The U.S. Department of Energy has appointed three Indian-American scientists to its newly established advisory committee, emphasizing their expertise in energy and technology.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has appointed three Indian-American scientists to its newly formed Office of Science Advisory Committee (SCAC), which is tasked with shaping the future of U.S. science and technology policy.
The SCAC will provide independent guidance on research priorities, emerging technologies, and cross-cutting scientific challenges that impact the nation’s energy agenda. This initiative comes at a critical time when the U.S. government is emphasizing innovation in fields such as fusion energy, quantum computing, and artificial intelligence.
Among the 21 members appointed to the advisory panel are Supratik Guha, Suresh Garimella, and A.N. Sreeram. Each brings a wealth of expertise in materials science, engineering, and advanced manufacturing.
Supratik Guha is a professor at the University of Chicago’s Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering and a researcher at Argonne National Laboratory. He has dedicated much of his career to the intersection of nanoscience and applied technology. Guha previously led Argonne’s Center for Nanoscale Materials and spent two decades at IBM Research, focusing on nanoscale materials and devices.
Suresh Garimella serves as the president of the University of Arizona and is a trained mechanical engineer with extensive academic and advisory experience. He has been a member of the National Science Board, a presidentially appointed body that oversees the National Science Foundation. Additionally, Garimella has held advisory roles with Sandia National Laboratories and the U.S. State Department, focusing on scientific collaboration.
A.N. Sreeram is the senior vice president and chief technology officer at Dow, where he holds more than 20 patents and has a long history in industrial research. His work emphasizes accelerating the transformation of scientific breakthroughs into commercial products. Sreeram has also served on the White House’s President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.
Another notable member of Indian origin is Pushmeet Kohli, a British Indian computer scientist and vice president of science and strategic initiatives at Google DeepMind. His work primarily focuses on machine learning and AI-driven discovery.
Officials have indicated that SCAC’s broad mandate includes advising on federal research priorities, facilitating collaboration across national laboratories and universities, and helping the Department of Energy anticipate and adapt to new technological trends. The committee is expected to play a strategic role as the U.S. navigates competition in critical fields such as quantum science and climate-related technologies.
DOE Under Secretary for Science Darío Gil, who oversees the Office of Science, highlighted the importance of diverse expertise in achieving the department’s mission. “By bringing together leading minds from diverse institutions, we’re forging a collaborative framework that will accelerate the translation of fundamental research into tangible benefits for the American people,” Gil stated.
The appointments reflect the growing influence of Indian-Americans in U.S. science and the DOE’s commitment to harnessing global talent to advance national research priorities. The advisory committee is set to serve through January 2028, with its findings expected to inform DOE decisions.
SCAC will be chaired by Persis Drell, a professor of materials science and engineering and physics at Stanford University, who is also the provost emerita of Stanford and director emerita of SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory. The committee will adopt the core functions of the Office of Science’s six former discretionary advisory committees.
According to The American Bazaar, the establishment of SCAC marks a significant step in integrating diverse expertise into U.S. energy policy and research initiatives.