Described by Newsweek as “the man responsible for more innovations in modern aviation than any living engineer,” Rutan is a bold visionary with a passion for the advancement of technology. He founded the aerospace research firm Scaled Composites and was named one of “the world’s 100 most influential people” by TIME in 2005. Rutan designed the legendary Voyager, the first aircraft to circle the world nonstop without refueling. He also created SpaceShipOne, the world’s first privately funded spacecraft, which won the $10 million Ansari X Prize, offered to spur the development of affordable space tourism.
Rutan is currently working on two projects: the Stratolaunch — part airplane, part spaceship, and the SkiGull, an amphibious aircraft that runs on the same gas we use for cars and boats. In business, Rutan believes that the best ideas come from the collaborative efforts of small, closely-knit project teams and an environment not limited by adversity to risk. He’ll inspire IPC Apex Expo keynote attendees with his vision on creativity, innovation and managers’ tasks to motivate a creative team.
Rutan’s opening keynote is free to all registered attendees. The conference and exhibition will run February 4–6, 2020.