— PROJECT NAME

Free Electrons

— ROLE

Catalyst

Co-founding Member

Program Design

Selection Design

Budget Management

Research Collaborator

— DATE

Est. January 2017

Free Electrons is an open innovation program accelerating the future of energy worldwide.

The program was founded in 2017 by a consortium of utility companies and accelerators including Swissnex SF. I was the main catalyst for the creation of the program, scouting accelerator partners and iterating an accelerator design first elaborated by German utility company innogy from its outpost in Silicon Valley.

The program is a unique open innovation ecosystem uniting utilities and startups that incorporates a research team studying best practices for sustainable innovation. It is notable for its consortium-led approach that facilitates peer learning and cross-company business opportunities, as well as its contribution to the body of research in open innovation.