In the latest episode of Penn Engineering’s Innovation & Impact podcast, Vijay Kumar, Nemirovsky Family Dean of Penn Engineering and Professor in Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, sits down with Tsu-Jae Liu, President of the National Academy of Engineering and a pioneering force in semiconductor technology. From co-developing the FinFET transistor that powers today’s most advanced chips and smartphones to leading one of the nation’s most influential engineering bodies, Liu brings a rare perspective shaped by decades in academia, industry and innovation leadership.

This wide-ranging conversation explores the critical challenges and extraordinary opportunities facing engineering today. As the United States navigates a rapidly evolving technological landscape shaped by AI, microelectronics and a renewed global space race, Liu outlines her vision for strengthening the nation’s engineering talent pipeline and safeguarding long-term prosperity and national security. In the near term, she emphasizes closing the growing engineering talent gap; in the long term, she underscores the essential role engineers play in ensuring a secure, prosperous and peaceful future.

The discussion also examines engineering’s responsibility to serve the public good. Liu reflects on how institutions can cultivate “inclusive excellence,” broadening participation in engineering while upholding rigorous standards, and why empathy, adaptability and communication are as vital to future engineers as technical mastery. In this episode, Liu reminds listeners that engineers are, by nature, problem solvers equipped to shape a better world. 

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