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Everything here comes from having built FOAKs, not just studied them. The Playbook is a structured guide to scaling cleantech from lab to commercial delivery. The Monitor tracks the largest FOAK projects in real time. The Blog is where I think out loud. Start with the Playbook → if you're scaling a FOAK. Start with the Monitor → if you want to know what's actually happening in the field.
When Are You Ready To Scale?
๐๐ผ๐ ๐ฑ๐ผ ๐๐ผ๐ ๐ธ๐ป๐ผ๐ ๐๐ผ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐? ๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ต๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฒ ๐พ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐.
Dec 24, 20242 min read
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๐ก The Myth of IP Moats: Lessons from the Frontlines
Twice in my career, Iโve dealt with intellectual property (IP). Both times, I came out with one big realization: IP isnโt the holy grail investors think it isโespecially when scaling hardware. The first time, I was buying a license to manufacture wind turbines. It looked promising: a ton of encrypted files, sent to our HQ with much fanfare. But when we finally cracked open the IP treasure chest, we discovered it only explained how to build one wind turbine. The know-how to m
Dec 23, 20242 min read
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๐ 2024: A Year in Climate Tech Review
As 2024 wraps up, itโs time to reflect on a year that was anything but dull for the climate tech world. A buzzword dominated this yearโ FOAK (First-of-a-Kind). It symbolizes the growing realization that proving your tech in a lab is one thing, but scaling it to a factory is a different beast. Many startups found themselves stuck in the dreaded Valley of Death between proving a pilot and scaling up. Iโve written a few epitaphs on those who didnโt make it this year ( here , h
Dec 19, 20243 min read
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๐๏ธ Bulldoze or Make? The Two Podcasts On Northvolt
This week, I listened to two excellent podcasts dissecting the saga of Northvolt
Dec 18, 20242 min read
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๐ผ Negotiating the Term SheetโWhere the Real Work Begins
How to negotiate a term sheet for your offtake
Dec 3, 20242 min read
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Why Do Strategic Investors Back Climate Tech Startups?
A Climate First VC artile got me thinking
Dec 2, 20242 min read
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๐ผ The Letter of Intent - Paving the Way to Your Offtake Term Sheet
How do you negotiate a Letter of Intent for your offtake agreement?
Nov 29, 20242 min read
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Is Your Scale-Up Built on Climate Bricks or Actual Building Blocks?
Review of Clean Tech ScaleUp Manual by Climate Brick
Nov 28, 20244 min read
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๐ฅ ๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฌ๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐-๐๐ฎ๐บ๐ฒ ๐๐ผ ๐ฆ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ ๐ ๐ฑ๐ธ
There are three things to keep in mind when going for series B.
Nov 20, 20242 min read
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๐๐ฅ The Battery Digitalization Chicken-and-Egg Problem
You need data to optimize production, but production has to be running to generate that data.
Nov 5, 20242 min read
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๐ Halloween Horror Story: The Rise and Fall of Redflow ๐ป
How a flow-battery maker, Redflow, met its untimely end.
Nov 1, 20241 min read
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๐ Ramping-Up Battery Production: Lessons from Fraunhoferโs Report
๐ Scaling Up Hardware? Fraunhoferโs Battery Ramp-Up Report Shows Just How Hard It Gets!
Oct 31, 20243 min read
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MOU - Your First Step To Offtake
Youโve got your foot in the door with an NDA, but how do you keep momentum going on the way to an offtake? Donโt rush it! Start with an MOU!
Oct 17, 20243 min read
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The Road To An Offtake Agreement: A Step-by-Step Guide
When you're building your FOAK, securing an offtake agreement is crucial for your scaleupโs success. Here is your guide to get there.
Oct 3, 20244 min read
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The FOAK Off-Take: 4 Things You Need to Know
๐ What are the 4 things crucial to your FOAK offtake and how to negotiate them? ๐
Sep 19, 20243 min read
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