Mintz is pleased to be the exclusive legal partner of The Engine’s 2024 “Tough Tech Week” summit taking place October 7-11 in Boston. The Engine is an accelerator program started by MIT that works together with Engine Ventures, a premier VC investor, to address the planet’s most challenging problems through coordinated innovation.

Tough Tech Week is a series of events convening innovators and investors within the Tough Tech ecosystem in Massachusetts and beyond. Startups, investors, researchers, corporate leaders, government officials, and others focused on industrial technologies, climate tech, and life sciences will gather to “further the importance and relevance of companies solving our biggest problems across climate, human health, and advanced systems,” according to The Engine.

“We are honored to team up with The Engine for this year’s Tough Tech Week, which comes at such a critical time,” says Sahir Surmeli, Co-chair of Mintz’s Energy & Sustainability Practice. "The Engine’s commitment to driving innovation and changing the world through transformative technologies aligns well with our own mission.” 

Mintz Member Steven Shparber will additionally speak in one of the “Enlightening Talks” during the summit. He will discuss challenges facing the US electricity sector, and specifically how an aging power infrastructure and outdated legal and regulatory paradigm in the US threaten to slow the development of data centers, manufacturing, hydrogen and AI that are poised to transform the US economy. Steven will also provide his perspective and experience as a leading energy attorney who is actively involved in helping his clients navigate legal, regulatory, and practical challenges that stand in the way of their commercial goals. 

Learn more about this year’s Tough Tech Week here.

About Mintz Energy & Sustainability  

The Mintz Energy & Sustainability team is committed to advancing innovation, transforming infrastructure, and scaling solutions integral to business success and a thriving planet. Led by Co-chairs Sahir Surmeli and Tom Burton, and comprising Projects & Infrastructure Chair Ayaz Shaikh and Member Paul Dickerson, the team includes 15 core members and 50+ industry-leading attorneys and professionals across legal disciplines. As one of the first law firms to develop a practice focused on energy and sustainability innovation, Mintz has represented clients in 800+ transactions over nearly two decades, with more than $30 billion in investment value raised. In 2023, our team completed more than 80 transactions related to the energy transition. The practice currently serves more than 300 clients spanning the energy ecosystem.