Phillip A. Williams, Ph.D., serves as the Program Executive (Acting) and Program Manager for the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) Program, the Center Innovation Fund (CIF), and the Early Career Initiative (ECI) within NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD). In this role, Phillip leads complex strategic technology portfolios that span visionary early‑stage concepts, center‑level innovation, and emerging workforce development across NASA’s research centers.Dr. Williams is an accomplished physicist and aerospace technologist with more than 20 years of experience advancing cutting‑edge aerospace research, strategic technology development, and early‑stage innovation across NASA. Prior to his current role, Dr. Williams served as the Acting Center Chief Technologist and Center Deputy Chief Technologist at NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC), providing strategic and technical leadership at LaRC for the planning, management, and evaluation of comprehensive advanced center-wide technology development activities to meet LaRC’s vision and mission responsibilities across aeronautics, science, and space exploration.
Beginning his career at NASA as a postdoctoral researcher, Dr. Williams has held positions including research physicist, acting assistant branch head, and senior systems analyst at LaRC. Dr. Williams has expertise in physics, and his research experience spans structures and materials, nanotechnology, microscopy and molecular spectrology, space mission and system analysis, technology and capability assess …
