Our Team
Torsten trained as a biotech engineer but was quickly drawn to building companies rather than working in them. He moved to San Francisco and co-founded YouNoodle, the largest startup evaluation platform in the world, distributing $100m+ to thousands of startups across the world. A technologist and long-time angel investor in women’s health, Torsten brings Silicon Valley startup clarity to the deeptech world. He is a mentor for the Alliance of Democracies, and co-founded Underground Ventures from a belief that reliable energy is the root of geopolitics and prosperity.
Co-Founder & Managing Partner
Soraya spent about a decade in R&D at SLB. Her very first field experience was in geothermal, already on a new technology trial. With a mechanical engineering background and a wide curiosity, she tackled drilling tool design, well integrity in extreme conditions, and physics-informed ML for mature oil fields. She later moved through deep tech programs like Entrepreneur First, before a final stop at ENGIE on deep geothermal. At UGV, she puts her expertise to work on investments and portfolio support. She loves connecting with founders, experts, and investors, and is rarely far from a conference, unless venturing into the wild.
Technology Specialist
Investment Manager
Thomas came to geothermal by the long route - energy policy in Paris, commodity trading in Geneva, venture capital in Amsterdam - spending nearly a decade learning how physical industries move until next-generation geothermal became the most important bet in energy. He's spent days on tanker ships, salmon farms, and in the office integrating term sheets into closing documents. At UGV, he leads investments and supports portfolio companies on governance and financing strategy. Outside the office, he hosts vibe-coding dinner parties and reads niche historical biographies.
Advisors & Investors
Superhot Rock Advisor
Program Director Superhot Rock Energy Clean Air Task Force (CATF)
Industry Advisor
Senior Analyst, International Energy Agency. Former Head of US Energy Transition, Shell
Investment Advisor
Director, JA Technologies. Ex-partner, Grant Thornton
Founding Partner
Co-Founder & ex-CTO
Unity Technologies