Valentin Sulzer
| Valentin Sulzer | |
| Occupation | Entrepreneur, software engineer, applied mathematician |
|---|---|
| Known for | Co-founder and CEO of Ionworks, co-creator of PyBaMM |
Valentin Sulzer is an applied mathematician and entrepreneur who is the co-founder and CEO of Ionworks, a software company that develops simulation tools for battery and automotive companies. Ionworks was part of the Y Combinator Summer 2024 batch.[1]
Career
Academic background
Sulzer completed a DPhil (PhD) in Applied Mathematics at the University of Oxford, where his research focused on electrochemical modelling and asymptotic methods.[2] He subsequently held postdoctoral research positions at the University of Michigan and Carnegie Mellon University, where he continued working on developing fast and accurate electrochemical models for batteries and fuel cells.
During his academic career, Sulzer published research on topics including accelerated battery lifetime simulations, porous-electrode theory for lead-acid batteries, and formation protocol effects on battery lifetime. According to Google Scholar, his work has been cited over 3,300 times.[3]
PyBaMM
Sulzer is a co-creator and core developer of PyBaMM (Python Battery Mathematical Modelling), an open-source battery modelling software package. PyBaMM provides a framework for running physics-based battery simulations and has been adopted within the battery research community. Ionworks' commercial products build upon the foundations established by the PyBaMM project.[4]
Ionworks
Sulzer co-founded Ionworks to address the gap between battery simulation research and industry adoption. The company develops what it describes as a "Simulation OS for battery companies," providing cloud-based software that enables engineers to create battery models from their own data and run large-scale simulations to explore design spaces. The company's stated goal is to reduce the reliance on costly physical experiments — which can cost battery companies tens of millions of dollars annually — by making simulation tools accessible to engineers without specialised modelling expertise.[1]
Ionworks participated in Y Combinator's Summer 2024 batch. The company's customers include firms in the battery and automotive sectors.[4]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Ionworks – Y Combinator". 'Y Combinator}'. Retrieved 2026-03-18.
- ↑ "Valentin Sulzer". 'University of Oxford}'. Retrieved 2026-03-18.
- ↑ "Valentin Sulzer – Google Scholar". 'Google Scholar}'. Retrieved 2026-03-18.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Ionworks". 'Ionworks}'. Retrieved 2026-03-18.