Driven by curiosity.
As much as I like to think that I designed my path, it was ultimately driven by curiosity. I studied architecture and engineering between Naples and UC Berkeley, worked on supertall buildings and complex structures in San Francisco and London, earned a PhD at ETH Zurich, then co-founded a company to make the change real.
I've raised capital, hired teams, and shared my work at conferences, exhibitions and in journals — not because I planned it that way, but because each step followed naturally from genuine curiosity.
Throughout every step I learned skills that have followed me ever since.
Financial Modelling & Investment
Built VAULTED's financial model from scratch and closed two funding rounds — translating deep-tech uncertainty into a narrative investors could back. Managed board reporting and governance from incorporation.
Partnerships & Commercialisation
Negotiated partnerships with global multinationals to unlock production and distribution; led regulatory certification across three countries in one of the most risk-averse industries. Built asset-light partner network across 3 countries.
Market Discovery & Strategy
Designed and executed the GTM strategy that took VAULTED from lab prototype to commercial operations in three countries through Ideal Customer Profiling and Product-Market Fit.
Structural Analysis & Simulation
Designed 200m+ towers and complex structures across four continents at SOM; developed nonlinear seismic analysis for performance-based design; validated funicular floor systems through full-scale load testing at ETH Zurich.
Computational Design & Fabrication
Built custom Python and Grasshopper tools for thrust network analysis; developed CNC-milled formwork for doubly-curved shell surfaces; created a design-to-production workflow controlling VAULTED's entire value chain.
Project & Team Leadership
Built and led a team of 10 across 5 nationalities; at SOM, coordinated across large multidisciplinary teams on projects with demanding programs across four continents.
Communication & Translation
From TEDx stages to MET installations, from peer-reviewed papers to board presentations — translating the same idea across fundamentally different audiences.
I'm looking for the next hard problem. If that sounds like yours — let's talk.
franaudo.com