Popple was an alumnus of the College of William & Mary and Harvard University, as well as an officer in the U.S. Army. He joined Tesla Motors’ finance department in 2007 and worked his way up to senior director of finance. He was named a partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers in 2010, a firm focused on cleantech investments in mobility and transportation. Popple was named CEO of Proterra in 2014 and in the first year of his tenure, the company doubled manufacturing capacity. Popple transitioned from the role of CEO in 2020 and was named co-founder and executive director. He passed away in 2021.