Hua “Kevin” Bai, a professor in the Center for Ultra-Wide-Area Resilient Electric Energy Transmission Networks (CURENT) in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, has been awarded one of the most prestigious honors in his field.
Bai has been elected as a National Academy of Inventors (NAI) Fellow. The honor recognizes Bai’s exceptional achievements as an inventor and his significant impact on the innovation ecosystem, economic development, and society.
NAI Fellowship is the highest professional distinction awarded solely to inventors. The 2025 cohort includes 169 U.S. distinguished academic and institutional inventors that represent 127 universities, government agencies, and research institutions, across 40 states.
Bai’s research focuses on electrical vehicle related power electronics, particularly on wide-bandgap semiconductor-enabled power modules, battery chargers, dc-dc converters, motor drive inverters, battery management systems, and second-life battery. Over the past two decades, his research group has been sponsored by various automotive companies to renovate and innovate onboard electronics.
“Being elected as Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors is by far the most exhilarating moment of my academic career. I would attribute this honor to our research team’s hard work and critical thinking, sponsors’ insightful advice and unwavering trust, nearly eight-year close and pleasant collaboration with my dear CURENT, EECS, and TCE colleagues, and the UT Research Foundation’s professional facilitation of patent filing and tech transfer,” Bai said. “I look forward to many wonderful years ahead to continue working with our industry partners and contributing to the big family of the University of Tennessee and automotive power electronics community.”
Honoring Innovation
The NAI Fellows program was founded in 2012 and has grown to include 2,253 distinguished researchers and innovators, who hold over 86,000 U.S. patents and 20,000 licensed technologies. Their innovations have generated an estimated $3.8 trillion in revenue and 1.4 million jobs.
Bai is the 11th UT faculty member to be chosen as an NAI Fellow, joining Sheng Dai (2025), Sergei Kalinin (2024), Charles Melcher (2024), Rigoberto Advincula (2023), Taylor Eighmy (2013), Mark Dean (2014), John Birdwell (2015), Yilu Liu (2016), Fei Wang (2017), and Michael Simpson (2018).
Bai is the author of two books, more than 160 IEEE papers, and holds 18 industrial patents, with nine licensed to the industry. He is the associate editor of SAE International Journal of Electrified Vehicles and of IEE Transactions on Transportation Electrification.
Bai received his bachelor’s and PhD degrees in electrical engineering from Tsinghua University in Beijing, China. After working as an associate professor at Kettering University (former General Motor Institute) and University of Michigan-Dearborn, Bai joined UT as an associate professor in 2018 and was promoted to full professor in 2024.
Bai and the 2025 class will be formally inducted as a Fellow of the Academy during the NAI 15th Annual Conference in Los Angeles. The Fellows Induction Ceremony will be held on June 4, 2026, at the iconic Dolby Ballroom. During the induction, Bai will receive a medal, certificate, rosette, and lapel pin from a senior official of the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
Contact
Rhiannon Potkey (rpotkey@utk.edu)