David Cohen-Tanugi
Senior Technology Leader | MIT PhD | Built Strategies, Teams, & Products from Seed to Series D | Climate Tech Focus
- Role
- Principal at Pine Island New Energy Partners
- Location
- Somerville, MA, US
- LinkedIn followers
- 500 followers
About David Cohen-Tanugi
Technology leader with 10+ years experience in R&D, innovation, and new product commercialization.Held leadership roles in technology startups from incorporation to Series D, with a focus on clean energy, digitally connected and IoT products, and data science. My colleagues value my thoughtful and data-driven approach to problems, my clear thinking, and my intentional & compassionate mentorship.Currently building climate & energy ventures at MIT\'s venture studio. Most recently built the smart devices & automation team at a Series D climate tech company focused on electric grid flexibility. Previously founded a connected hardware startup, raising Seed, Series A, and Series B funding from top-tier investors. Led product vision, roadmap, development, and commercialization strategy for the company\'s launch product. Grew company to tens of thousands of customers and 22 stellar employees. I\'m deeply passionate about combining technological innovations, data-driven insights, and customer needs in order to develop technologies & products with strong product-market fit.I received my Ph.D. in Materials Science & Engineering from MIT in 2015, where I started a new area of global research by proposing a novel category of membrane to efficiently produce fresh water using seawater desalination. My research has been cited 2400+ times, and Smithsonian.com has highlighted my work as one of the Top Most Surprising Scientific Discoveries of the year. I\'ve also been recognized by Forbes\' 30 Under 30 award (2014), as well as MIT Technology Review\'s French Innovators Under 35 award (2015). Competencies: technology commercialization, product management, analytics, data science and visualization, go-to-market strategy, clean energy, climate change, materials science, R&D
Experience
Principal
Pine Island New Energy Partners
Mar 2026 — Present
Pine Island is a private equity firm investing in critical supply chain companies in the energy sector. Led by John Thain (formerly President of Goldman Sachs, CEO of Merrill Lynch, CEO of NYSE Euronext) and Phil Cooper (Founding Partner of Goldman Sachs Private Equity). We invest in supply chain companies providing critical products and services to meet the soaring demand for global electricity. By backing companies at revenue inflection points and inestablished, compelling markets already in place, Pine Island captures stability and cash flow today while positioning for growth in emerging baseload generation and grid modernization.
Education
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Ph.D., Materials Science & Engineering
Princeton University
B.A., Magna Cum Laude, Physics
2005 — 2009
Ecole alsacienne
Baccalauréat, Science
1994
Skills
- Modeling
- Desalination
- Materials Science
- Sustainability
- Renewable Energy
- Energy
- Research
- Strategy
- Sustainable Energy
- Nanotechnology
- Clean Energy
- Environmental Issues
- Environmental Policy
- Energy Policy
- Energy Efficiency
- Water
- Entrepreneurship
- Environmental Science
- Policy
- Economics
- Chinese
- Smooth Jazz
- Project Management
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