A world-class team of material scientists and electrochemists focusing on clean energy challenges.
Vasilis Gregoriou Ph.D. / Chief Executive Officer
Vasilis Gregoriou is the CEO and cofounder of Advent Technologies Inc. In addition, Dr. Gregoriou is an internationally known scientist with research positions in both the US (Northeastern, MIT, Polaroid, Princeton) and Greece (FORTH-ICEHT) over his 30 year research career so far. His research activity extends over a wide area of subjects that include the areas of flexible photovoltaics based on organic semiconductors, optically active materials based on conjugated oligomers and polymer nanocomposites.
Dr. Gregoriou has more than 25 years of experience in the US market. He has extensive experience in the technical development of new products and in the management of such activities. He holds a Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry from Duke University and he has attended the MBA program at Northeastern University.
Dr. Emory De Castro Ph.D./ Chief Technology Officer
Emory S. De Castro Ph.D – Chief Technical Officer is responsible for the overall technical, manufacturing and business development operations for Advent Technologies. Prior to joining Advent, Dr. De Castro was a Vice President, Business Management and the site manager for BASF Fuel Cell Inc. in Somerset NJ. At BASF Dr. De Castro led marketing and sales, business development, quality control, and R&D direction all cumulating in nearly a four-fold increase in revenues. As the Executive Vice President at the E-TEK Division, De Nora North America he managed operations, created a global brand, and expanded the organization’s fuel cell component business in Asia and Europe. Dr. De Castro has over 20 patent applications spanning fuel cell materials and catalysts, electrochemical technology, sensors, and a beer bottle cap that extends shelf life. He is the recipient of the 2013 Department of Energy Award for Manufacturing R&D in lowering the cost of gas diffusion electrodes and the 2005 ECS New Technology Award to E-TEK Division, for introducing and commercializing a new electrolysis technology. Emory De Castro received his Ph.D. from the Department of Chemistry at the University of Cincinnati and a B.S. in Chemistry from Duke University.
Chris Kaskavelis Ph.D. / Chief Marketing Officer
Dr. Kaskavelis joined Advent as Chief Marketing Officer. He has been a seed investor in the company, an angel investor, and has served on its Board of Directors since the first day. He is a serial entrepreneur in the tech industry, and primarily digital marketing, with successful exits in both NASDAQ and London Stock Exchanges. He has designed and been responsible for enterprise software systems designed for Pratt & Whitney, Analog Devices, General Electric and Lucent Technologies in the areas of Just-In-Time (JIT) manufacturing, Supply Chain Management, and Production Scheduling. He holds a Ph.D. in Supply Chain Management as well as an M.Sc. in Manufacturing Engineering from Boston University, a B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering and a B.A. in Business Economics from Brown University.
Harris Antoniou / Member of the Board
Harris has held various executive and management positions in leading institutions in the financial sector over the last 25 years. He served as Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Management Board of Amsterdam Trade Bank from March 2016 to February 2020.
Previously he was the Chief Executive Officer of AMCI – a private group that focusses in mining projects and operations, trading, transportation, and private equity investments.
Between 2009 and 2013 he was the Managing Director of Energy, Commodities and Transportation, and a member of the Management Group of ABN AMRO, where he led the international expansion of the business.
Harris started his career with Bank Mees & Hope in 1993, and held a range of senior management positions within MeesPierson and Fortis in The Netherlands, The United Kingdom and Greece, always focusing on debt and equity investments in real assets, as well as in investment banking.
He is passionate about technology, education and digital transformation. He was one of the first signatories of the Poseidon Principles and a supporter of United World Colleges in the Netherlands.
Harris holds an MSc in Business Administration and Management from the University of Piraeus, Greece, and an MBA from Rotterdam School of Management (Erasmus University), the Netherlands. He also successfully completed the General Management Program of Harvard Business School.
Jim Coffey / Board Member
Jim Coffey is General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of Advent Technologies, Inc. Jim has deep experience in corporate and securities law, mergers and acquisitions, venture capital and corporate finance, and intellectual property law. He has extensive international experience having closed transactions in both North and South America, the European continent, and China. Throughout the course of his career in private practice, Jim developed deep personal relationships and strategic contacts within the clean energy and technology sectors. He brings these assets, proficiencies, good judgment, and know-how to Advent.
Jim was a Gerald L. Wallace Scholar at New York University School of Law where he received an LL.M. in Corporate Law. He received his J.D. from the New England School of Law, and his B.A., cum laude, from Providence College.
Jim is listed in The Best Lawyers in America® for Mergers and Acquisitions. He is recognized for his work in intellectual property law by the IAM Patent 1000. Jim was named a Massachusetts Super Lawyer by Law and Politics magazine. He is AV® rated by Martindale-Hubbell, and is listed in Who’s Who in America. Jim is a member of the Boston Bar Association.
Nora Gourdoupi / General Manager, SA
Nora Gourdoupi holds a BSc in Chemistry and a PhD from the University of Patras specializing in the synthesis and characterization of polymers for fuel cell applications. She joined Advent Technologies in 2006 as a Senior Scientist and is co inventor in 18 patents. Being part of a fast-growing Small Medium Enterprise from its foundation, Nora has been involved in several key business processes including materials R&D as well as project managment. She currently holds the position of General Manager of the Greek branch overseeing daily operations while being also engaged in product development, government projects and technical sales. She enjoys using her science knowledge to understand the business and technical issues customers are facing and offer appropriate solutions.
Sanjeev Mukerjee Ph.D. / Chairman of the Advisory Board
Dr. Sanjeev Mukerjee is a Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology (Northeastern University); where he has been since September of 1998. He also heads the newly created center for Renewable Energy Technology at Northeastern University and its subset the Laboratory for Electrochemical Advanced Power (LEAP). His research on charge transfer dynamics at both two and three dimensional electrochemical interfaces encompasses materials development, in situ synchrotron spectroscopy and electro-analytical methods. In addition, new computational initiatives are in progress involving both molecular modeling and simulation of multiple electron scattering in the context of in situ synchrotron XANES method. Peer reviewed publication currently number 106, with an H-factor of 45. The current projects in the group include materials development for new electrocatalysts, polymer electrolyte membranes and high energy density (and capacity) cathode materials for aqueous and non-aqueous storage cells. Fundamental understanding of structure property relationships are in concert with applications. In this context two startup companies which the group helped found, Encite Corp, Burlington, MA and Protonex Corp., Westboro, MA are notable. In addition partnership with De Nora, and BASF, Proton Onsite, Ford Motor Co., Advent North America and Automotive Fuel Cell Corporation (Canada) are ongoing for developing a number of fuel cell and electrolyzer technologies. Federal funding comes from the Army Research Office, Department of Energy, National Science Foundation, Air Force Office of Scientific Research and National Institute of Technology-Advanced Technology Program.