Alexander Hain has left his position as head of Wincubator, Germany-based water pump system maker Wilo’s corporate innovation subsidiary, and joined Sweden-headquartered energy company Vattenfall as senior venture development manager.
Hain will help devise innovative business models for Vattenfall in renewable energies, digitisation and decentralised energy generation through the Germany-based open innovation platform, Greenfield, which was launched by the company in November 2016.
Greenfield funds and mentors startups focusing on sustainable energy, big data and digital consumer technologies, while solar photovoltaic software provider Solytic is among the startups that have received funding from Vattenfall.
Hain joined Wincubator in late 2016 and oversaw strategic investments in building automation and water innovation. The unit provides startups with between €500,000 ($560,000) and €1m ($1.1m) of funding in addition to business and technical advice, and industry contacts.
Wincubator’s portfolio includes smart sprinkler system developer Hydropoint Data Systems, in which it acquired a minority stake in mid-2018.
Photo of Alexander Hain courtesy of Wincubator.
