Former Ausra co-founder joins GlassPoint Solar

GlassPoint Solar, a provider of solar industrial process heat systems, today announced the addition of John O’Donnell, formerly co-founder and EVP of Ausra, as Vice President of Business Development.

O’Donnell joins GlassPoint following the company’s transition from CleanBoard Inc., a manufacturer of solar-made gypsum wallboard, to a supplier of its solar thermal technology for industrial facilities that utilize large amounts of high-temperature process heat. In his new position, he will drive the large scale adoption of GlassPoint’s technology while creating awareness for solar industrial process heat (SIPH) in new markets.

“John brings a valuable combination of passion, leadership, and industry knowledge to the team,” said Rod MacGregor, GlassPoint CEO and founder. “With a long history of bringing new innovations to market, including launching Ausra, one of the most recognized names in the solar thermal industry, John is the perfect candidate to guide GlassPoint’s growth as we rapidly expand our customer base and execute on the promise of delivering industrial process heat at a lower cost than natural gas.”

O’Donnell brings more than 20 years of experience leading successful startup ventures on the cutting edge of solar technology, digital video platforms and supercomputers.

As co-founder and executive vice president of Ausra, O’Donnell was responsible for securing a funding round led by Khosla Ventures and Kleiner-Perkins, recruiting a talented team of engineers and executives, and was instrumental in building cross-industry and governmental relationships in support for solar thermal development.

During his tenure, Ausra emerged as a global leader in the design and manufacture of large-scale solar thermal energy systems.

“The market opportunity for solar thermal energy for industrial use is immense, yet largely untapped due to high costs,” said O’Donnell. “GlassPoint’s fundamental innovation combines proven technologies and low-cost materials in a new architecture, bringing the cost of solar heat below the market price for fossil fuels. Huge economic forces will be unleashed as a result of improved customer energy costs and cost predictability.”

Prior to Ausra, O’Donnell cofounded and served as CTO at Equator Technologies, developing flexible platforms for networked digital media systems. In 2006, Equator was bought by Pixelworks where he served as vice president of technology and business development. Before Equator, Mr. O’Donnell was cofounder and vice president of engineering for Multiflow Computer, building the world’s first VLIW supercomputer processors and compilers.

O’Donnell began his career at the United States Department of Energy’s Princeton University Plasma Physics Lab. He holds eight patents in a wide range of technology fields. He holds a bachelor's degree in computer science from Yale University.