Alumni News

Bioengineering alumnus' sustainable chemical company raises $118M

August 5, 2021

UC San Diego bioengineering alumnus Christophe Schilling is the cofounder and CEO of Genomatica, which just raised $118M in funding led by Novo Holdings. Genomatica makes sustainable, renewably-sourced chemicals and materials. Full Story

Alumna Chuah delivers 2021 CFK Memorial Lecture to Institution of Engineers, Malaysia

August 5, 2021

After earning her PhD in electrical engineering from the Jacobs School, Mooi Choo Chuah spent years conducting research in industry before becoming a computer science professor at Lehigh University. Chuah, who holds 63 patents, shared her industry to academia journey as she delivered the 31st Annual Professor Chin Fung Kee Memorial Lecture. Full Story

Titomic acquires alumni-led Tri-D Dynamics

August 5, 2021

Congrats to UC San Diego engineering alumni Deepak Atyam (aerospace), Alexander Finch and Jesse Lang (both structural), whose company Tri-D Dynamics was acquired by Titomic Limited. Tri-D develops smart, IoT connected pipe infrastructure. Full Story

Ishwar K. Puri named USC vice president for research

July 7, 2021

Ishwar K. Puri, an internationally known scientist and engineer whose research has explored fire safety, nanotechnology and 3D cell printing, has been named USC’s new vice president for research. Puri earned a PhD in engineering Science from the Jacobs School of Engineering at UC San Diego. Full Story

Women in Engineering --Anna Pridmore, P.E., Ph.D.

June 23, 2021

Anna Pridmore graduated from UC San Diego in 2009, with a Ph.D. in structural engineering, with a focus in advanced composites, design, material science and structural analysis. Today, she is vice president-pipeline and water infrastructure solutions at Structural Technologies. Full Story

UC San Diego Engineering Ranks #9 in U.S. News and World Report Best Engineering Schools Rankings

March 30, 2021

For the second year in a row, the University of California San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering has ranked #9 in the nation in the influential U.S. News & World Report Rankings of Best Engineering Schools.    Full Story

With gene therapy, scientists develop opioid-free solution for chronic pain

March 10, 2021

A gene therapy for chronic pain could offer a safer, non-addictive alternative to opioids. By temporarily repressing a gene involved in sensing pain, the treatment increased pain tolerance in mice, lowered their sensitivity to pain and provided months of pain relief without causing numbness. Full Story

The Spectacular Synthesis of Spider Silk

January 26, 2021

For David Breslauer, a UC San Diego bioengineering alumnus and co-founder and chief scientific officer at Bolt Threads, a bioengineering company in Emeryville, Calif., the potential of the spider and the mushroom represent not just another way to make apparel, but a way to bring greater sustainability to the clothing industry. Full Story

Triton 5: Ji-San Lee '11

January 26, 2021

Structural engineering alumnus Ji-San Lee is the senior designer for CLAE Footwear, working to make their shoes more sustainable through recycled materials.  Full Story

UC San Diego Alumnus at Helm of Company Behind First At-Home COVID Test

January 21, 2021

In November 2020, Lucira Health received emergency use authorization for the first rapid at-home COVID-19 test from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Erik Engelson, a UC San Diego bioengineering and microbiology alumnus, is president and CEO of Lucira Health. He spoke about the process of getting the COVID-19 test kit through FDA emergency use authorization, his time at UC San Diego, and advice for students, in this Q&A. Full Story

Alumna spotlight: Bridget Benson, electrical engineering professor at Cal Poly

January 8, 2021

Jacobs School computer science and engineering and Center for Machine Integrated Computing and Security alumna Bridget Benson shares her journey to becoming an associate professor of electrical engineering at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo.  Full Story

Moving forward, looking back

December 23, 2020

As we look back at 2020 and move forward in 2021, there are two high-level moves we are also making. These moves are designed to ensure the Jacobs School emerges more ready than ever to confront the challenges, injustices, and societal and innovation needs laid bare by the pandemic. Full Story

Jacobs School alumni kickstart Dean's Scholars of Excellence program

December 15, 2020

Education is the great equalizer. Jacobs School of Engineering alumni Mary Bui-Pham and Dan Pham have seen this play out in their own lives, and have donated the funds to endow a scholarship supporting students with outstanding academic merit, including students who have made or show potential to contribute to diversity, equity and inclusion; first generation; and low-income engineering students. Their gift launched the larger Jacobs School of Engineering Dean’s Scholars of Excellence program, a school-wide scholarship program meant to advance equal access to a Jacobs School education. Full Story

Bioengineering alumnus named to Forbes 30 Under 30

December 15, 2020

UC San Diego bioengineering and biology alumnus Joshua Yang was named to Forbes 30 Under 30 list for Healthcare. Yang, an MD-PhD student at Johns Hopkins, cofounded kidney diagnostics startup Nephrosant, and is active in healthcare venture capital due diligance.  Full Story

Passing of Shao-chi Lin, Professor Emeritus of Engineering at UC San Diego

December 11, 2020

Shao-chi Lin, Professor Emeritus of Engineering at the University of California San Diego, died on October 8, 2020 at the age of 95. He is remembered by former students and colleagues as a talented and caring teacher, mentor and researcher; and an active member of the campus community.   Full Story

ECE department launches virtual alumni mentorship program

November 19, 2020

In an effort to keep students and alumni engaged and connected to campus resources during months of remote school and work, the Jacobs School’s Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) Department’s Alumni Advisory Board launched an ECE Alumni Mentorship Program (AMP) in October. Full Story

Alumni-led Lucira Health earns 1st FDA authorization for at-home COVID test

November 18, 2020

On Tuesday, the Food and Drug Administration gave emergency use authorization to the first rapid at-home COVID-19 test, developed by Lucira Health. Erik Engelson, a UC San Diego bioengineering and microbiology alumnus, is president and CEO of Lucira Health Full Story

Alumni bring advanced 3D printing to space

November 16, 2020

UC San Diego alumni here on Earth and in space were part of the team that brought a Turbine Ceramic Manufacturing Module to the International Space Station. Full Story

Alumni battery startup raises $1.25M

November 6, 2020

Flexible battery startup Ateios, founded by Jacobs School of Engineering alumni, has raised $1.25 million in seed funding to bring its paper-thin, customizable batteries to market. Full Story

Company founded by engineering alumni advances 1-hour COVID test

April 7, 2020

Medical diagnostic company Fluxergy, founded by UC San Diego engineering alumni, submitted an Emergency Use Authorization to the FDA for their quick, point-of-care COVID-19 test. Full Story

Passion drives True Tritons to service

January 30, 2020

From creating scholarships and providing leadership, to student mentoring and preserving the arts, four shining examples of Triton passion and commitment will be honored Feb. 7 at UC San Diego’s True Triton Celebration to be held in the Great Hall on campus. Full Story

UC San Diego startup selected as finalist in UC Pitch contest

January 30, 2020

A startup founded by a UC San Diego electrical and computer engineering graduate student is one of five finalists in the 2020 UC Pitch Startup Showcase held Jan. 29 and 30 in tandem with the Global Corporate Venturing and Innovation Summit in Monterey, Calif. Full Story

Ozgur Sinanoglu (PhD '05), Cybersecurity Trailblazer

January 28, 2020

In Ozgur Sinanoglu’s Design for Excellence lab at New York University’s Abu Dhabi campus, a major development in cybersecurity has emerged. The Electrical and Computer Engineering professor and his team of eight researchers have made news over the last couple of years with their strides to create a chip that can stand up to a variety of threats and attempts to violate its security. A first-of-its kind chip that would be unhackable. Sinanoglu is an alumnus of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at UC San Diego.  Full Story

The Epic Lives of Albert Lin

January 9, 2020

UC San Diego engineering alumnus Albert Yu-Min Lin can be described in many ways: explorer, engineer, scientist, artist, surfer, humanist, traveler, philosopher, father. It’s a challenge to capture Lin, whether in a few words or just for a quick phone call. He seems to have an endless supply of momentum—an energy, curiosity and optimism as big as the world he is continually exploring. Full Story

Bianca Zadrozny (PhD '03): Developing Novel Approaches to Natural Resources Discovery and Exploration

January 8, 2020

Since earning her PhD in computer science in 2003, Bianca Zadrozny has pursued her computer science career, in both industry and academia, in two countries. Her path has led her to IBM Research in Brazil, where she oversees natural resources analytics research.  Her group’s mission is to conduct research projects in data-driven and physically driven analytics, aiming to develop novel technologies that can help in smarter natural resources discovery and exploration.  Full Story

Preserving Libraries in the Sand

January 7, 2020

Interdisciplinary partners at UC San Diego are using drones and 3D-modeling to save Puerto Rico’s indigenous history from the sea. In the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in late 2018, Eric Lo, a Jacobs School alumnus who now works at the Qualcomm Institute at UC San Diego, touched down in Puerto Rico with a single goal: find the ancient archaeological site he had helped monitor for more than a year and assess the damage.   Full Story

News Obituary: Y.C. Bert Fung

December 20, 2019

Yuan-Cheng “Bert” Fung, known as “the father of biomechanics” and one of the founders of the discipline of bioengineering at the University of California San Diego, passed away Dec. 15, 2019 of natural causes. He was 100. Full Story

Understanding and Combating the Economic Pull of Cybercrime

November 27, 2019

Neha Chachra works as an Engineering Manager at Facebook, where she has been employed since 2016, leading a team that protects Facebook against abusive links, protecting the platform from harmful URLs that expose users to phishing, spamming and malware. The work is a natural progression of her research and interests at UC San Diego, where she received her Ph.D. in 2015. Full Story

UC San Diego Institute for the Global Entrepreneur launches Medtech Accelerator, Shah Family Fellowships, and Founders Fund

November 21, 2019

During its inaugural showcase, the Institute for the Global Entrepreneur announced it’s launching a new MedTech Accelerator, as well as the Shah Family Entrepreneur Fellowship, and a new IGE Founders Fund, seeded with an initial $1 million philanthropic gift from the Legler Benbough Foundation. Full Story

Franklin Antonio Hall Groundbreaking Celebration

November 21, 2019

The University of California San Diego celebrated the groundbreaking of its newest engineering building, Franklin Antonio Hall, on Friday. The building is designed for active learning, collaborative research and the transfer of innovation to society.  Full Story

I Sit in the Red Chair Because...

November 21, 2019

They came in droves to sit in the Red Chair–graduate students, undergrads, faculty, staff, deans, the chancellor. They came to express their thoughts on diversity—and the results were powerful.“I sit so that one day every student can look at their classroom and see people who are like them,” said undergrad Joyaan Bhesania."I sit for my ancestors who could not,” said Becky Petitt, Vice Chancellor of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion. “And I'm grateful that they opened doors for me to be able to sit here.” Full Story

Bioengineering Pioneer Y.C. Bert Fung Turns 100

October 3, 2019

Thousands of professors, engineers, scientists and students around the world work in the field of biomechanics, the study of physics and mechanics applied to living tissues. But they are all somehow connected to Professor Y.C. “Bert” Fung at the University of California San Diego. Some use Fung’s findings in their work. Others were trained by or worked with Fung’s students. A core group studied directly under him. Fung realized that physics and mechanics apply to living tissues just as they do to manmade structures. He is often referred to as “the father of biomechanics.” Full Story

App allows inspectors to find gas pump skimmers faster

August 14, 2019

A team of computer scientists at UC San Diego and the University of Illinois has developed an app that allows state and federal inspectors to detect devices that steal consumer credit and debit card data at gas pumps. The devices, known as skimmers, use Bluetooth to transmit the data they steal. Full Story

In memory of Robert Hecht-Nielsen, an influential neuroscientist, entrepreneur and UC San Diego professor

July 1, 2019

Robert Hecht-Nielsen was an influential neuroscientist, entrepreneur, and electrical engineering professor at the University of California San Diego. He passed away in his sleep on May 26, 2019 in Del Mar, Calif. He was 71 years old. A pioneer in the development of neural networks, Hecht-Nielsen authored the first textbook on the subject, Neurocomputing, in 1989.  Full Story

How UCSD changed my life and might change your life too: A Q&A with ECE alumnus Dan Chang

June 10, 2019

Dan Chang feels that he left the world a better place after his 30 years in industry and credits his time at UC San Diego with putting him on that path.  He is passionate about ensuring that our current engineering students know that they are capable of doing more than making a lot of money with their degree.  Full Story

Engineering Students Find New, Unexpected Careers in Biomedicine

May 28, 2019

Two years ago, as fourth-year undergraduate students majoring in engineering, Yan Gong and Lu Xu had no idea they were about to enter the world of biomedicine. They were in a circuits class when their professor recommended them for positions in Imanuel Lerman’s lab, which was searching for students to help with developing a treatment for chronic pain. One of their first meetings with Lerman was at a hospital where Lerman,  associate professor with UC San Diego’s Department of Anesthesiology, asked the two students to solve an issue with interference that was jamming his medical research neurotechnology devices. Without his tools, he couldn’t accurately measure his patients’ physiological responses to a novel neurotechnology he hoped would dampen their responses to pain. Full Story

Two Jacobs School alumni to be recognized at UC San Diego Alumni Awards Celebration

May 23, 2019

Taner Halicioglu, a computer science alumnus, will be recognized as Outstanding Alumnus during the 2019 Alumni Awards Celebration Weekend, May 31 to June 2. True Xiong, an electrical and computer engineering alumnus, will be recognized as a Changemaker. Full Story

UC San Diego Giving Day

May 15, 2019

The challenge is on! UC San Diego is hosting its inaugural Giving Day for 1,960 minutes on Thursday, May 16 with a goal of bringing the university community together to create collective impact. To make Giving Day a bit more fun, several generous donors have created matching gift challenges for Jacobs School of Engineering projects. Full Story

Anticancer vaccines, natural language for computers, and multifunctional materials take center stage at UC San Diego Research Expo

March 14, 2019

The University of California San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering was just ranked the #11 graduate engineering program in the country by US News. Hear from more than 200 of these talented graduate students as they present their research at the 38th annual Jacobs School Research Expo, a showcase of the top engineering and computer science work underway at UC San Diego. Full Story

Training Clinical Engineers

February 4, 2019

UC San Diego's Clinical Bioengineering course offers undergraduate engineering students hands-on learning experience to solve clinical problems. The course reflects the Institute of Engineering in Medicine's mission to connect engineers with physicians to produce medical innovations. Full Story

Jacobs School alum charges startup to $1 million prize

October 15, 2018

A startup with a Jacobs School alumnus as its CTO won the $1 million grand prize at 43North, the startup pitch competition with the largest prize pool in the U.S. Christopher Ellis, a 2017 electrical and computer engineering graduate, is the CTO of SparkCharge, which is developing a portable electric vehicle charging system that can fit in the trunk of a car, to make distance limitations on electric cars a thing of the past.  Full Story

A Q&A with serial entrepreneur and alumnus Sergey Sundukovskiy

September 13, 2018

Sergey Sundukovskiy earned a degree in computer science here at the Jacobs School of Engineering in 2001. He is now the CTO, CPO and co-founder of Carlsbad-based Raken, a start-up that provides an app and software suite for the construction industry. In this Q&A, Sundukovskiy talks about his career, his memories of UC San Diego and gives some career advice for recent computer science graduates. Full Story

Remembering Kenneth Bowles, Creator of UCSD Pascal

September 7, 2018

Kenneth (Ken) Bowles, a computer science pioneer and professor emeritus at the University of California San Diego, passed away on Aug. 15, 2018 in Solana Beach, Calif. He was 89.  Bowles gained world renown for initiating and leading a largely student-driven project that culminated in the creation of the UCSD Pascal programming system in the late 1970s, which included a programming language, an operating system and a whole suite of other tools. UCSD Pascal influenced many aspects of computing that are now ubiquitous, including modern PCs and Macs as well as Sun Microsystem’s Java language. Full Story

Graduating students honored with Awards for Excellence

June 15, 2018

Here are some highlights from the impressive resumes of the 2018 Jacobs School of Engineering student award winners, recognized by the IDEA Engineering Student Center and Dean Albert P. Pisano at the Ring Ceremony. Full Story

Engineering students and alumni sweep Triton Entrepreneur Night

June 7, 2018

Two teams led by students and alumni of the Jacobs School of Engineering won big at Triton Entrepreneur Night, the signature event of The Basement—an undergraduate business incubator founded in 2015 with support from alumni. The teams competitively pitched their ideas, Shark Tank style, to a panel of esteemed investors and entrepreneurs.  Full Story

Above all, build trust

May 24, 2018

For Greg Papadopoulos, a UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering alumnus and partner at NEA, one of the largest venture capital firms in the world, engineering leadership is all about trust. Papadopoulos was awarded the Professional Gordon Fellow honor at the 9th annual Engineering Leadership Awards event run by the Gordon Engineering Leadership Center  Full Story

New Blood Test Rapidly Detects Signs of Pancreatic Cancer

May 17, 2018

UC San Diego researchers have developed a test that can screen for pancreatic cancer in just a drop of blood. The test, which is at the proof-of-concept stage, provides results in under an hour. It's simple: apply a drop of blood on a small electronic chip, turn the current on, wait several minutes, add fluorescent labels and look at the results under a microscope. If a blood sample tests positive for pancreatic cancer, bright fluorescent circles will appear. Full Story

You Can Eat That Fork

May 17, 2018

Zhicong “Zack” Kong, a 2017 bioengineering alumnus from UC San Diego, created compostable, durable, edible cutlery that is unique for several reasons:the ingredients, a scalable manufacturing process and an innovative mold technology. Full Story

Growing Computer Science Tutor Community Reunites at UC San Diego

May 16, 2018

More than 170 current and alumni computer science tutors reunited at UC San Diego in April 2018 to celebrate a program that has become a hallmark of the department and a model for the rest of campus.  Full Story

Eight Jacobs School alumni recognized at UC San Diego's first 40 Under 40 awards

April 12, 2018

From startup founders to VPs at major technology companies, eight alumni of the Jacobs School of Engineering were recognized in the first 40 Under 40 awards bestowed by the University of California San Diego. Full Story