Swiss engineering for the systems behind US power.
Sympheny is an Empa spin-off out of the ETH Domain, with more than ten years of R&D behind its multi-energy optimization engine. We serve the US market from Switzerland, with enterprise deployment options for US teams.
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Where this came from
Sympheny started at Empa, the research institute in the ETH Domain, where the founders spent years working on how to optimize multi-energy systems instead of planning power, heat and cooling in separate silos. The optimization engine that runs underneath the platform came out of that work.
We spun out as Urban Sympheny AG to put that engine in the hands of the people who actually plan and build these systems: engineering firms, utilities, developers and energy programs. Today more than seventy customers across Europe, the US and China use it.
The US is where the method matters most right now. Interconnection queues run for years, AI load is climbing, and sites need a way to generate, store and share power on their own. That's the problem the engine was built to solve, and it's why we serve US teams directly from Switzerland rather than treating the US as a far-off market.
Across Europe, the US and China
Behind the optimization engine
Empa spin-off, ETH Domain
Engine applied in TEN feasibility work
A Swiss engine, built for US sites.
We don't pretend to be a US company. We're a Swiss one with a serious optimization engine, focused on the concept stage: deciding which system is worth building. Detailed engineering, hardware and on-the-ground delivery stay with the project's own engineering, EPC and delivery partners.
A Swiss company, serving the US
Sympheny is Urban Sympheny AG, based in Winterthur, Switzerland. We serve the US market from Switzerland, with US enterprise deployment options, so a US team gets the platform without us standing up a local office to do it.
An engine with a track record
An Empa spin-off out of the ETH Domain, with more than ten years of R&D behind the optimization engine. In the US, that engine has been applied in US Department of Defense thermal energy network feasibility studies under the ESTCP program.
Upstream of detailed design and delivery
Sympheny is the concept-stage layer: it decides which system is worth building and produces the optimized concept. Detailed engineering, interconnection hardware and on-the-ground delivery are handed to the project's own engineering, EPC and delivery partners.
“Sympheny supports our strategic energy planning in an ideal way. The flexibility is extremely convincing and the sensitivity analysis provides security in finding solutions.”
The team
Andrew Bollinger
Co-Founder & CEO
Co-founded Sympheny out of Empa, where he led research on multi-energy system optimization. Sets the direction for the platform and the company.
Julien Marquant
Co-Founder & CTO
Built the optimization engine that runs underneath Sympheny. Owns the architecture and the math behind every scenario the platform solves.
Christopher McLaren
Head of AI & Commercial Enablement
Leads commercial enablement and the US go-to-market, including enterprise deployment and partnerships.
Stephanie Engels
President of the Board
A board member at ewz, one of Switzerland's largest energy utilities, and Managing Director of Switzerland Innovation Park Zürich. Deep experience in strategy, sustainability and corporate development.
Youssef Sherif
Energy Systems Engineer
Works with customers on modeling real sites in Sympheny, from a single building to a district network.
Charles Dabadie
Software Engineer
Builds and maintains the platform engineers use to set up projects, run optimizations and read the results.
Nelly Ter-Borch
Energy Systems Engineer
Spent over three years as a project manager at WSP before joining Sympheny. Supports customers through onboarding and modeling as someone who has done the work herself, so a feasibility study gets set up right the first time.
Alexander Das
Member of the Board | Strategic Advisor
Heads strategy development at IWB (Industrielle Werke Basel), one of Switzerland's largest energy utilities. Brings experience in innovation, M&A and renewable energy to Sympheny's board.
Advisors
People who've built and scaled energy and software businesses, and who keep us honest on the market and the engineering.
Ian Wachters
Business Advisor
25+ years in strategy, pricing and B2B markets, with deep experience in energy, financial services and commercial leadership for technology companies.
Kurt Marlein
Product & Business Development Advisor
25 years across telecom and energy. Led innovation and go-to-market strategy for digital solutions in electricity networks and district heating across Europe.
Anne Claire Pliska
Business & Technology Advisor
20+ years of leadership in strategy, digital transformation and innovation. Trilingual, with deep expertise across business, technology and sustainability.
Matthias Sulzer
R&D Advisor
Head of Engineering Sciences at Empa and visiting faculty at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. A former energy planner who founded and listed his own engineering company.
Laura Schmidt Sánchez
Capital & Investment Advisor
Advises companies on capital strategy and investor readiness. Eight years investing at ING, backing B2B software and energy-transition companies from early stage through growth. Former strategy consultant at Deloitte. MSc from EPFL.
Steve Smith
Financial Advisor
Senior finance executive with deep experience in strategic finance, HR and business transformation. Strong track record of improving performance and supporting growth across international businesses.