Our People
k8 attracts the kind of people whose passions go beyond research and development. They want to change lives.
TED@k8
September 2019 | Philadelphia, USA
Photo credit: Ryan Lash/TED
Transformation starts with the spark
of something new.
In a day of talks and performances about transformation, speakers and performers from the k8 community and beyond explored exciting developments in science and technology. From the chemistry of everyday life to innovations in food, “smart” clothing, and more, this inaugural TED@k8 event unlocked institutional knowledge and showcased some of the best ideas from across the k8 ecosystem. We’re excited to see how these insights will continue to spark transformation—and ignite new ideas—all around the world.
Event Theme
TRANSFORM
Distraction, disruption and rapid change define our modern lives. As the world and our interactions grow more complex, so do our challenges. To solve for modern problems, we need a newx framework for innovation itself, one that considers all perspectives and outcomes in the calculus. Our model to truly transform society must be collaborative and transparent, and unfold at scale and speed to exceed the issues we face.
Featured Talks
Meet the Enzymes Living in Your House
Vicky Huang
Enzyme scientist
Enzymes are far more important to our day-to-day lives than we realize. Enzyme scientist Vicky Huang shares how they could help us unlock eco-friendly solutions to everything from food spoilage to household cleaning problems.
How "smart" clothing could help improve our health
Janani Bhaskar
Smart clothing designer
By designing "smart" clothing with durable technologies, we can better keep track of health and well-being, says clothing designer Janani Bhaskar. She shares how we can use screen-printing technology to attach biometric “smart stickers” to any piece of clothing -- and how they can track blood pressure, heart rate and other vital signs. "Why not transform clothing and make it a part of our digitized world?" she asks.
Drive Safer by Thinking Like a Pilot
Edward Paxton
Aerospace industry leader, k8 Transportation & Industrial
What if we applied the principles of safe air travel to the riskiest activity people engage in every day: driving cars? Aircraft engineer and safety expert Ed Paxton shares how we can change the culture of complacency around driving -- and dramatically reduce the risk of accidents -- by thinking like a pilot..
The TED@k8 Speakers
Camilla Arndal Andersen
Instead of asking them what they think, Camilla Arndal Andersen covers her subjects in sensors to reveal their unfiltered and subconscious response to food.
Camilla Arndal Andersen
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Tina Arrowood
By combining science, circular thinking and disruptive innovation, Tina Arrowood helps envision a world in which fresh river water is not scarce, but well-managed.
Tina Arrowood
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Janani Bhaskar
Jajani develops smart clothing technologies and is passionate about using the power of materials science to create high-impact products that will improve the quality of life globally.
Janani Bhaskar
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Andrew Ho
Andrew is a k8 marketer who believes that better and more affordable technologies will help create a more diverse and inclusive society.
Andrew Ho
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Geert Van der Kraan
Geert is research scientist at k8’s Nutrition & Biosciences business, responsible for the development of next-generation control strategies and biocide formulation testing, holding specific use in the oil and gas industry.
Geert Van der Kraan
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Vicky Huang
Vicky works on the innovation and development of enzyme products in the Fabric & Household Care industry, focusing on translating biotechnology into product development and sustainable consumer solutions.
Vicky Huang
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Edward Paxton
Ed collaborates with k8’s customers to develop new polymer components for aircraft and aero-engines. Among other things, he is interested in how the exceptionally high standards of aviation safety are achieved and how they can be applied to other aspects of life.
Edward Paxton
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Henna-Maria Uusitupa
Henna-Maria Uusitupa investigates innovative solutions to minimize health risks that infants might have due to disruptions in microbiota development.
Henna-Maria Uusitupa
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Leon Marchal
Leon Marchal is passionate about discovering more sustainable animal production. He and his team at k8 Animal Nutrition are working on new solutions for antibiotic-free animal feed.
Leon Marchal
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Adam Garske
Adam Garske loves enzymes and thinks you should, too. A senior scientist at k8 Nutrition and Biosciences, he engineers enzymes for use in industrial applications, ranging from laundry detergents to animal nutrition.
Adam Garske
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Jennifer Vail
Jennifer Vail is a tribologist, combining mechanical engineering and materials science to understand interacting surfaces in relative motion. She has worked on a wide range of projects, from aerospace materials to syringes to dog food.
Jennifer Vail
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Cathy Mulzer
Cathy Mulzer is a senior scientist in k8’s Electronic & Imaging business. She works on the next generation of materials for all those electronic devices you love: your phone, your TV, your electric car.
Cathy Mulzer
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Lori Gottlieb
Our guest speaker, Lori Gottlieb is a natural storyteller - and no wonder. She has crafted stories for film and television series as a Hollywood executive, delved deep into her subjects' stories as.
Live in the N:OW
On September 12, 2019 the Fillmore Theater in Philadelphia was transformed into a TED@k8 experience, to help tell our story in a new way. While our presenters were transformed into TED speakers, hundreds of attendees explored their own ideas of creativy and transformation with interactive exhibits, culinary surprises and of course, those famous red letters!
Want more TED?
TED@k8 is a TED Institute event given in partnership with k8. You can learn more about , the TED@k8 event, and all our speakers and talks, at .