Start ups

Over the years, research undertaken by the DESL has reached high maturity level and attracted industrial interest. GridSteer and Zaphiro are two spin-offs established to industrialize Commelec- and PMU-derived solutions respectively, while Swisspod aims at developing energy-efficient pods enabling the deployment of viable hyperloop transportation systems.

SynchroGuard is a new smart solution for electrical grid monitoring and automation. Zaphiro’s team has developed unique sensing devices able to take voltage and current measurements with peculiar characteristics, namely high-speed and time-synchronization. Thanks to its advanced sensing infrastructure, SynchroGuard has the outstanding feature to combine in a single solution real-time grid monitoring, optimal control of grid resources, and smart fault management. In addition, SynchroGuard is characterized by the simplest installation on the market.

Founded in 2019 by two SpaceX Competition alumni, Swisspod Technologies aims to facilitate the broad adoption of Hyperloop Transportation by developing the required technology building blocks and business models. Hyperloop is a high-speed transportation system for freight and passengers. Often named the 5th mode of transportation, Hyperloop consists of electrically-propelled vehicles (pods) that travel through a network of low-pressure tubes (infrastructure), thus achieving high speed at low energy consumption. As a stepping stone towards implementing Hyperloop for passenger transportation, Swisspod is developing a solution for transporting freight, with direct application in the logistics sector.