Speakers

Jeannine Pilloud is teamlead of ETH Partnerships for Innovation. She graduated from ETH Zurich with a degree in Architecture, having also studied German, History and Journalism at the University of Zurich while at the same time completing a journalist qualification at the Ringier School of Journalism. After three years working as an architect, Pilloud changed industries and headed up IBM Switzerland’s project business for six years. After two years as CIO with the Bon-​appétit Group she was appointed Senior Vice President Western Europe at Deutsche Telekom in 2003. From 2011 to 2017 Pilloud was head of Passenger Transport at SBB and was the first female member of the Swiss Federal Railways’ board of directors. She left SBB in 2019, having already taken up her first board appointments in the previous year. In 2019 Pilloud became CEO of the telecoms group Ascom. Since 2022 she has concentrated on her board mandates. In May 2023 Jeannine Pilloud was elected President of the ETH Alumni Association.

Matthias Rebellius has been a member of the Siemens AG managing board since October 1st, 2020. As Chief Executive Officer (CEO) he is responsible for the external page Smart Infrastructure business. After studying electrical engineering in Trier, Germany, he joined Siemens AG in 1990 as a development engineer and project manager, where his responsibilities included hardware development for machine tool controls. From 2003 to 2012, he held management positions at Siemens Building Technologies before becoming President and CEO of the Americas Region in Illinois. He returned to Switzerland in 2015 as CEO of Building Technologies. In April 2019, he was appointed COO of Siemens Smart Infrastructure and CEO of Siemens Switzerland. Matthias Rebellius is also a member of the Supervisory Board of Siemens Energy AG and Siemens Energy Management GmbH.

Jeff Delmerico is a Senior Scientist at the external page Microsoft MR & AI Lab in Zürich since 2018. His work focuses on robotic perception, mixed reality, and mapping and localization, with the goal of enabling humans and robots to work together on complex tasks. He received his Ph.D. degree from SUNY Buffalo in New York, USA, and previously worked as a postdoctoral researcher at UH Manoa in Hawaii, USA, and the University of Zürich. 

Florian Kennel-Maushart got his BSc. and MSc. in Microengineering, as well as a Minor in Management from EPFL. After an exchange master thesis on robot swarms at the University of Pennsylvania’s Kumar Lab, Florian joined ETH Zurich spin-off RosieReality as co-founder and CTO. He built an international team of 15 people and spent 3 years developing Augmented Reality educational software for mobile devices, before starting his PhD at the Computational Robotics Lab of Prof. Stelian Coros at ETH Zurich. Florian’s work focuses on Mixed Reality interfaces for human-robot interaction with multi-robot systems.

Benjamin Grewe is a co-founder of the startup external page Alpine AI that develops a Swiss version of ChatGPT. Alpine AI offers secure hosting in Switzerland, high data protection and several other tailor-made features. Their goal is to develop advanced AI solutions and support companies in unleashing the full potential of artificial intelligence. Benjamin Grewe is also a Professor at the external page Institute of Neuroinformatics (INI) a joint institute of the University of Zurich and ETH Zurich. The INI's mission is to discover the key principles by which brains work and to implement these in artificial systems that interact intelligently with the real world.

Marco Hutter is a professor for Robotic Systems and director of the Center for Robotics at ETH Zurich. His research interests are in the development of novel machines and machines and their intelligence to operate in rough and challenging environments. Together with his team, he realized a number of legged robots, mobile manipulators, and autonomous excavators that find applications including industrial inspection, construction and forest operations, household assistance, and extraterrestrial exploration. Moreover, Marco is a co-founder of several ETH Startups, such as ANYbotics AG or Gravis Robotics AG, which commercialize legged robots and autonomous construction equipment.

Saurabh Bhargava is Principal Data Scientist in the innovation unit of external page Swiss Data Science Center, where he manages multiple industry collaborations across various sectors. He previously worked in the retail sector and the advertising industry in Germany where he built and industrialized various data products using state of the art tools using cloud infrastructure. He obtained his PhD from ETH Zürich specializing in machine learning applications on audio data. He obtained his Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees from EPFL and IIT Roorkee respectively. His interests and expertise are in combining state of the art data science and engineering tools for building scalable data products that generate value for the customer and society.

Dario Röösli is COO and Co-Owner of external page Dynius GmbH. Dynius is an ETH spin-off that provides custom end-to-end AI implementations for small and mid-sized enterprises across various industries. In his role as COO and Project Manager, he is actively involved in defining Dynius’ strategy and responsible for coordinating and executing Dynius’ AI projects in Switzerland, Italy, and Germany.

Niklas Frietsch holds a MSc in Medical Engineering from Offenburg University. His career began with roles at Karl Storz Endoscopy, where he completed his Master's thesis. In 2019, he became a technical leader in product development at Ypsomed AG, focusing on insulin pump systems and on-body injectors. Today, Niklas leads a small team and serves as a project manager at external page 41medical AG, where he manages projects such as the submission of an active implantable medical device system.

Professor Taekwang Jang is head of the Energy-Efficient Circuits and Intelligent Systems group. The group focuses on circuits and systems for next-generation computing platforms. One of the primary interests is the energy-efficient design of the key circuit blocks for a miniaturised system, including an analogue interface, optical and RF transceiver, frequency synthesiser, power management unit, and date converter. They also focus on application-specific system-level engineering for bio-medical devices and ultra-low power sensor nodes.

Professor Alexander Mathys is head of the Sustainable Food Processing group of ETH Zurich which focuses on a system-oriented approach in food production, considering the total value chain including emerging needs in society and their environmental, economic, and social impact. Selected mechanical, biotechnological, thermal, and non-thermal techniques are evaluated to realise several objectives, including biomass and energy use efficiency, and waste reduction along the food value chain. Innovative raw materials from algae and insects are utilised within urban farming and processing concepts to enable new ways of sustainable food supply.

Andreas Güntner is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, heading the Human-centred Sensing Laboratory. He is also a research associate at the Univ. Hospital Zürich, Dept. Endocrinology, Diabetes and Clinical Nutrition. The lab works at the intersection between chemistry, physics, and engineering to equip next-generation electronics with the sense of smell. They investigate new concepts in chemical sensing by leveraging nanotechnology and foster their integration into wearable or handheld devices for health, food and environmental monitoring to improve human well-being. 

Pedro Beltrao is Associate Professor at the Institute of Molecular Systems Biology in the Department of Biology. The Beltrao Group focuses on the cellular consequences of genetic variation and their influence on health and illness. The diversity of life and the differences in humans are, to some extent, determined by differences in DNA. The long-term goal is to have comprehensive models of how DNA changes result in differences in biomolecules, their interactions and, ultimately, different traits or diseases. 

Simone Bottan (he/him) is the CEO and co-founder of external page Hylomorph, a clinical-stage pre-commercial Healthtech company, spin off of ETH Zurich. He holds a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from ETH Zurich and a Master of Science in Bioengineering from Politecnico of Milan. A recipient of the Pioneer Fellowship, Venturekick, and Venture Leaders awards, Simone previously served as a project leader at Wyss Zurich, where he led Hylomorph from academic research to first-in-human trials in under five years.

Marc Chautem's work focuses on accelerating the transition towards more sustainable agricultural practices. Within external page AXA Climate he develops data driven risk management solutions that de-risk the transition towards regenerative agriculture. Marc’s area of expertise covers remote sensing (former Data Scientist at Planet Labs), parametric insurance (SwissRe), and agroecology. Marc also participates actively in the agricultural transition as a farmer (field crops and vegetables). This unique position allows him to bridge the gap between business, science and the rural world.

Prof. Loïc Pellisier is head of Ecosystems and Landscape Evolution. His research focuses on understanding and modelling past and future landscape dynamics and their link to biodiversity. He uses the fundamental knowledge in ecology and the evolution of landscape biodiversity patterns provided by his research to improve the sustainable management of natural resources. He also investigates the impact of climate change on ecosystems including the terrestrial and the marine realm. His current research objectives are to improve the methods of modelling biodiversity across landscapes and to track change in ecosystems more accurately with biodiversity monitoring technologies.

Lucio Isa is Professor in the Department of Materials, heading the Laboratory for Soft Materials and Interfaces. His research focuses on the basic understanding of the physical mechanisms behind the structural and dynamical properties of complex materials, with particular attention towards the use of micro-​ and nanoparticles at liquid interfaces and on unravelling the mechanical response of concentrated suspensions, both from a fundamental point of view and with applications in mind. 

Claudia Fischer works as a Program Lead for Knowledge and Technology Transfer (KTT) at the external page National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) Automation. Her mission is to connect researchers at the NCCR Automation with stakeholders in industry, thus combining her background in research - Claudia holds a Dr. sc. from ETH Zurich – with her experience in industry, where she worked as a global product manager in various roles at Siemens Smart Infrastructure.

Xiao-Hua Qin is an Assistant Professor of Biomaterials Engineering at ETH Zurich, co-leading the Laboratory for Bone Biomechanics. His research bridges biology and engineering. His team focuses on constructing tissue-mimicking 3D microenvironments in vitro, addressing fundamental questions in bone physiology and pathology. The ultimate goal is to build up miniature bone organoid models for disease modelling and in vitro drug discovery. They have recently succeeded in developing a bone model on a chip for a rare bone disease. The model can be used now to examine cells from patients with this disease. Furthermore, it substitutes animal models and is made available for potential industry partners.

Patrycja Kucharczyk is a co-founder of Treeless Pack, an ETH Zurich spin-off established in 2021, dedicated to ending plastic pollution by enabling the transition to bio-based, fossil-free material production using organically grown nanocellulose, free from toxic PFAS chemicals. Treeless Pack focuses on sustainability, circular economy principles, and offers scalable, innovative alternatives to fossil-based materials across industries. Patrycja holds a Master's degree in Biotechnology and a PhD in Biomedical Science from the University of Bern. She has a wealth of experience in microbiology, health science, and project management, with a passionate focus on driving sustainable innovations.

Roger Dietschweiler holds an engineering degree from the University of Applied Sciences Eastern Switzerland and an MSc. from the University of Surrey. After graduating, he worked as an assistant to the Chair of Structural Engineering at the Department of Architecture at ETHZ, and later as a civil engineer for Bänziger Partner AG in Zurich, Tony Gee and Partners in London and Conzett, Bronzini Gartmann AG in Chur. Roger Dietschweiler has been a civil engineer at external page Basler & Hofmann since 2011 and was appointed head of the Structural Maintenance department in 2022.

Professor Silke Langenberg is head of the Chair of Construction Heritage and Preservation and engages with theoretical and practical challenges of methodical inventory, evaluation and preservation of monuments. The group is affiliated with the Institute for Preservation and Construction History (IDB) and the Institute for Technology in Architecture (ITA). Their research focuses on diverse building stocks, both older and younger, questions of their value as monuments and challenges concerning their conservation. The CAS ReMain will be offered in cooperation with the Product Development Group and the Professorship of Advanced Manufacturing.

Professor Mirko Meboldt is head of the Product Development Group pd|z at ETH Zurich. His main research focuses on developing new products for mechanical engineering industries, biomedical applications, and associated technologies. He regards the impact on the education of young engineers and its relevance for industry as a key motivation and benchmark for his research. He currently works in the field of engineering design and product development, specialising in user-oriented product innovations, new production technologies and challenging applications.

Andrea Frangi is Professor of Timber Structures at the Institute of Structural Engineering in the Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering. His research includes structural timber engineering, hybrid structures and fire safety engineering. His group aims to educate structural engineers with deep skills in using timber as a high-quality and sustainable building material. They want to transfer new knowledge to practitioners and provide consulting services through continuous education, applied research projects and structural code development. 

Bessie Noll is a postdoctoral researcher at Prof. Tobias Schmidt's Energy and Technology Policy Group at ETH Zurich. Her research examines the effects of policy intervention on the development of clean energy technologies and transitional outcomes of modern energy systems, with a specific focus on the low-carbon transport transition. Bessie holds a PhD in energy and technology policy from ETH Zurich and a MSc in mechanical engineering from Stanford University.

Oliver Akeret is Co-Lead of the external page Sustainability in Business Lab (sus.lab), a “think and do tank” launched in 2016 at Prof. Volker Hoffmann’s Sustainability and Technology Group at ETH Zurich. Oliver leads the team’s projects related to carbon dioxide removal (CDR), carbon capture and storage (CCS), and other efforts to drive the transition to a net-zero economy.

Francesco Ranaudo is the co-founder and CEO of external page VAULTED AG, an ETH Zurich spin-off focusing on sustainable construction solutions. He completed his PhD in the Block Research Group at ETH Zurich, where he studied the design of sustainable, compression-only structural floors. Previously, he worked at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) in San Francisco and London, and for the Institute of Lightweight Design and Construction (ILEK) in Stuttgart.