Team

Johan Rochel

Co-Founder

When he began his philosophy degree, he did not expect that he would devote his time to jurisprudence as well. Today, he is committed to bringing the two disciplines together, with his particular passion being the search for philosophy within the law. The topics he addresses are all around the place in public debates: innovation, migration, international politics. The question of values and the question ‘why’ crop up again and again, and this impels him to seek debate everywhere and to take ethical topics into the public sphere, in community halls and the meeting rooms of far-flung restaurants. His aim in these engagements is to set up spaces and well-laid tables in readiness for real discussions, in which the arguments of all those who participate are carried forward into a shared debate. Occasionally, he hears his partner and two children say jokingly: “Papa’s job is holding drinks receptions and chatting with people.” And they are not entirely wrong. Contact

Jean-Daniel Strub

Co-Founder

Working as a bike courier in the city of Geneva, Jean-Daniel discovered that contrary to certain fears, analog technology and human strength is not necessarily suppressed by digital technology, and in fact we should aspire to a productive interaction between them. Jean-Daniel has experienced this time and again in his many years of scientific work on issues of political and medical ethics, and in his professional positions, including in institutional science policy, the question of the social implications of innovation came up repeatedly. He has always been drawn to the social and political issues ethics is dealing with and which are concerned with shaping the world of tomorrow. As a father of two daughters, this is particularly close to his heart. This is why he is also involved in Zurich's local politics, for instance during twelve years as a member of Zurich's city parliament - as cities are the laboratories for the coexistence of the future. Contact

Julien Pache

Partner

Julien is a Partner at ethix and Venture Partner at Verve Ventures, a venture capital firm. Julien has over 10 years of experience in investing in technology startups. He developed Verve Ventures as a member of the management team (COO) and led the investment team for 5 years. He was also responsible for external investment mandates (corporate venturing-innovation) of large Swiss companies. In 2019, he joined the startup Bring! Labs as Chief Commercial Officer (CCO). Bring! Labs was sold to the Swiss Post in 2021. Julien is trained as a lawyer (Master of Law from the University of Fribourg) and philosopher (Master of Philosophy from the University of Bern). He is particularly interested in the economic, ecological and societal dimensions of technologies.
Competencies: management/leadership in technology startups/scale-ups; investment in startups (60+ investments): SaaS, BtoC digital and deep tech; strategy and innovation (corporate venturing). Contact

Our Vision

Innovation is never neutral but comes with a number of opportunities and risks. In order to achieve long-term economic, social and ecological added value, every innovation should undergo ethical scrutiny as early as possible. Only by doing so, can present-day innovations create real progress and lead to a future world that is both more sustainable and fair. In this way, profound ethical reflection will inspire innovation instead of stifling it.

How we work

We provide critical guidance. We debate interactively. We act transparently. Transparency facilitates trustworthy collaborations, both internally and externally. In a world that is characterized by fast changes, we approach ethical ambivalences in an agile and differentiated way. Developing practical solutions to the ethical challenges of innovation and digitization requires creativity, diversity and the constant monitoring of the newest innovative developments.

Funding
ethix – Lab for innovation ethics is funded through project grants and consulting services.

Our Partners

Network
Our network includes numerous specialists from all over Switzerland with whom we conduct project-based collaborations. We will gladly identify and put you in touch with the right partners for your particular challenge. Join our Innovation Ethics Network Switzerland on LinkedIn.

Migros Pioneer Fund
ethix was initially made possible by the Migros Pioneer Fund, part of the social commitment of Migros Group: migros-engagement.ch

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