Dr. Kenneth Chau is an associate professor at the School of Engineering at the University of British Columbia who has spearheaded various initiatives to promote technology and social entrepreneurship in the university ecosystem. In 2017, he co-founded a social enterprise (happipad.org) that has developed a scalable platform that is helping communities across Canada address the housing affordability crisis through home-sharing.

Home-sharing provides one of the most direct ways to increase housing supply by tapping into the estimated 12 million empty bedrooms across Canada. Happipad collaborates with provincial governments, non-profit organizations, and universities and colleges to provide turn-key housing solutions tailored for seniors, students, and refugees (including those from other countries and those displaced by climate disasters).