Mr. Manoj Sinha, CEO & Co-Founder, Husk Power around Building AI-Powered Distributed Energy Platforms in the Global South

Mr. Manoj Sinha is a globally recognized clean energy entrepreneur and the Co-founder & CEO of Husk Power Systems, a pioneering rural utility transforming the lives of underserved communities across Asia and Africa. A visionary leader, he is spearheading one of the most impactful clean energy transitions of our time, bringing affordable, reliable, and renewable power to regions long left behind by traditional utilities.

With a global team of professionals and 400 mini-grid assets under his leadership, Manoj has built Husk Power into the world’s largest fleet of solar hybrid mini-grids. He is the first to make a mini- grid company profitable in two countries India and Nigeria marking a rare achievement in the decentralized energy sector. His goal by 2025: to power over one million people with clean electricity across rural India and sub-Saharan Africa.

Manoj’s entrepreneurial journey began in 2008 when he and his classmate recognized the urgent need for sustainable energy solutions in rural India. Leveraging agricultural waste, rice husks as a fuel source, they developed one of the earliest biomass-based mini-grid models. Over time, this evolved into a hybrid solar platform, cementing Husk’s role as a clean tech innovator committed to climate-positive growth.

An engineer by training and strategist by experience, Manoj has raised over $150 million in equity and debt capital from global investors. He has also forged influential partnerships, helped shape energy policy, and remains committed to enabling productive energy use at the last mile. Through initiatives and appliance financing, he has empowered local entrepreneurship and built an ecosystem of inclusive development.

His contributions have earned him widespread recognition, including being named among TIME100’s Most Influential Climate Leaders, a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader, winner of the AFSIA Lifetime Achievement Award, and inclusion among the 100 Global Impact Leaders. He holds seven U.S. patents and serves on the board of CLEAN (a decentralized energy association in India) and the Advisory Council of the Miller Center for Social Entrepreneurship.

Manoj holds an MBA from the Darden School of Business (University of Virginia), an MS in Electrical & Computer Engineering from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and a B.Tech in Electronics Engineering from IIT (BHU), Varanasi.

Through Husk Power Systems, Manoj Sinha continues to demonstrate how innovation, empathy, and sustainability can converge to create not just electricity but opportunity, dignity, and long- term impact for millions.