Changing your name is an act of metamorphosis.

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Nicolas Cage did it to distance himself from the imposing Coppola surname; Mary Ann Evans chose George Eliot to overcome the gender prejudices of the nineteenth century, while Agatha Christie became Mary Westmacott to explore the human psyche from a new perspective. Some change their names out of a sense of mission, like warriors who choose a nom de guerre or popes who adopt a papal name; others do so out of faith, like Cat Stevens, who became Yusuf Islam, or inherit a childhood nickname, like Pelé and Kaká. But a new name is never just a label: it is a manifesto of who we have become and the mark we want to leave on the world.

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In January 2025, we looked each other in the eye: we were crammed into a small room, more than twelve people with different stories, ages, and areas of expertise, united by a single question: what truly holds us together? That question sparked moments of deep reflection and discussion. We realized that we work side by side toward one common goal: to make the experience of scientific discovery tangible, grounded in a genuine understanding of how things work.

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It took us almost a year to find Kladnee. When the name emerged, we immediately knew it was the right one: a striking “K” that flows into “LAD”, ending with the soft, enveloping sound of “NEE”. But above all, it echoes the work of Ernst Chladni, the physicist who demonstrated how invisible vibrations leave precise traces on matter. Just like his plates, we too are a combination of oscillations at different frequencies. That is why we do not have a single logo, but a fluid identity capable of taking on ever-changing forms.

Although Kladnee was born as a pseudonym, to us it represents a complete, profound, and truly ours identity. This is not simply a change of name, but a genuine collective metamorphosis.

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We are still the same people, but from today, you can call us Kladnee.