A single “no” can end a career plan or it can light the fuse. Our first guest post-relaunch is a Miami native and co-founder of Material who proves what persistence looks like: he gets shut down at Honda, quits days later, sells nearly everything he owns, moves to the UK, and fights through sponsorship rejections until Mercedes Formula One finally says yes.
We unpack what it’s actually like to design at the highest level and why elite motorsport engineering culture feels so different from the rest of industry. From rear wings to gearboxes, he shares how fast you’re expected to become an expert, what seven world championships teach you about process and pressure, and how COVID ultimately pulls him back home. Then we shift to Rivian, where remote teams, rapid hiring, and thin infrastructure create a different kind of anxiety that many startup builders will recognize.
The conversation turns into hard tech and the future of energy storage. Material is developing a multimaterial 3D printer that can print batteries in any size and shape, not just a cylinder or pouch. We dig into conformal batteries, pack-level energy density, drone battery packs for defense applications, wearables and smart glasses, and why the “manufacturing layer” of batteries may be the biggest untapped lever. We also talk funding, including a $7.1M seed round and Air Force SBIR work, plus the very specific engineers they’re hiring to build a “factory in a box.”
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