Meet the Team

Eric Dahlgren

Co-founder, Chief Executive Officer

Eric is the co-founder and CEO of Aircela, where he leads the company’s mission to produce fossil-free fuel using only air, water, and renewable electricity. Before launching Aircela in 2020, he worked in the advanced materials industry and served as a visiting scientist at MIT. Eric holds a PhD in Earth and Environmental Engineering from Columbia University, as well as undergraduate and master’s degrees in mathematics from Lund University in Sweden.

Mia Dahlgren

Co-founder, Chief Operating Officer

Mia co-founded Aircela and has served as COO since 2020. With a B.A. in social sciences from Lund University in Sweden, she brings both strategic vision and a hands-on approach to the company’s operations. Her work focuses on maintaining brand consistency, refining Aircela’s messaging, and ensuring the company’s commitment to sustainability is woven into every aspect of its communications and day-to-day operations.

Kristian Tuszynski

Chief Technology Officer

Kristian is the Chief Technology Officer at Aircela, where he leads the technical teams and drives the development of the company’s deployable fuel production systems—from early prototype to full-scale operation. He designed the intelligent control systems that power Aircela’s machines, enabling them to run fully autonomously on their own or as part of a connected network. Prior to joining Aircela, Kristian was global controls manager at UTC/Carrier, where he was responsible for driving the technology development and deployment of model-based methods for controls across the Carrier businesses. He holds a master’s in electrical engineering from Lund University in Sweden.

Dr. Klaus Lackner

Senior Science Adviser

Widely regarded as the "father of direct air capture," Klaus is a global authority on carbon removal technologies. He directs the Center for Negative Carbon Emissions and teaches at Arizona State University’s School of Sustainable Engineering. Previously, he was a professor of geophysics at Columbia University. Klaus is the inventor of the air capture technology used by Aircela and has overseen the development and prototyping of advanced carbon capture systems throughout his career.

Jeff Ubben

Series Seed Director

Jeff is the founder & managing partner of Inclusive Capital Partners, L.P. He has served on more than 20 public company boards throughout his career and currently serves on the boards of Bayer A.G. and the Exxon Mobil Corporation. In addition to Aircela, Jeff serves on the boards of Duke University and the World Wildlife Fund, and on the boards of several other private companies. He has a B.A. from Duke University and an M.B.A. from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.