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Activation Energy
By Selma DuhovicScience
Activation Energy episodes
- 36. Rodrigo Alvarez-Icaza (Elysium Robotics) on robotics
Rodrigo Alvarez-Icaza of Elysium Robotics talks about actuation, movement, and robotics.
OUTLINE
- (00:00) Introduction
- (00:39) Rodrigo’s professional background
- (03:04) Motivation for founding Elysium
- (04:17) Elysium’s technology
- (05:45) Limitations of current robotic systems
- (07:02) Suite of robotic technologies
- (08:09) Actuation
- (10:19) Technical performance metrics
- (12:06) Target applications
- (14:38) Traction
- (15:50) Milestones
- (16:20) Economics and affordability
- (17:45) Market opportunity
- (19:20) Scalability
- (20:17) Challenges
- (21:26) Long-term implications
- (23:40) Vision
26 min - 35. Mahmood Shirazy (Calogy Solutions) on thermal management of EVs
Mahmood Shirazy of Calogy Solutions discusses thermal management systems of electrical vehicles (EV) systems, transitioning from scientist to entrepreneur, and the state of the deeptech ecosystem.
OUTLINE
- (00:00) Introduction
- (00:36) Mahmood’s career
- (02:32) Calogy’s technology
- (04:09) Value proposition and uniqueness of technology
- (06:45) Examples
- (09:02) Broader impact
- (11:39) Value of opportunity
- (12:58) Go-to-market and monetization strategy
- (15:21) Traction
- (16:44) Challenges and barriers
- (18:43) Growth and expansion plans
- (20:45) Anticipated risks
- (23:26) Journey from scientist to entrepreneur
- (25:44) Fundamental differences between academia and business worlds
- (28:15) State of deeptech ecosystem
33 min - 34. Chad Wasilenkoff (Helicoid Industries) on advanced composites for automotive and aerospace markets
Chad Wasilenkoff of Helicoid Industries talks about commercializing advanced, proprietary composites for sporting goods, automotive, and aerospace applications.
OUTLINE
- (00:00) Introduction
- (00:33) Chad’s professional background
- (05:25) Helicoid’s technology
- (07:42) Significance and potential impact of Helicoid’s technology
- (10:17) Trends in composites industry
- (13:04) Applications in sporting goods, automotive, and aerospace markets
- (15:56) How Helicoid captures value it creates
- (17:27) Helicoid’s monetization and pricing strategies
- (19:47) Helicoid’s traction
- (21:53) Challenges and barriers to commercialization and common mistakes entrepreneurs make
- (26:09) Regulation
- (27:41) Anticipated risks and uncertainties
- (29:49) Long term vision of Helicoid
33 min - 33. Angela Tsetsis, Nathaniel Jackson, Taka Kamezawa (TrueAlgae) on algae-derived metabolites
The team behind TrueAlgae – Angela Tsetsis, Nathaniel Jackson, Taka Kamezawa – talks about commercialization of algae-derived metabolites, which have potential impact across multiple fields, including medicine and health, food and nutrition, and materials science and biofuels.
OUTLINE
- (0:00) Introduction
- (0:33) Angela Tsetsis
- (02:05) Taka Kamezawa
- (03:12) Nathaniel Jackson
- (04:08) Origin of TrueAlgae
- (05:15) Core technology and product
- (08:31) Production and manufacturing
- (09:31) Quality and safety
- (11:10) Value proposition of product and target market
- (16:16) Commercialization and monetization strategies
- (18:36) Value ecosystem and market participants
- (20:36) Traction and partnerships
- (21:12) Value creation and capture
- (22:56) Challenges, risks, and uncertainties
- (25:59) Barries moving forwards
- (29:24) Incumbents and disruption
- (30:11) Long-term vision of TrueAlgae
32 min - 32. Martin Mulvilhill (Safer Made) on investing in safe chemistry
Martin Mulvihill of Safer Made, a VC firm, talks about investing in startups that eliminate the use of hazardous chemicals in consumer products and supply chains.
OUTLINE
- (00:00) Introduction
- (00:40) Marty’s career path
- (03:10) Motivation for becoming a VC
- (04:38) Safer Made’s origin, mission, and vision
- (05:40) Safer Made’s investment thesis
- (06:05) How Safer Made thinks about and measures impact
- (07:02) Safer Made’s portfolio companies, including P2Science and Repurpose
- (08:58) How Safer Made sources and evaluates investment opportunities
- (10:46) Safer Made’s value add beyond capital
- (12:01) Safer Made’s LPs
(12:27) What makes an excellent deeptech VC- (14:07) Safer Made’s risk appetite and desired rate of return
- (16:28) Chemical industry and its emissions
- (17:25) Chemical industry’s positive and negative impact on society
- (20:40) Fossil fuel consumption and driver for its reduction
- (22:28) Unintended consequences of increased plastic production
- (24:51) Doubling of chemical industry and curtailing negative effects
- (27:57) Role and responsibilities chemical industry has in advancing sustainability
- (29:51) Safer Made’s relationship and interaction with chemical corporations
- (31:00) Regulation
34 min - 31. Philip Taynton (Mallinda) on commercializing new materials out of universities
Philip Taynton of Mallinda talks about a new class of plastic materials and the journey of spinning out university research.
OUTLINE
- (00:00) Introduction
- (00:39) What Mallinda is commercializing
- (01:09) Vitrimers
- (02:25) Applications
- (04:07) Negative impact of non-recyclable materials
- (05:39) Barriers to making vitrimers ubiquitous
- (08:07) Gorilla glass
- (09:17) Commercialization of vitrimers, Mallinda’s business model
- (11:40) Market opportunity
- (12:25) Market segments
- (14:12) Challenges in the startup journey
- (16:14) Assistance from the deeptech startup ecosystem
- (18:32) Vision of Mallinda’s future
21 min - 30. Robert Creighton (Windlift) on offshore wind energy generation
Robert Creighton of Windlift, a startup commercializing an airborne wind energy system, talks about harnessing wind to generate energy.
OUTLINE
- (00:00) Introduction
- (01:44) Rob’s professional journey
- (04:06) History of wind energy
- (05:28) Wind vs. traditional sources of energy
- (06:27) Challenges with offshore wind energy
- (07:57) Advantages of offshore wind energy generation
- (09:35) Origin of Windlift
- (12:02) Windlift's airborne wind energy system
- (14:48) How Windlift addresses challenges associated with traditional wind energy systems
- (16:27) Examples of Windlift’s system’s versatility
- (18:25) Makani and Google X Moonshot Factory
- (21:23) Windlift’s collaborations
- (22:40) Windlift’s partnerships with government agencies
- (24:35) Future of Windlift in defense and civilian sectors
- (26:27) Wind energy and regulation
- (28:47) Contribution to clean energy movement
33 min - 29. Ben Schrag (NSF) on government's role in deeptech and innovation
Ben Schrag of the National Science Foundation talks about deeptech and how the government helps advance innovation.
OUTLINE:
- (00:00) Introduction
- (00:56) Ben’s career path
- (02:39) NSF’s mandate regarding commercialization of scientific invention
- (04:39) SBIR and STTR programs
- (06:31) Origin of SBIR/STTR
- (08:33) Inventions that SBIR/STTR programs funded
- (09:55) Disruption
- (11:00) Statistics and criteria
- (13:25) How decisions about funding are made
- (15:10) Successful companies that NSF funded
- (19:29) Successful chemical startups that NSF funded
- (22:22) Collaboration
- (23:50) Trends as seen from the front row seat to innovation
28 min - 28. Tyler Ellison (ChemDirect) on digitalization of the chemical supply chain
I speak with Tyler Ellison of ChemDirect about disrupting and digitalizing the chemical supply chain and logistics.
OUTLINE:
- (00:34) Tyler’s background
- (01:07) Nova Molecular
- (01:25) Chemical supply chain and logistics
- (02:48) Fragmentation
- (03:26) Challenges within chemical supply chain
- (05:19) Barriers to digitalization of chemical supply chain
- (07:01) Regulation
- (07:19) ChemDirect
- (09:29) Motivation for founding ChemDirect
- (10:41) Financing
- (10:55) Target markets
- (11:51) Suppliers
- (11:55) Barriers startups face
- (13:16) Opportunities
- (14:14) Use of AI/ML
- (16:51) ChemDirect’s differentiation and competitive advantage
- (18:03) Future of ChemDirect
20 min - 27. DC Palter (CAN and Tech Coast Angels) on cleantech investing
I speak with DC Palter of Tech Coast Angels and Chemical Angel Network about investing in clean technologies.
OUTLINE:
- (00:00) Intro
- (0:55) DC’s interest in Cleantech and motivation for investing in Cleantech
- (4:49) Current trends in Cleantech investing
- (10:43) How DC evaluates startups
- (13:33) Difference between Cleantech and software investors
- (16:24) Difference between entrepreneurs with and without technical training
- (21:24) Resources and ecosystem for Cleantech startups
- (24:30) DC’s book “To Kill a Unicorn”
- (25:36) DC’s blogs
- (27:09) Troubled companies and frequency of occurrence
- (33:10) Hype and charismatic entrepreneurs
- (33:28) What DC hopes to accomplish by publishing a mystery novel about startups
42 min
About Activation Energy
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