Kim Blair

Dr. Kim Blair is either an elite athlete who happens to be an accomplished technological innovator or vice versa.

With extensive experience in the development of innovative solutions to challenging technical problems, Kim currently serves as the Vice President of Cooper Perkins, Inc., a technology development and product engineering consultancy, is the Founding Director of the Sports Innovation Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and holds a Visiting Professorship in the Wolfson School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering at Loughborough University in the UK.

Dr. Blair’s background includes an appointment in the MIT Aeronautics and Astronautics Department, where he was an instructor in advanced dynamics, structural dynamics and vibrations. He was also a senior scientist and management team member at Moldyn, Inc., a consultancy applying aerospace analysis techniques to the fields of biomechanics and computational chemistry, and also served as an aerospace engineer at the NASA Johnson Space Center. He’s also served as a technical advisor for the United States Olympic Committee, on the advisory board for the SGMA Sport + Technology Convergence Conference and as a member of the Golf Digest Academic Advisory Panel.

Born and raised in Nebraska, Dr. Blair earned a B.A. in Psychology and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Nebraska and earned an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering and a Ph.D. in Aeronautics and Astronautics at Purdue University. In 2005, The University of Nebraska awarded him an Alumni Achievement Award.

Dr. Blair has served as President of the International Sports Engineering Association and as a member of the editorial board for the Journal of Sports Engineering and Technology, and has served on the scientific committees for The Engineering of Sport Conference and the Asia Pacific Conference on Sports Technology. He has spoken at numerous conferences and venues including the International Congress on Technological and Social Innovation in Sport (Spain), The University of London, Loughborough University (UK), the SGMA International Business Intelligence, and the MIT Center for Innovation and Product Development, and his work has been featured in Forbes, The Boston Globe, Outside Magazine, and GQ, and been seen on CNN, The Discovery Channel and NPR.

Oh yeah, in his spare time, he’s competed in more than 100 endurance events, including the US National Triathlon Championships, World Triathlon Championship Qualifier, and the Hawaii Ironman World Championships.