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Daniel Mitcan
Daniel Mitcan
Chief Technology Officer Β· SandGrain B.V.
CTO Β· Technology Executive Β· EU Expert Evaluator Β· Eindhoven, NL

Daniel Mitcan

Chief Technology Officer & Product Strategist

SandGrain B.V.

IoT Security Edge AI Product Strategy NPD / NPI Smart Grid Signal Processing Machine Learning RF Communications EU Expert Evaluator Board Advisor
20+
Years
4
Sectors
2
Patents
4
Languages
About

Turning Complex Innovation into Commercial Success. From Chip to Cloud.

Technology executive with more than two decades of experience at the intersection of product strategy, engineering, and organizational leadership. My career spans both corporate scale β€” deep engineering discipline in semiconductors and advanced manufacturing β€” and entrepreneurial execution, growing ventures from early stage to global market leadership.

This ambidexterity defines my approach: applying the rigour of large-scale systems thinking to the speed and ownership mindset of high-growth startups. As CTO of Ampacimon SA, I led the company to global recognition in grid-monitoring technology; as CTO of SandGrain B.V., I drive the commercial delivery of CyberRock β€” a hardware-anchored post-quantum IoT security solution.

I also serve as an EU Expert Evaluator for R&D and innovation proposals, and as Board Advisor to the MSc Energy Engineering programme at the University of Liège.

I believe that "success reflects favourably on everyone" β€” a principle that shapes my approach to building resilient, high-performing teams.

πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ English πŸ‡³πŸ‡± Dutch πŸ‡«πŸ‡· French πŸ‡·πŸ‡΄ Romanian
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Location
Eindhoven, North Brabant, Netherlands
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Current Role
CTO β€” SandGrain B.V.
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Focus Areas
IoT Security Β· Edge AI Β· Post-Quantum Resilience
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Patents
Overhead power-line systems Β· Drone protection (HV)
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EU Expert Evaluator
R&D & Innovation Proposals Β· Horizon Europe
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Board Advisor
MSc Energy Engineering · University of Liège (BE)
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Email
daniel@mitcan.nl
Expertise

Areas of Deep Expertise

Two decades of cross-industry impact across four core disciplines.

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IoT Security & Edge AI
Hardware root of trust, post-quantum resilience, connected device protection, and edge intelligence architectures for critical industries.
CyberRockEdge AIPost-Quantum
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Product Strategy & NPD/NPI
Full product lifecycle management, technology roadmapping, innovation management, market development, and commercial product launches.
RoadmappingGo-to-MarketAgile
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Smart Grid & Energy Tech
Dynamic Line Rating, AI-based cable fault diagnostics, grid monitoring, and R&D leadership across distributed international teams.
DLRSignal ProcessingRF
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Organizational Leadership
Building high-performing engineering teams, mindful leadership, knowledge-sharing cultures, and cross-functional strategic alignment.
CTOTeam BuildingCoaching
Career

Professional Journey

From semiconductor engineering to deep tech CTO β€” 24 years at the frontier of innovation, spanning corporate scale and entrepreneurial ventures.

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2025 – Present Current
Chief Technology Officer
SandGrain B.V. Β· Eindhoven, Netherlands
Leading Design & Engineering at a Deep Tech startup delivering CyberRock β€” hardware-anchored, post-quantum resilient IoT security for critical industries. Overseeing system architecture, product ownership, program management, and commercial product launches.
IoT SecurityEdge AIPost-Quantum
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2018 – 2025 7 years
Chief Technology Officer
Ampacimon SA Β· Belgium Β· Spain Β· USA
Owned the full technology and product roadmap for a global leader in grid-monitoring technologies. Led R&D across three international sites (BE, ES, US). Delivered world-class products: Dynamic Line Rating, AI-based cable failure diagnostics, and Fault Management systems β€” deployed at scale by major transmission system operators across Europe.
Smart GridDynamic Line RatingAI DiagnosticsInternational R&D
βš™
2012 – 2018 6 years
Product Development & Engineering Leadership
Neways Electronics Β· Netherlands
Engineering and product development leadership in advanced electronics manufacturing. Contributed to industrialization of high-complexity electronic assemblies for automotive, industrial, and medical sectors. Built expertise in production scaling and cross-functional product management.
Electronics ManufacturingAutomotiveIndustrialMedical
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2001 – 2012 11 years
Engineering & Product Development
NXP Semiconductors (formerly Catena Group) Β· Eindhoven, Netherlands
Contributed to high-volume CMOS chip development, signal processing R&D, and RF communications product development. Built foundational expertise in semiconductor design methodology and large-scale product engineering within one of the world's leading chip companies.
SemiconductorsCMOSRFSignal Processing
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2023 – 2024 Β· Advisory Parallel roles
EU Expert Evaluator & Board Advisor
European Commission · University of Liège (BE)
Appointed as an EU Expert Evaluator for R&D and innovation project proposals under Horizon Europe — assessing technical merit, innovation potential, and market impact of deep-tech submissions. Concurrently serves as Board Advisor to the MSc Energy Engineering programme at the University of Liège, contributing industry perspective on curriculum development, energy transition trends, and career pathways for graduates.
Horizon EuropeR&D EvaluationUniversity of LiègeEnergy EngineeringAcademic Advisory
Education & Credentials

Academic & Professional Background

Education

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Master in Technology Entrepreneurship
University of Maryland (US)
Innovation Management Β· Business Modeling Β· Market Development
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Socrates Scholar β€” Exchange Programme
Technische UniversitΓ€t Darmstadt (DE)
Advanced Engineering Studies
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Dipl. Ing. β€” Telecommunications Engineering
TU IaΘ™i (Romania)
Signal Processing Β· RF Communications

Certifications

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Product-Technology Roadmapping
University of Cambridge
Nov 2024
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Machine Learning
Coursera / Stanford Online
Jul 2019
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Inspiring Leadership through Emotional Intelligence
Coursera / Case Western Reserve
Apr 2014
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Foundations of Business Strategy
Coursera / Darden School
Jan 2014
LinkedIn Insights

Top Posts & Perspectives

Selected views on IoT security, energy innovation, and technology leadership.

#EdgeAI is moving fast β€” decision power shifts to the device.
Real-time YOLO-based object detection with no external latency. But powerful edge AI demands robust security protections across the full model lifecycle.
21 likes Β· 1 commentRead β†’
SandGrain closes €13.5M Series A β€” post-quantum IoT security at scale.
CyberRock delivers hardware-anchored, post-quantum resilient IoT security for critical industries β€” addressing both regulatory compliance and the quantum threat.
28 likes Β· 2 commentsRead β†’
And the journey continues… 7 years at Ampacimon. Now: SandGrain B.V.
Seven rewarding years filled with joys, successes, and lessons learned. Now embracing a new challenge in semiconductors and IoT security in Eindhoven.
Read β†’
TenneT deploys Ampacimon Dynamic Line Rating across the Dutch HV grid.
Seeing Ampacimon technology deployed at national scale by TenneT β€” a real-world validation of years of R&D work in grid monitoring and energy optimization.
22 likesRead β†’
πŸš€ Ampacimon Γ— DroneVolt β€” Taking DLR to new heights.
A key partnership combining Dynamic Line Rating technology with aerial inspection β€” a new frontier in grid monitoring and maintenance efficiency.
Read β†’
Contact

Let's Connect

Available for strategic CTO advisory, board positions, and B2B partnerships in IoT, AI, and energy technology.

βœ‰ daniel@mitcan.nl in LinkedIn ⬇ Download CV