Prakash Govindan, COO and Co-founder at Gradiant, discusses his experiences with water scarcity in India and how Gradiant develops technology for industrial wastewater treatment. They work with Fortune 500 clients across industries, helping them reuse water. Topics include the challenges in industrial wastewater treatment, Gradiant's bespoke solutions for the pharmaceutical industry, and their involvement in direct lithium extraction.
Gradient specializes in developing technology for industrial wastewater treatment, providing end-to-end solutions for Fortune 500 clients across various industries.
Gradient's innovative approaches to tackling emerging contaminants like PFAS demonstrate their commitment to addressing evolving water treatment challenges.
Deep dives
Gradient: Developing Technology for Industrial Wastewater Treatment
Gradient, a series D stage company, focuses on developing technology for industrial wastewater treatment. They work with Fortune 500 clients across various industries including semiconductor fabrication, food and beverage, pharmaceuticals, and mining. The co-founder, Prakash Govindan, shares his personal experiences with water scarcity in India and how it inspired him to pursue water treatment solutions. Gradient offers end-to-end solutions for their clients, designing, building, and operating water treatment plants. They specialize in recycling and reusing wastewater, helping industries become more water sustainable. The company also tackles emerging contaminants such as PFAS (forever chemicals), offering innovative technologies to remove and destroy these harmful substances.
Varied Applications and Impacts
Gradient serves a range of industries, including semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, mining, and food and beverage. In semiconductor fabrication, they provide technology to recycle ultra-pure water used in the manufacturing process, reducing reliance on external water sources. In pharmaceuticals, Gradient addresses wastewater challenges, focusing on the elimination of harmful compounds like PFAS and emerging contaminants. They also work with mining companies to optimize water use and extract valuable resources. By tailoring their solutions to specific industry needs, Gradient plays a crucial role in securing water resources and minimizing the environmental impact of industrial processes.
The Importance of Industrial Wastewater Treatment
Industrial wastewater poses significant challenges due to its variability and the strict purity requirements of different industries. Gradient's counterflow reverse osmosis technology enables the treatment of highly variable wastewater, meeting the specific needs of each industry. Their expertise extends to sectors like textile, precious metal extraction, and sea water desalination, where their solutions maximize water recovery and help minimize environmental impact. Moreover, Gradient's innovative approaches to tackling emerging contaminants like PFAS demonstrate their commitment to addressing evolving water treatment challenges.
Future Growth and Impact
As a rapidly growing company, Gradient has a strong revenue stream and a substantial backlog of projects. With their expanding capabilities and focus on technology development, they are well-positioned to continue their growth trajectory. The company's impact extends beyond water treatment, striving to address global challenges like climate change and the unequal distribution of resources. By developing and implementing sustainable water treatment solutions across industries, Gradient aims to secure water resources, minimize CO2 emissions, and create a positive impact on societies and the environment.
Gradiant is a Series D stage company that develops technology for industrial wastewater treatment. They work with Fortune 500 clients across a range of industries, including semiconductor fabrication, food and beverage, pharmaceuticals, mining, and more, to help them reuse water in their operations.
Prakash discusses his background, experiences with water scarcity during his childhood in India, how he met his co-founder during his doctoral work at MIT, how the company started, and the problem of industrial wastewater today. Cody and Prakash talk about some of the different industries and use cases that Gradiant serves, a bit about how their technology works, and how their business model is structured.
As Prakash says in the conversation, water is one of the primary interfaces through which the world will experience climate change, whether through drought or flood. The more we can do to manage our water supply, the better off we will be.
In this episode, we cover:
[02:35]: Prakash's early experiences with water scarcity in India
[04:09]: Gradiant becoming the water industry's only unicorn
[10:21]: How climate change primarily impacts society through water
[11:52]: Gradiant's role in closing the loop on industrial wastewater
[18:25]: The challenges of industrial vs. municipal wastewater treatment
[22:22]: Gradiant's bespoke water treatment solutions for the pharmaceutical industry
[26:17]: The company’s involvement in direct lithium extraction and production processes
[30:52]: The importance of seawater desalination and minimizing brine discharge
[38:03]: How Gradiant collaborates with semiconductor clients under the CHIPS Act
[41:50]: Gradiant's approach to extracting valuable byproducts from waste
[45:06]: Early funding for Gradiant from high net-worth individuals and family offices
[46:01]: Gradiant's revenue and backlog growth, anticipating future financial milestones
[48:38]: The story behind the company name, Gradiant with an “A” instead of an “E”
Episode recorded on Jan 5, 2024 (Published on Feb 8, 2024)
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