Formed to align supply with demand
Ourea capitalized in early 2026 and built a catalyzing team that broadened GravityBank's benefits and features, and expanded its product line.
With support from advisors and partners, Ourea is bringing GravityBank to communities, districts, and facilities in need of grid firming, cooling capacity, and water reserves to offset peak energy demand swings, manage heat output from buildings and data centers, and guard against drought and wildfires.
Meet our team
Adam Semel believes that empowering resilient communities means reaching across sectors and disciplines to drive new solutions. As a Partner at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), Adam helps deliver transformative built environment projects around the globe. As CEO and co-founder of Ourea Energy—SOM's first spinout company—he leads the development of novel infrastructure that combines energy storage, thermal management, and water resilience to power the next century.
Steve Ray specializes in charting a path to yes where others see no. An MIT Mechanical Engineering lifer (BS, MS, and PhD), Steve blends rigorous technical expertise with deeply human finesse to empower teams that deliver world-class results in architecture, sustainability, and manufacturing. Previously, he led manufacturing engineering at Rivian and co-led the sustainability practice at SOM, where he pushed the boundaries of sustainability, structures, and architecture for the world's tallest towers.
Brook Rosini has a gift for asking the right questions to bridge the gap between bold ideas and seamless execution. A dual-brained systems thinker, Brook's ability to synthesize information, knack for overcoming organizational inertia, and talent for galvanizing multidisciplinary teams around a shared vision has enabled her to transform work at large institutions like Apple and the Obama Presidential Center.
Bill Baker has redefined the limits of what is possible in the built environment. Widely regarded as one of the most accomplished structural engineers in the world, he led the development of the “buttressed core” structural system for the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest manmade structure. From honorary doctorates to his role as an Emeritus Professor at the University of Cambridge, Bill's work bridges the gap between classical engineering theory and the most advanced technologies of the 21st century.
Abolfazl Noorjahan is a voracious problem-solver who specializes in the multi-scale modeling of polymeric systems, thermodynamics, and data analysis. With a PhD from the University of Alberta and graduate and undergraduate degrees from Sharif University of Technology, he has spent more than a decade translating rigorous simulation science into real-world engineering solutions. Most recently, he led chemical and thermal simulation work for building infrastructure design at Rivian.
Katherine Gajewski believes that complex challenges require engaging as many stakeholders as possible. She built that conviction over six years leading Philadelphia's Mayor's Office of Sustainability, where she helped build one of the earliest integrated approaches to climate, sustainability, and energy management inside city government. She later carried that work forward as a City Scale partner, building cross-sector partnerships and coalitions to advance local climate solutions.
Tony Altmann has spent more than three decades at the intersection of energy and impact investing, helping teams translate ambitious sustainability goals into disciplined, bankable strategies. As a senior executive at NextEra Energy, he grew the company's energy marketing and trading division into a multibillion-dollar business, and he later founded Canetic Advisors to bring that same operational rigor to impact investors and startups.
Rob Piconi co-founded Energy Vault and has led the company as CEO and Chairman since 2022, guiding its growth as a leader in grid-scale energy storage. His three-decade career spans executive leadership roles at Fortune 100 companies including Amoco/BP, Bell Labs, and Danaher, as well as founding and scaling healthcare companies later acquired by top-tier private equity firms. In 2020, the World Economic Forum named him one of 15 global “SDG Champions” for his work advancing sustainability and the circular economy.
Doug Mouton is a global expert in hyperscale data center infrastructure, with more than 30 years leading design, construction, and delivery at Microsoft, Meta, and Jacobs Solutions. A retired U.S. Army Colonel, he commanded units of up to 3,000 personnel and led recovery efforts in Afghanistan and post-Katrina Louisiana before scaling Microsoft's global data center delivery to more than 1 GW per year and driving major cost and carbon reductions at Meta. He now advises leading firms through Mouton Advisory Services and serves on the boards of Riot Platforms and Qnect.
Jonathan is the Co-Founder and Chief Innovation Officer of IdeaLabAZ, Founder and CEO of Idealab NY, Managing Director of IdealabX, and Founder and Executive Chairman of The Trillions Co (“Trillions”). Prior to founding Trillions, Jonathan was the Founder, Chairman and CEO of Agency of Trillions, a MAYA Company (acquired by Indiegogo). Cohen was previously the Co-Founder and Chief Revenue Officer of SocialChorus (acquired by Halogen Media Group via Kohlberg Ventures). Jonathan received his Law Degree from New York University School of Law and his Industrial Engineering Degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Ourea is proud to partner with leading experts across architecture, engineering, energy, innovation, and construction. After three years of collaboration between SOM and Energy Vault to advance the engineering of GravityBank, in 2025. Ourea became the first company to spin out from SOM in the firm’s 90-year history. Leveraging SOM’s near-century-long legacy of engineering innovation and Energy Vault’s expertise in long duration energy storage, Ourea is uniquely positioned to deliver grid firming and resilience to communities around the globe.
