Drew Reid

Nah but seriously, check out Drew Reid. This guy’s the real deal in the startup world, especially when it comes to tech and sustainability. He’s a YC W19 alum, which means he crushed it with Y Combinator, that’s the gold standard for startups. But his story? It’s way more than just that.

Drew started out working at big finance firms like Morgan Stanley and World Trade Securities. Dude’s got that finance background, so he understands money, markets, the whole hustle. But he didn’t stop there. In 2012, he jumped into the startup game with Saratoga Energy, which later became Maple Materials. His mission? Tackle climate change and build something big by turning CO2 into something useful, graphite and oxygen, using a patented electrochemical process. Yeah, he’s basically turning pollution into profit.

What’s crazy is, under his leadership, they raised over $2 million just in grants from the US Department of Energy and the NSF. That’s no small feat. It says a lot about his ability to convince big gov agencies that his tech is the real deal. And during YC, he didn’t just go through the motions, he scaled up production like a beast. Went from 100 grams of carbon nanotubes a day to half a ton per year. No cap, that’s a huge jump, and it shows he’s got the hustle, the vision, and the technical chops.

Drew’s focus? Making high-quality, low-cost carbon nanotubes and graphite, mainly for batteries, aerospace, infrastructure, all the stuff that’s gonna shape the future. He’s pushing the boundaries of what’s possible with clean tech, and he’s doing it with a clear goal: to make a real impact, not just chase money.

What does this say about him? Well, for one, he’s super motivated, not just in it for the paycheck, but to solve real-world problems. He’s a guy who saw a gap, jumped into it, and didn’t stop until he made something big. His background in finance gave him the smarts to guide funding and scaling, but his passion for tech and sustainability is what kept him pushing.

In short, Drew Reid is a startup storyteller who’s using his skills to change the game. He’s proof that if you got the right mix of tech know-how, grit, and purpose, you can build something that actually matters. That’s why he’s so interesting, he’s not just another founder, he’s a force pushing the future forward.