & Strategy

Dr. Zuleica Lozada,
Ph.D.

Dr. Zuleica Lozada has more than 9 years of experience in development of advanced materials and processes in the power/energy related field, including advanced technology for synthesizing power and energy materials. Prior to joining Lightening Energy, Dr. Lozada held joint appointments in the Chemical Engineering and Manufacturing Engineering Departments at the Polytechnic Institute of Puerto Rico. In winter 2014, she started to work at Lightening Energy as a Senior Material Development Chemist in development of advanced solid polymer electrolyte materials for Li-ion battery applications. Dr. Lozada also participates as a senior engineer and scientist in advanced solid state electrolyte development relevant to the military applications for the Navy and Army. 

Chief Engineer

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Chimaobi Ibeh

Chimaobi Ibeh Manages Lightening Energy’s advanced prototyping and development laboratory located at New Jersey Institute of Technology in Newark, New Jersey. He also is co-manager of a multi-year program in advanced power/energy technology for government clients. On a day-to-day basis, Mr. Ibeh is intimately involved in our programs related to solid state electrolyte materials for Li-ion battery applications, as well as complex development programs resulting in a uniquely packaged, engineered and designed battery systems. These programs include modelling simulations using advanced software, as well as advanced production and prototyping through additive manufacturing. Mr. Ibeh earned a Masters Degree in Materials Science and Engineering at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, and prior completed a Bachelor of Science Degree in Materials Science and Engineering at Penn State University. Before joining Lightening Energy, he worked as a Chemist and Quality Control Engineer at a Fortune 500 Company.

Material Scientist & General Manager, Laboratories

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Mike Helmer,
Esq.

Advisor and Corporate Counsel

 Mike Helmer has served as Advisor and Corporate Counsel to Lightening Energy since its founding. He is a partner at Squire Patton Boggs. Mr. Helmer focuses his practice on mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance (including venture capital and private equity financings), contractual matters, corporate governance and general corporate counseling. Mr. Helmer also acts as outside general counsel to numerous companies. As an M&A lawyer, Mr. Helmer has extensive experience in over 20 years of practice representing numerous purchasers and sellers in a wide variety of acquisition, sale, merger, joint venture and other business combination and divestiture transactions. These matters include tax free reorganizations, asset transactions, management buyouts and exit transactions for founders. In venture capital, he has represented both companies and funds in equity, convertible debt and bridge financing transactions, including seed, angel, early, expansion and mezzanine round financings. In later stage private equity transactions, he has represented companies (including special committees) and investors in joint ventures, leveraged recapitalizations, special dividend transactions, dispositions and PIPE offerings for numerous emerging and established entities. Mr. Helmer provides general corporate representation including advice to boards of directors and management concerning corporate governance matters, and structuring and incentive compensation arrangements financing and M&A transactions. Prior to joining Squire Patton Boggs, Mr. Helmer was a partner at another international law firm and Managing Partner of Thacher Proffitt & Wood's  and later DLA Piper's New Jersey office. While attending law school, he was an officer in the Commodity Finance Department of The Chase Manhattan Bank. New Jersey Business News named Mr. Helmer as one of its top attorney "Deal Makers." He has also been recognized as a New Jersey Super Lawyer. Mr. Helmer has served as an Adjunct Professor at Seton Hall University Law School teaching Corporate Finance. He is a frequent panelist on topics involving venture capital, mergers and acquisitions and financings and other issues affecting emerging companies.

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Jaime Siegel,
Esq.

Advisor

 Mr. Siegel is Sr. Vice President, Intellectual Property and has served as an Advisor to the company since its founding. Mr. Siegel previously joined Acacia in June 2013 as Senior Vice President. He was appointed to Executive Vice President of Licensing and Litigation in May 2014. Experience. Mr. Siegel has extensive experience in international IP monetization, enforcement and strategic acquisitions, having spent more than 15 years at Sony Corporation of America, most recently serving as its Vice President and Senior Intellectual Property Counsel as well as its representative to Taiwan. His responsibilities at Sony included the worldwide licensing of technology in and out of Sony, the enforcement of Sony's patent rights, the defense of Sony against third party intellectual property claims and strategic intellectual property acquisitions. In his position, Mr. Siegel supported intellectual property matters for all of Sony’s network companies. He also is an expert in patent pools and served as the Chairman of the Board of MPEG LA, the world’s largest patent pool administrator. He has been a member of the AVS ad hoc IPR Experts group in China and the representative for Sony on the AVS Patent Pool Administration Executive Committee. Prior to joining Sony, Mr. Siegel was an associate attorney at the leading intellectual property firms of Kenyon & Kenyon and Fish & Neave in New York City. Mr. Siegel worked as an engineer in the aerospace industry prior to embarking on his legal careet. He holds a B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Clarkson University and a J.D. degree from Brooklyn Law School. Mr. Siegel also is a National Trustee of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.

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