Join us for a special session of our KT seminar series, co-hosted by the CERN Alumni and CERN Venture Connect team, where we explore how former CERN scientists transform their research into thriving businesses. 

Learn from Andrea Apollonio (former TE-MPE Staff), founder of Reshape, and Tiago Neves (former EP-DT PhD student and Fellow), founder of Fibersight, as they share insights and lessons learned transitioning from researchers to startup founders. 

This session will highlight how the CERN Alumni team supports researchers in transitioning beyond CERN and how the CERN Venture Connect programme empowers them to launch startups and transfer cutting-edge technologies to the wider innovation ecosystem.

About the speakers

Andrea Apollonio holds a degree in electronics engineering from La Sapienza University in Rome. He began his career at CERN in 2010 as a technical student in the BE-OP group and subsequently transitioned to the TE-MPE group for his PhD thesis, focusing on machine protection and availability for particle accelerators. Following his PhD, he was awarded a Marie Curie fellowship and later became a staff member in TE-MPE. Throughout his career at CERN, Andrea has held several key positions, including serving as the chairman of the CERN Availability and Reliability Panel and the LHC Hardware Commissioning Coordinator after Long Shutdown 2.   In 2023, Andrea founded Reshape, the first startup under the CERN Venture Connect program, which specializes in risk analysis and artificial intelligence.

Tiago Neves is the founder and CEO of FiberSight, a green tech startup supported by the CERN KT Group, originating from his PhD in Photonics conducted at CERN in collaboration with EPFL.   Currently, FiberSight is focused on developing innovative fiber optic sensor technology for water conservation initiatives and environmental monitoring across various applications. Tiago spent eight years at CERN, within the EP-DT group, FS section. He started as a trainee, then progressed to PhD student, COAS, and finally Fellow. During this time, he began working with fiber optic sensors and contributed to their integration into segments of CMS and ATLAS for environmental monitoring of humidity and temperature. Following this experience, he focused on developing a novel fiber optic sensing technology that overcame the limitations of existing solutions. This breakthrough became the foundation of FiberSight.   Before CERN, Tiago completed a Master’s degree in Engineering Physics at the University of Coimbra, where he developed a humanitarian demining sensor, designed to detect vapors emitted by landmines. He then continued as a researcher at the university for two years.

About CERN Venture Connect

CERN Venture Connect is an initiative designed to bridge the gap between CERN’s deep-tech innovations and the startup ecosystem. It provides CERN employees and alumni with the resources, mentorship, and industry connections needed to launch and scale their businesses beyond CERN.

Don’t miss this opportunity to gain insights, network, and explore the path from CERN to entrepreneurship!

More information to follow

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