Gary Grube is pictured with Chicago musician Nicholas Tremulis, who is scheduled to take part in the RISE Maui: Sustainability + Tech Summit. Courtesy photo

With proceeds benefiting Lahaina’s rebuilding efforts, the RISE Maui: Sustainability + Tech Summit in August at the Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa will spotlight sustainability and innovation through the lens of regeneration.

Presented by the Hua Momona Foundation, which provides about 1,000 meals each month to unhoused residents on Maui’s west side and launched the Maui Music and Food Experience, the summit is dedicated to helping shape a more resilient and sustainable future for Maui.

Bringing scientists, artists and cultural practitioners together, “the RISE Maui vision is to help Maui in particular and the world with big topics,” said Hua Momona Foundation founder Gary Grube, who has homes in Kapalua and Chicago. “I wanted to bring some major topics like regeneration, sustainability and innovation to the surface, and think about power, water and food on Maui. One of the big topics is AI using a lot of power, and we’re going to talk about the next generation of AI which can be more power-efficient and use less clean water.”

A former chief technology officer at Motorola, Grube said he left with 110 patents, has kept inventing and has been working with small companies helping them develop their patent portfolios. “I have a couple of hundred AI patents myself,” he added.

Running Aug. 17-21, the summit features daily keynote speakers, panels and workshops exploring environmental stewardship, food and water security, spirituality, technology, AI, cultural preservation and the future of sustainable innovation.

Speakers include Dr. Sasha Luccioni, a leading scientist at the nexus of artificial intelligence, ethics and sustainability. Named one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people in AI in 2024, she was featured in the BBC’s list of 100 inspiring and influential women from around the world. In her first TED talk, “AI Is Dangerous, But Not For The Reasons You Think,” Luccioni reported: “That cloud that AI models live on is powered by vast amounts of energy, and each time you query an AI model, it comes with a cost to the planet.”

Sasha Luccioni, an AI researcher focused on ethics and sustainability, was named to Time magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people in AI. Courtesy photo

Renowned for his groundbreaking work at the intersection of electronics and biology, Dr. Jun Yao from the University of Massachusetts Amherst helped invent the Air-Gen (air-powered generator), a technology that utilizes conductive protein nanowires to harvest clean energy from humidity in the atmosphere.

Maui-born James “Jay” John Kamealoha Carpio is on the board that oversees the Department of Land and Natural Resources. He co-founded the Maui Nui Makai Network and the Limu Hui, which focus on traditional resource management and the restoration of nearshore ecosystems.

Jason Resch is a computer scientist and inventor with over 900 patents. “He was actually my protege years ago,” said Grube. “One of the top people at IBM, he’s going to demonstrate quantum entanglement, to verify that Albert Einstein was right about relativity and it’s leading us to understand how the universe really works.”

Also taking part at the summit, the son of “Star Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry, Rod Roddenberry, who is an executive producer of the contemporary “Star Trek” franchise. “He’s going to be a speaker and moderator for the innovation panel,” said Grube. “He is going to co-demonstrate the quantum entanglement demonstration along with Jason, and it’s going to use antimatter. In the original (Star Trek) series, antimatter was going to propel spacecraft at faster than the speed of light, and they’re probably right.”

Maui musicians performing at the event include John Cruz and Steve Grimes, while Rolling Stones’ backing singer Bernard Fowler and Chicago musician Nicholas Tremulis will host a “Special Oceanside Conversation.”

“Nick will interview Bernard and Bernard will give a talk on innovation and what innovation looks like in sustainability from a different kind of perspective, being an artist with the Stones for 30 years,” said Grube.

Grube will soon launch a Rain to Resiliency program to benefit Maui folks. “We’re putting together a design for a water catchment system that people can use at their homes to catch water, and then use it to water a garden and grow some high-nutrient vegetables like variants of the Japanese sweet potato,” he explained. “We’re going to provide kits and training for free, and try to get 120 going this year. If it works, we’ll get more funding.”

Following RISE Maui, the Maui Music and Food Experience on Aug. 21 and 22 at the Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa will feature a variety of acts, including Los Lobos, What Mongoose? with Fowler and Grammy-winning vocalist Lisa Fischer, Taimane and Maui’s Kanekoa.

Tickets and more information are available at RISE-Maui.org.