Scott Hotz is a systems-level multidisciplinary engineering expert, entrepreneur and leader focusing on early stage hard-tech ventures. Mr. Hotz founded Simplify Tech LLC in Ann Arbor, Michigan to provide world-class multidisciplinary engineering services in support of research and development programs, and most importantly to commercialize technologies that change the world. 

Prior to forming Simplify Tech, Mr. Hotz spent 25 years at Southwest Research Institute where he was Director of the Control Systems Department supporting five (5) of SwRI’s 11 technical divisions. He founded SwRI’s Ann Arbor Technical Center in 2002, to support work at the EPA’s National Vehicle & Fuel Emissions Laboratory, US Army GVSC and SwRI’s many commercial clients in the Michigan region. From 2016 to 2025 Mr. Hotz served as Principal Investigator for a $9MM ARPA-E (DOE) research grant. The NEXT-Generation Energy Technologies for Connected and Automated On-Road Vehicles “NEXTCAR” program leveraged connected-vehicle enabled “preview” of the route ahead to operate vehicles more efficiently, saving over 30% energy with no changes to the vehicle powertrain. 

Mr. Hotz earned his B.S. Electrical Engineering from the University of Toledo in 1999 and his MBA from the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business in 2012. Mr. Hotz is a Professional Engineer in the State of Michigan