{"id":150959,"date":"2026-02-19T09:30:58","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T14:30:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/?p=150959"},"modified":"2026-02-24T13:56:36","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T18:56:36","slug":"forbes-2026-30-under-30-winner-capacitech","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/forbes-2026-30-under-30-winner-capacitech\/","title":{"rendered":"Forbes 2026 30 Under 30 Winner: Capacitech"},"content":{"rendered":"

UCF electrical engineering<\/a> alum Joe Sleppy \u201918 <\/strong>started his first company in high school \u2014 an adaptative equipment for exercising, inspired by his mother\u2019s bout with carpal tunnel. When it came time to decide on where to further his education, he wanted to be where the action was.<\/p>\n

\u201c<\/strong>There\u2019s a lot of places that say, \u2018Hey, look at all the things we\u2019ve done.\u2019 And then there\u2019s UCF that says, \u2018Look at all the things we\u2019re doing<\/em>,\u2019 \u201d Sleppy says. \u201cI wanted to be part of building the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted to be part of building the future.\u201d \u2014 Joe Sleppy<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In his first year, he landed undergraduate research opportunities thanks to UCF\u2019s Compass program<\/a>, which offers students opportunities for career exploration and experiential learning in STEM the first two years of their college career.<\/p>\n

In UCF Professor of Nanotechnology Jayan Thomas\u2019 lab, the two partnered on the idea that would eventually become Capacitech Energy, where Sleppy has served as CEO since its inception in 2016 during his sophomore year.<\/p>\n

Future-Proofing the Power Grid<\/h2>\n

Capacitech is a rapid response energy storage leader building high-power and space-conscious energy storage systems for an increasingly complex grid. Essentially, Sleppy and his team turn supercapacitor components into modular, plug-and-play systems that harden power infrastructure against power demand spikes, outages and equipment damage.<\/p>\n

Sleppy explains traditional power infrastructure, such as generators and batteries, are like a marathon runner whereas supercapacitors are more like a sprinter. Modern facilities \u2014 like data centers that power AI \u2014 demand power 24\/7 but also demand even more power than normal for just a few seconds. Ideally, both a sprinter and marathon runner are required. So, Capacitech\u2019s products make it practical to form relay teams between the traditional infrastructure (marathon runners) and supercapacitors (sprinters).<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we can use supercapacitors to complement batteries, generators, fuel cells and the broader grid to serve this demand profile that\u2019s coming from manufacturing facilities and data centers, then we\u2019re making the world a better place \u2014 economically, but also in terms of power sustainability and security. And I think that that\u2019s very important,\u201d Sleppy says.<\/p>\n

They made their first commercial sale in 2022 to Red Bull and have been running full force ever since.<\/p>\n