Eli Haugerud holds an M.Sc. degree in Analytical Chemistry from the University of Oslo (UiO) and has taken several additional master courses within Design Thinking and strategic innovation, computers science and pedagogy.

Eli has previously worked at Tekna for 12 years and held positions as Head of Innovation, Director of Politics and Head of Professional Societies. She has been developing networks, policies and arenas to share competence and build a better society. Prior to her time at Tekna, she came from a background as a leader in international IT companies and the education sector. Eli also currently holds some positions within tech and engineering organization boards.

In her job at Smart Innovation Norway, she holds the position as Head of Clusters and is responsible for the company's overall operation of the two clusters, NCE Smart Energy Markets and Cluster for Applied AI. She is part of the management team and reports to the CEO.

Inge Michael Bilet has broad experience from both Norwegian and international business, covering market research, FMC, energy and automobile industry. He has been an entrepreneur and part of large international companies.

In the year 2000, he took a Bachelor's degree in Export Marketing (Norway/Germany), followed 20 years of experience from sales, marketing, market research, consultancy and innovation. His recent positions were Head of Marketing and Product Development at Fredrikstad EnergiSalg (Fortum) and Sustainability Advisor/Project Manager at Brox Consulting.

As Business Developer at Smart Innovation Norway, Inge Michael is determined to use his experience and expertise to speed up the transition to a circular economy, by helping companies innovate at a slightly faster pace, thus helping to create sustainable businesses.

Inge Michael is a business oriented, creative team player with a passion for sustainability, digitalisation, new business models and circular economy.

Victoria Næss Jensen holds an MSc in Entrepreneurship and Innovation from Norwegian University of Life Science, Ås, with Technology Entrepreneurship from Rice University – Jess H. Jones Graduate School of Business, Houston, Texas.

Previously, Victoria worked as a PMO for Sykehuspartner's IT projects to the new hospital, Sykehuset Østfold Kalnes. Her role was to support the management in the program and to support interaction between various projects in Prosjekt Nytt Østfoldsykehus (PNØ).

At her current position in Smart Innovation Norway, she is involved in realizing innovative project ideas, both towards the clusters and towards our smart cities and communities.

Victoria works systematically and carries out plans with commitment and persistence, ensuring progress in project activities. She is motivated by innovation, progress, change and improvement.

Hermund Arntzen Dale has the position as Project Manager in the research section in Smart Innovation Norway, coordinating the research projects on renewable energy and energy markets.

Hermund holds a bachelor's degree in Innovation and Project Management from The Collage University of Østfold. He also has education in leadership from one of the Non-commissioned officer schools in the Norwegian Army.

He has worked several years in the Norwegian Army. Gaining experience in planning and execution of tactical operations at platoon level. After finishing his military career, Hermund got experience in entrepreneurship after founding a SaaS startup. He also worked for the electrical tech startup Becour, as Project Manager and Commercial Manager.

Hermund is passionate about environment and climate. He describes himself as a team player, and a detail-oriented and creative problem solver.

Tore Lie is a seasoned professional with extensive experience in consulting, project management, architecture, and development. After spending seven successful years at eSmart Systems as a member of the team that established Grid Vision as one of the leading virtual inspection tools for powerline inspections, Tore has joined Smart Innovation Norway as Cluster Leader of Cluster for Applied AI to help others succeed in using AI as a tool for change.

Tore's diverse background includes previous roles as a Consultant/Project Manager at Metier & CA and an Architect/Developer at IBM & Concrea. Additionally, he has a passion for performance, having previously been a table hockey hero and a producer/actor. Tore enjoys being on stage and discussing topics related to AI and other subjects.

Overall, Tore Lie brings a wealth of expertise and unique perspectives to his work, making him a valuable asset to any team or organization he joins.

Tor Ø. Frydenberg holds an M.Sc. degree in Radio Technology and Information Systems from the Norwegian University for Science and Technology (NTNU).

Tor held the position of CEO at Ericsson, Norway from 1999 to 2010, and as Vice President of Ericsson Professional Services in the Nordic and Baltic regions for 5 years in the same period.

Prior to 1999, he served as General Manager of Ericsson Radar, Kongsberg Ericsson Communications and Telettra Norge. Tor began his career as a scientist at Telenor Research & Development.

He is currently serving as an investor, chairman and member of the board for a number of start-up companies. At Smart Innovation Norway, he is engaged as a Special Advisor and Senior Consultant, specifically within the ICT industry.

Elena Calzado is International Project Manager at Smart Innovation Norway. She has a BS in Chemistry from Universidad Complutense de Madrid.

During the last 20 years, she has been involved in Research & Development & Innovation activities in different sectors, including energy, agri-food, environment and health. She has been involved in numerous R&D projects at national and international level, as Innovation and Exploitation Manager, supporting international organisations, research centers and industrial partners in the identification of their innovation potential, the identification of opportunities of financing and proposal preparation.

Elena has worked at CDTI in the international department, she has also worked as R&D consultant, as a coach for entrepreneurs, as a technician of knowledge transfer, as manager of several national technology platforms, as R&D and quality manager and also as external evaluator of R&D proposal for both the Spanish Ministry and the European Commission.

Qazi Sohail Ahmad holds the position as International Project Manager, with main focus on project acquisition and EU Advisor for the partners of the NCE Smart Energy Markets cluster.

Before joining Smart Innovation Norway, he was Advisor in research and project coordination at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, where he participated in several EU and RCN research & innovation projects under the FP7, Horizon 2020, Nano2021 and Petromaks research programs.

Qazi Ahmad holds an MSc in Computer Science from Blekinge Institute of Technology, Sweden, and an MBA from the University of Bradford School of Management, UK.

His education also includes project management training from the University of Massachusetts Boston, USA, and from the College of Europe, Belgium.