{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"Ending a 100-Year quest to replace toxic Hexavalent Chromium without sacrificing cost, speed, or performance","description":"Mehdi Kargar, Ph.D., is the CEO and Cofounder of Maxterial. They arecommercializing an affordable metallic coating to protect surfaces against extreme environments and to reduce the use of hexavalent chrome, and cyanides, known to cause cancers. This is the story about how Maxterial cracked the code to replacing Hexavalent Chromium without sacrificing cost, speed, or performance, and the decade of near-deaths, grit, and serendipity it took to build a deep tech revolution.   Maxterial received seed-stage funds from Peter Thiel\u2019s Breakout Labs, then backed by the Corporate Venture arms of Saint Gobain and Anglo American; the NSF, and now the U.S. Department of Defense\u2019. In a major development, the U.S. House Appropriations Committee has approved a bill to provide $5M in 2027 for the further evaluation and adoption of their technology, MaxShield.   Shownotes https:\/\/www.maxterial.com\/ Problems with hexavalent chromium (also known as chromium-6) and why it has been difficult to  Product ecosystem fit: Founder is basically having to create a whole ecosystem for the product while developing good ROI for everyone involved. Solution: Nickel & Molybdenum alloy Listen to customers! They might be looking at a different use for your technology Evolution of technology: From grad school (Virginia Tech) to startup- pivot from focusing on publications to patents Serendipity: Scanning Electron Microscopy image that lead to bigger use cases As a founder, be less rigid!  Pitch to Peter Thiel\u2019s investment arm https:\/\/breakout.vc\/ that won them over by saying: \u201cGood entrepreneurs are like a superbug (MRSA). I am going to build this startup successfully!\u201d  Move from Blacksburg, VA (Virginia Tech) to Silicon Valley: Why moving to better startup ecosystems was important For startups\/aspiring founders, trade shows are a better place to understand industry needs Evolution of customers A \u201cNo\u201d from anyone during the journey can change into Yes by persistence- always work towards it Invest in relations: People invest in people Kindness of strangers Working with the government: \u201cApplying for SBIR and getting money is not working with the government!\u201d Understanding the ecosystem: Working with DoD, lobbyists, retired personnel from armed forces Maxterial\u2019s MaxShield aims to replace hard chrome in cylinder use ","author_name":"Lab to Startup","author_url":"https:\/\/labtostartup.com","html":"