Our Vision

WindLift will develop and market a low-cost kite engine for generating power, pumping water, compressing air, or charging batteries. The first engines will be ideal for irrigation and water supply in remote areas. We plan to then fully automate the system for continuous operation. An automated model will allow WindLift to provide power to desalination plants, water purification plants, municipal water supplies, wastewater treatment facilities, oil fields, industrial facilities, and center-pivot irrigation systems.

The WindLift Kite Engine Company has developed a working prototype of a revolutionary kite. Kite engines provide an easily portable energy source ideal for implementation in remote agricultural, off-shore, and island locations. Because no tower or expensive blades are required, kite energy will be much less expensive than turbine-based wind power, and competitive with fossil fuels. Anchored marine applications avoid the cost of expensive off-shore foundations. This makes them suitable for deployment in hurricane prone areas where they can be easily stowed, and moved to safe harbors.

The Team

Robert Creighton - CEO – UW-Madison, MBA, BS-Genetics
    Rob invented the kite engine while managing a comparative biosciences research laboratory at UW-Madison. During business school he negotiated an exclusive license with key patent holders in related technologies to found the company.

Shae Ranalli – Cornel University, BSME, Harvard, MFA
    Shae has extensive experience in Product Management and Business Strategy in entrepreneurial environments. She was part of the founding Executive Team at Unifi Communications, as VP of Product Management and Service. Previously Shae was an Officer in the United States Air Force managing the acquisition and deployment of complex communications systems.