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Select Quotes From This Episode:
"Our technology allows our customers to reduce the overall cost of producing a battery by 60%." – Robert
"They estimate anywhere from greater than 10 to 20% waste in our environment is less than 1% waste. That's huge in cost savings." – Robert "
My job is always to work myself out of my job. I hire people with an eye on them replacing me." – Robert
"I strongly believe that attitude is much more important... you can hire a bachelor degree with a great attitude that will do a lot more and better for you than a PhD." – Robert
The 3D Printed Battery Revolution
Battery manufacturing hasn’t fundamentally changed in 45 years. Traditional gigafactories are massive, rigid, and wildly expensive. They rely on toxic wet processes that require hundreds of meters of drying ovens and generate up to 20% material waste. Furthermore, dedicating a multi-billion-dollar facility to a single battery chemistry severely limits a company’s ability to adapt to new material innovations or sudden geopolitical supply chain shocks.
This week, we sit down with Robert Bagheri, Co-founder and CEO of Sakuu, to discuss how they are flipping this outdated model on its head. Leveraging over 30 years of experience in the semiconductor industry, Robert and his team have reinvented additive manufacturing to 3D print active, functional devices. By printing batteries in a completely dry, multi-material process, Sakuu eliminates the need for giant ovens and toxic solvents. Their platform reduces capital equipment needs by 20%, slashes operating expenses by 30%, and cuts the overall cost of producing a battery by a staggering 60%.
Beyond the massive unit economic improvements, this technology is a critical key to re-industrializing America. Because Sakuu’s machines are highly space-efficient and chemistry-agnostic — meaning they can easily switch from lithium-ion to sodium-ion without retooling — manufacturers can profitably build 1-gigawatt local micro-factories instead of relying on 50-gigawatt mega-factories overseas. Robert also shares his wisdom from building eight different startups, including why making onshoring a bipartisan issue is about economics, and why hiring for attitude will always beat hiring for pedigree.
Check Out Our Sponsors!
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In clean tech, it’s not enough to build something important. You have to explain it clearly when it matters — to investors, on stage, and on TV.
Lehmann’s Terms prepares founders and executives for those moments so their message is clear, concise, and actually lands.
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Securing Billions in Grant Funding for Climate Tech
Since 2020, Climate Finance Solutions (CFS) has helped climate tech companies secure over $1.6 billion in government grant funding, with a success rate of more than 90%.
Its team has also won over €500 million in European funding and managed $275 million in grant projects.
As a global consulting firm, CFS guides clients through the full funding lifecycle, from strategy and funder engagement to proposal development and post-award management. Its Grant Identification Platform enables real-time monitoring and custom matching of opportunities, with alerts as new grants are released.
CFS also supports investors, accelerators, and ecosystem builders through its partnership program, offering pro bono support for portfolio companies.
Learn more about CFS’s work and approach at ClimateFinanceSolutions.com.
ErthSearch: Fast + Accurate + Affordable CleanTech Recruiting
Delivering specialized CleanTech talent with unparalleled efficiency and results.
For the past ~6 years, I have been placing sales, engineering, and executive talent at CleanTech companies in the US (over 80 placements total).
Because of this podcast, I have a network that no other CleanTech headhunter can claim, meaning I’ll get you access to talent no one else can.
Past Work:
We helped ChargeScape (JV between Ford, Honda, BMW, and Nissan) make 8 key hires in 6 months, while saving them ~$380k in recruiter fees.
Hired Head of Sales, PM, and Marketing Manager at OptiGrid (resurrection of FreeWire Technologies) (PS: they are hiring again, reach out to Silas to learn more).
Guaranteed placement or you don’t pay!
It’s time to take your hiring seriously — get professional help today.
📝 Show Notes:
Topics
Here are some key timestamps from the episode:
00:00 – Intro & Sponsors: Lehmann’s Terms, Climate Finance Solutions, and EarthSearch.
03:27 – Robert’s background: 30+ years in semiconductors to 3D printing batteries.
06:59 – Reinventing additive manufacturing: Printing multi-material active devices.
14:27 – Addressing the 5 battery pillars: Safety, cost, performance, longevity, and recyclability.
20:24 – The economics: Cutting production costs by 60% and waste to under 1%.
24:01 – Sakuu’s asset-light business model and equipment licensing.
32:14 – Gigafactory vs. Microfactory: The extreme flexibility of 3D printing.
41:42 – Re-industrializing America and making onshoring a bipartisan issue.
52:19 – Team building: Why you should hire for attitude and train your replacement.
Links
This podcast is NOT investment advice. Do your homework and due diligence before investing in anything discussed on this podcast.
