Case Western Reserve University faculty members Robert Brown and Jesse Wainright have been named fellows of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI), the highest professional distinction awarded solely to inventors, in honor of their innovations in physics and electrochemical engineering, respectively.
They are among 185 individuals selected for this honor in 2025, joining 2,253 distinguished researchers and innovators who have earned this recognition since it was created in 2012. Their work translating research into products and services has resulted in more than 86,000 U.S. patents and 20,000 licensed technologies, generating an estimated $3.8 trillion in revenue and 1.4 million jobs.
This year’s fellows will be recognized at the NAI’s 15th annual conference June 4, 2026, in Los Angeles. Each honoree will receive a medal presented by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
“NAI Fellows are a driving force within the innovation ecosystem, and their contributions across scientific disciplines are shaping the future of our world,” said Paul R. Sanberg, president of the National Academy of Inventors, in a press release announcing this year’s fellows.
Read more about Brown and Wainright.
Robert Brown, PhD
Physicist Robert Brown, Distinguished University Professor and the Institute Professor in the Department of Physics, began his studies in elementary cosmology research and theory—his work more closely resembling that of Sheldon Cooper from The Big Bang Theory. However, when former students (two important words to him) in industry approached him asking for help generating new magnetic coils for healthcare imaging, Brown accepted. And his industrial patenting began.
Ever since, Brown’s career has centered on innovation—moving him from theoretical to applied physics. More than 55 years into his career as a faculty member at Case Western Reserve, he continues to receive patents for his work, with his most recent awarded earlier in 2025.
Seeing his success in translating basic physics research, collaborators across disciplines soon began approaching Brown to work on their projects. As a result, Brown helped create a sensor for engines that could better predict their eventual failure and a disease detection device for malaria, an invention that earned a “Patent for Humanity” from the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
His name is attached to at least 16 patents across many industries, and his former students hold at least 250.
Brown’s work emerged as an early model for how physics researchers could work closely with industry for practical applications. He became a pioneering figure in the creation of CWRU’s physics entrepreneurship program.
He has played a key role in the development of at least eight startups, written an industry-leading MRI textbook, developed GRE flashcards used by thousands of students, and mentored more than 100 students and postdocs.
The NAI fellowship recognition is especially meaningful for Brown, who said it’s confirmation that his contributions to research continue to be recognized.
“My wife and I are partners in everything,” said Brown of his wife Janet’s support throughout his career. “We feel this is a wonderful life and it’s made possible with a wonderful wife.”
Jesse Wainright, PhD
Jesse Wainright (CWR ’83; GRS ’84, ’92, chemical engineering), research professor in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, earned his bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees from Case Western Reserve, originally arriving on campus in 1979. After a time in industry, he joined Robert Savinell’s lab as a postdoc, launching a decades-long collaboration researching flow batteries.
Many of Wainright’s 24+ patents center on that work with Savinell, who was named an NAI fellow in 2023, and Gary Wnek, a 2024 fellow. Their research has explored how to store excess wind- and solar-generated energy, which would lead to improved grid stability.
While energy storage has been a prominent theme of his work, Wainright has also made major contributions to other groundbreaking research.
Alongside collaborators Kevin Kilgore, Niloy Bhadra and Tina Vrabec, Wainright created double-layer capacitor electrodes that can be used for electrochemical nerve block to manage pain. Once administered, such nerve blocks can offer near-instantaneous pain relief without the lingering effects of many drugs.
Wainright said he’s proud CWRU has been able to license the technology behind his work and that companies have found value in it.
It’s work with his students, however, that he most cherishes. As classes ended this semester, soon-to-be graduates gifted Wainright with a commemorative T-shirt to show their appreciation for his guidance.
“It means that the [students] saw value in what I was trying to teach them this semester,” Wainright said. “I make them work hard. For them to say it was worthwhile and not just a huge bother—that was really nice of them.”
