Provider of AI driven software solutions
Accelerate the transition to a sustainable future
eSmart Systems is being built by people able to capture trends and utilize opportunities. Be it next generation grid management systems, image recognition to drastically improve infrastructure inspections or driving customer and end-users engagement - being at the forefront of future solutions is in our team’s DNA.
We envision a future of sustainable societies. We believe this will be best achieved through our unique combination of domain expertise, machine learning, and data engineering. eSmart Systems’ AI driven software solutions enable our customers to operate more efficiently, resulting in both social and environmental benefits.
Our solutions can predict, detect, and prevent undesired critical infrastructure events, such as power outages. Reduced failure rates, extended asset life and reduced maintenance have economic benefits, both for our customers and the end users. At the same time, more efficient use of the power grid, reduces the need for further development of the transmission infrastructure, helping to protect nature including biodiversity. Our products also include a solution to make energy trading between local market prosumers possible. This is a prerequisite for the shift towards increased distributed production of renewable energy. We are proud to contribute to accelerating the transition towards a sustainable development.
Knut H. H. Johansen
CEO
Knut H. H. Johansen
CEO
Knut holds a M.Sc. degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from the Norwegian University of Technology in Trondheim, Norway. Knut is the CEO and founder of eSmart Systems AS, established in 2012. Prior to that, Knut founded and led Navita Systems, headed OMX Technology Energy Systems (now NASDAQ), founded and led Hand-El Scandinavia, a spin-off from the Institute for Energy Technology in Halden, Norway, and headed the department for energy systems at the Institute for Energy Technology.
Knut has more than twenty years’ experience innovating, developing and delivering IT solutions to the energy industry world-wide. He has delivered IT solutions to physical and financial power exchanges in Europe, North America, Asia and Australia beginning with the deregulation of the Norwegian power market in 1991, a precursor for deregulation processes worldwide. Knut has also delivered IT systems to the balancing, spot, and financial energy markets, as well as the clearing of exchange products and OTC to Nord Pool, the Nordic power exchange. He’s been responsible for ETRM and grid system deliveries to a large number of prominent energy companies, including E.ON, Statoil, Hydro, Statkraft, Fortum and Mercuria.
Knut was the initiating driver behind of the Norwegian Centre of Expertise – Smart Energy Markets. NCE Smart Energy Markets is supported by the Norwegian Authorities.
Knut E. Gustavsen
CVP
Knut E. Gustavsen
CVP
Knut holds a M.Sc. degree in Computer Science from Bristol University, England. Knut is the CVP International Markets and co-founder of eSmart Systems AS. He has more than 20 years of experience managing, developing and delivering IT solutions to the energy industry world-wide.
Knut started as a system developer of User Interface Management Systems for nuclear reactor control rooms, working closely with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in Chattanooga, US. He has been lead project manager for many large software implementation projects around the world including an infrastructure delivery to the California Power Exchange, OMX’s settlement system delivery to the Korean Power Exchange together with ABB, Tieto’s CIS delivery to Fortum in Sweden and Tieto’s CIS delivery to Hafslund in Norway.
Knut co-founded US Hand-El Inc in Silicon Valley California, which was later relocated to Pasadena in Los Angeles. He was responsible for marketing, sales, and product strategies for all power exchange and ISO systems in the US, and was instrumental in building a 20 person support, service and development organization for the US market.
Knut was also responsible for Tieto’s utility business development sector and was an instrumental part of getting state funding for a 10-year Norwegian Centre of Expertise program (Smart Energy Markets). He was also an initiator and project owner of a state funded smart grid project that was one of the very first smart grid research projects in Norway.
Tina M. Skagen
Chief Operating Officer
Tina M. Skagen
Chief Operating Officer
Tina is Chief Operating Officer at eSmart Systems and holds a M.Sc. in Strategy and Management from Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration. In 2008, she completed the Norwegian Entrepreneurship Program in Boston as a part of her master’s degree. In 2015, she participated in the program Innovation Management in a Global Business Perspective at the Norwegian Business School. Over the past years, Tina has held positions as Director of Business Development, Business Controller, and Project Manager at different Norwegian corporations.
Erik Åsberg
Chief Technology Officer
Erik Åsberg
Chief Technology Officer
Erik is CTO at eSmart Systems with 20 years’ experience in software development within the energy space, mainly using Microsoft and Oracle technologies. The last four years he has been focusing on architecture and design of Big Data technologies, all on the Microsoft Azure platform.
Erik Åsberg was appointed Microsoft Regional Director-Norway in 2019, for a second consecutive two-year period. This is a program that consists of 150 of the world's top technology visionaries chosen specifically for their proven cross-platform expertise, community leadership, and commitment to business results, and therefore nominated as trusted advisor to the developer and IT professional audiences and Microsoft.
Henrik Bache
Chief Commercial Officer
Henrik Bache
Chief Commercial Officer
Henrik is Chief Commercial Officer at eSmart Systems. Before taking on the role as CCO he spent 3 years abroad for eSmart, first in Singapore as MD for the APAC market, and then in Seattle as VP of Sales & Marketing North America. Prior to joining eSmart Systems he spent over a decade in the financial industry. In his most recent position within the financial industry he was responsible for the Norwegian market for one of the largest private equity investors in the Nordics, eQ Asset Management.
Davide Roverso
Chief Analytics Officer
Davide Roverso
Chief Analytics Officer
Davide holds a PhD in Computing Science from Aberdeen University (UK) and currently leads the analytics team at eSmart Systems. Davide has 25 years’ experience in the field of Machine Learning and Big Data Analytics, with applications in diagnostics, prognostics, condition monitoring, and early fault detection in complex processes, in sectors ranging from energy to medicine and environmental monitoring. He has authored over 90 publications in international journals, conference proceedings and edited books.
See Davide’s publications here: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Davide_Roverso
Hilde Bekier-Larssen
CFO
Hilde Bekier-Larssen
CFO
Hilde is the CFO at eSmart Systems.
She holds an MSc Engineering degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Norwegian Institute of Technology (Trondheim, Norway) and an MBA from Fuqua School of Business at Duke University (Durham, NC, USA).
Hilde has more than 20 years of international experience mainly within the energy and the construction industry; as an engineer, management consultant, product manager, and various controlling and CFO positions in Asia, South & North America and Europe.
Gro Kruse Kjølstad
Chief Financial Controller
Gro Kruse Kjølstad
Chief Financial Controller
Gro holds the position as Chief Financial Controller at eSmart Systems. Her background is in finance from Buskerud University College. She has more than 12 years’ experience from finance and management. Gro has spent the past years working on financial reporting, audits, tender and contract preparations, due diligence, incorporation of subsidiaries in Europe, Asia and US.
Tore Lie
Chief Product Officer
Tore Lie
Chief Product Officer
Steve Hambric
President North America
Steve Hambric
President North America
Steve is President North America at eSmart Systems. Steve holds a B.sc degree in Mechanical Engineering and a M.sc. degree in Management and Information Systems from University of Virginia (US), in addition to a MBA from INSEAD in Fontainebleau (FR).
He has more than 20 years of professional experience in various leadership functions within the energy and utility industry. Most recently as a VP responsible for Itron’s portfolio of Consumer Energy Management solutions, owning their strategy, growth and P&L. Prior to Itron's acquisition of Comverge, Steve was on the leadership team of Comverge and Instrumental In transforming their business. Prior to Itron Steve was at Opower leading up to their IPO and sale to Oracle. Steve has also consulted to energy and utility companies at Sapient and McKinsey & Company.
Bastien Gambini
Investment Director at Equinor Energy Ventures
Bastien Gambini
Investment Director at Equinor Energy Ventures
Bastien Gambini is Investment Director at Equinor Energy Ventures and chairman of the board at eSmart Systems. He has more than 15 years of experience investing in venture and private equity in the energy transition sectors. By training he has a strong background in financial analysis. Former lecturer at University Paris-Dauphine, he holds 2 master’s degree in Finance and an MBA at Insead.
After being the junior founder of one of the Cleantech pioneer funds, Demeter Partners, back in 2005, he joined Equinor Energy Ventures in 2017. Skilled in cross boarder team management and with international work experiences (France, Venezuela, Spain and UK), he sits at the board of several energy related companies in the US, Germany, Norway and the UK.
Joseph Sirosh
Chief Technology Officer at Compass
Joseph Sirosh
Chief Technology Officer at Compass
Joseph is the Chief Technology Officer for Compass, where he leads the development of the real estate industry’s first end-to-end platform. Until Dec 2018, Joseph served as Microsoft’s Chief Technology Officer for AI. During his five years at Microsoft, he also held product and engineering responsibility for all enterprise database, big data and AI products, with 1,700+ engineers.
Prior to Microsoft, Joseph spent nine years as a VP of Technology at Amazon where among other things he managed the Global Inventory Platform for Amazon’s Consumer Business, and built the machine learning and Transaction Risk Management teams. Joseph holds a PhD and MS in Neural Networks from the University of Texas at Austin and a Bachelors from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras.
Fredrik Nygaard
CEO at Katalysator AS
Fredrik Nygaard
CEO at Katalysator AS
Fredrik Nygaard is CEO at Katalysator AS and has more than seven years of diversified M&A, business development and financing experience from Aker ASA and ten years as CFO including public listed companies. Fredrik is an analytical, structured and dedicated team builder. He is project manager of several business development projects, M&A transactions and IPOs.
Erik Åsberg
CTO at eSmart Systems
Erik Åsberg
CTO at eSmart Systems
Erik is CTO at eSmart Systems with 20 years’ experience in software development within the energy space, mainly using Microsoft and Oracle technologies. The last four years he has been focusing on architecture and design of Big Data technologies, all on the Microsoft Azure platform.
Erik Åsberg was appointed Microsoft Regional Director-Norway in 2019, for a second consecutive two-year period. This is a program that consists of 150 of the world's top technology visionaries chosen specifically for their proven cross-platform expertise, community leadership, and commitment to business results, and therefore nominated as trusted advisor to the developer and IT professional audiences and Microsoft.
Eivind Egeland Olsen
Chief Investment Officer at Nysnø
Eivind Egeland Olsen
Chief Investment Officer at Nysnø
Eivind Egeland Olsen is Chief Investment Officer at Nysnø He previously held the position as head of corporate finance for SR-Bank Markets. Eivind has extensive financial and investment experience from his time as partner in ABG Sundal Collier, Jefferies & Company’s Cleantech team and The Royal Bank of Scotland in London. Eivind holds a Master of Science in Finance and Economics from the Norwegian School of Economics (NHH) and Warwick Business School (WBS).
Michael Donnelly
Partner and Chief Risk Officer at Energy Impact Partners
Michael Donnelly
Partner and Chief Risk Officer at Energy Impact Partners
Michael Donnelly is partner and Chief Risk Officer at Energy Impact Partners. Mr Donnelly spent a 25-year career at General Electric focused on energy in various management functions, most recently acting as Head of Business Development for GE Energy-Industrial Solutions. Before that, he led the Energy Technology Group for GE Equity, where he focused on investments in power and energy technology companies in storage, distribution and energy management.
Mr. Donnelly also served as a Risk Officer for the Equity Group where he ensured proper underwriting for a broad array of equity and debt investments. He also served as a Risk Officer at GE Global Sponsor Finance where he underwrote and managed a portfolio of over $1B. Mr. Donnelly holds a Bachelor of Science Degree from the U. S. Merchant Marine Academy and an MBA from the Darden Graduate School of Business Administration, University of Virginia.
Thomas W. Thomas
Managing Director of innogy Ventures
Thomas W. Thomas
Managing Director of innogy Ventures
News
From Astrum to Opal: Revolutionizing the Power Grid
How eSmart is Responding to COVID-19
INVADE - An Innovation Journey
eSmart Systems at EEI Wildfire Technology Summit
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