Dr. Joachim Kuhn

EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year™ Class of 2023, Germany
CEO of va-Q-tec AG

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Dr. Joachim Kuhn is advancing thermal insulation technology, saving energy and transporting goods efficiently.

Dr. Joachim Kuhn is an expert on highly efficient thermal insulation and its application, an area he has been working in for more than 30 years. As CEO of va-Q-tec AG, he hopes to improve our quality of life and be more sustainable by using thermal energy more efficiently — from how it’s used in distributing  life-saving medicine and food across the supply chain to its use in vehicles and buildings.

Joachim founded va-Q-tec AG in 2001 to bring vacuum insulation panels (VIPs) to the market. VIPs deliver an insulation performance that is up to 10 times more efficient than traditional insulation materials. The panels are used to insulate buildings as well as in refrigerators and thermal packaging solutions — in short, wherever space is limited and very good insulation is required. 

The company is a worldwide pioneer of this technology, and Joachim and va-Q-tec AG have received more than 60 national and international prizes, including the World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer Award 2013, the European Business Awards German Champion 2019 and Financial Times Tech Champion 2021. 

Joachim speaks at events worldwide and is a member of national and international committees. He is passionate about sports, having coached the German national table tennis team for 10 years. He also has held senior roles within the German Table Tennis Federation and the International Table Tennis Federation for more than 18 years.