(don't) Waste Water! | Water Tech to Solve the World | S11E1 - How Gradiant Became the First and Only Water Tech Unicorn

Description

How do you go in just a decade from an MIT lab to a billion-dollar valuation in Water Tech? Everybody thought it was impossible until... Gradiant did it! Wanna find out how and what's next? Listen to this episode!

More #water insights? Connect with me on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/antoinewalter1/

#️⃣ All the Links Mentioned in this Video #️⃣

Will Gradiant succeed with H+E where SUEZ, Stulz, and Rena failed? https://youtu.be/GMk99gRjRSc?si=zAWY2rfg3GXFSWt2E

Gradiant's website: https://www.gradiant.com/

The Global Water Awards 2024: https://globalwaterawards.com/

Prakash Govindan's LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/prakash-govindan-87168310/

The 3 VCs that made money in Water Tech (the greatest success being... Gradiant): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqLn4j3w0P0

Full blog article: https://dww.show/how-gradiant-became-the-first-and-only-water-tech-unicorn/

Prakash Govindan on My Climate Journey: https://www.mcjcollective.com/my-climate-journey-podcast/gradiant

🎙️ Subscribe and Listen to the Don't Waste Water Podcast HERE 🎙️

Podcast Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@dwwpodcast

Main Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@AntoineWalterDWW

Smartlink: https://smartlink.ausha.co/dont-waste-water

Website: https://dww.show/podcast/

👋 SOCIAL MEDIA 👋

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/antoinewalter1/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dwwpodcast/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AntoineWalter7

🙋 QUESTION: What would you like me to cover next?

⏰ TIME CODES ⏰

00:00 In This Week's Episode

02:29 Will Gradiant be named Water Company of the Year?

04:20 Gradiant's "Special Sauce" by Prakash Govindan

05:46 How big is Gradiant today?

07:06 Where does Gradiant's journey start?

14:33 How did Gradiant strive where Incumbents gave up?

16:38 Why did Gradiant focus on the industrial market?

18:35 What is Turing, Gradiant's new AI spin out?

20:25 When did Gradiant start expanding its water tech portfolio?

23:02 How does Gradiant open a new region?

26:10 The secret to Gradiant's "Proprietary Deals"

30:50 How does Gradiant engineer its "unfair advantage"

31:23 Gradiant's unbelievable employee participation scheme

33:41 What's next after their record-breaking Series D?

36:53 Will Gradiant ever enter the municipal market?

38:04 Are Gradiant's founders ready to pass the baton?

39:53 Gradiant's new verticals: PFAS & DLE

42:20 Gradiant's two aces up their PFAS Removal sleeve

45:33 Gradiant's M&A tricks

48:18 Succeeding with H+E Mission Impossible?

50:07 Gradiant's plans for Europe

50:46 Gradiant's next M&A moves

51:50 What makes Gradiant the 2024 Water Company of the Year?

54:38 Rapid Fire Questions

57:53 7 Insights from the First Ever Water Tech Unicorn

#WaterTech #WaterUnicorn #WaterEntrepreneurship

About this Podcast: Welcome to the (don't) Waste Water podcast! In each episode, Antoine Walter from DWW Media shares water, wastewater & water entrepreneurship stories. This show will teach you the water industry like you've never seen it. If you're asking how the water sector will overcome the water crises ahead, this video is for you.

Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Chapters

Will Gradiant be named Water Company of the Year?
02:29
Gradiant's "Special Sauce" by Prakash Govindan
04:20
How big is Gradiant today?
05:46
Where does Gradiant's journey start?
07:06
How did Gradiant strive where Incumbents gave up?
14:33
Why did Gradiant focus on the industrial market?
16:38
What is Turing, Gradiant's new AI spin out?
18:35
When did Gradiant start expanding its water tech portfolio?
20:25
How does Gradiant open a new region?
23:02
The secret to Gradiant's "Proprietary Deals"
26:10
How does Gradiant engineer its "unfair advantage"
30:50
Gradiant's unbelievable employee participation scheme
31:23
What's next after their record-breaking Series D?
33:41
Will Gradiant ever enter the municipal market?
36:53
Are Gradiant's founders ready to pass the baton?
38:04
Gradiant's new verticals: PFAS & DLE
39:53
Gradiant's two aces up their PFAS Removal sleeve
42:20
Gradiant's M&A tricks
45:33
Succeeding with H+E Mission Impossible?
48:18
Gradiant's plans for Europe
50:07
Gradiant's next M&A moves
50:46
What makes Gradiant the 2024 Water Company of the Year?
51:50
Rapid Fire Questions
54:38
7 Insights from the first ever Water Tech Unicorn
57:53

About (don't) Waste Water! | Water Tech to Solve the World

❓ Ever wondered how the #WaterIndustry was reacting to our World's Water Challenges? Water Scarcity? #SDG6? PFAS? Climate Change? Circular Economy? Digitization and Smart Water?

💪 Get the Water Market pulse for free. In one hour per week, while you do the dishes!

📈 We talk water investment, water tech, water entrepreneurship and water market with entrepreneurs, thought leaders, book authors, scientists, investment funds, VCs, and C-Level experts from water majors.

➡️ Leverage their insights, advice & experience and ensure to stay on top of best practices

🗓️ Tune in every Wednesday (don't miss out! 😅)

🌐 Find all the detailed episode notes, interviews, infographics, and more at http://dww.show

Currently in its 10th Season, the "(don't) Waste Water" podcast has already welcomed around 200 guests from Water Majors (SUEZ, Veolia, Jacobs, Xylem, Kemira, Evoqua, Aquatech, SKion Water...), Scale-Ups (Cambrian Innovation, Epic Cleantec, Liqtech, 374Water, Gingko Bioworks...), Start-Ups (Puraffinity, KETOS, 120Water, ZwitterCo, Membrion, Source...), Universities (Berkeley, the Columbia Water Center), Investment Funds (Sciens Water, Mazarine, Burnt Island Ventures...), Business Accelerators (Imagine H2O, Elemental...), Book Authors (Seth Siegel, David Sedlak, David Lloyd Owen...) or Market Intelligence Companies (BlueTech Research, Global Water Intelligence, World Bank, OECD, Isle Utilities...). Or simply water legends like Mina Guli or Andrew Benedek!

On the "(don't) Waste Water" podcast, I strive to make the Water Industry easy to understand for everyone, starting with water professionals, executives, and investors. Hence, he opens the microphone to seasoned, inspirational water experts to discuss their field of excellence.

No one can claim an all-around in-depth understanding of a matter as complex as Water. But piece by piece, you can rebuild the puzzle. With curiosity, patience, and passion, Antoine Walter explores topics such as Advanced Treatment Technologies, Water-Energy Nexus (Hydrogen, Lithium...), PFAS removal, Nature-Based Solutions, Wastewater Reuse, Distributed Water Treatments, Water Finance, and Water Entrepreneurship.

I actually firmly believe that regular listeners of the "(don't) Waste Water" podcast may, in the end, claim a "Water MBA!"

A particular field of interest is how innovation forms, grows and gets widely adopted in a complex and conservative field like the Water Industry. This may be one of the keys to achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal n°6 - #SDG6.

ABOUT ME:

I'm a second-generation Water Professional - the legend says my dad traded excavator sessions for me in river banks against lunch invitations. I followed on this early start by completing a Master's in Hydraulics and Environmental Engineering, then won the "Golden Mission" contest organized by ENGIE (GDF-SUEZ).

This led me to travel the Asia-Pacific region for one year to explore, amongst others, water treatment in Hong Kong, desalination facilities in Melbourne, water distribution management in Jakarta, water innovation in Singapore or social water projects in New Delhi and Gujarat. All of that was documented in videos, blog articles, radio spots, and conferences in engineering and business schools (that's where I got hooked!)

I've then worked for SUEZ in Switzerland in strategic marketing, business development, and sales for the DACH and Nordic regions, with an emphasis on micropollutant removal.

I then joined GF Piping Systems in 2017 to take over the business development for the company's services in Europe, then for all Water Treatment and Lithium topics worldwide.

I've been a regular speaker at conferences on four continents, gave my first TEDx in 2022, and regularly acted as a host.

Since 2020, I've been hosting the "(don't) Waste Water" podcast and giving lectures in Business and Engineering schools.

I'm married, a happy father of three, and I'm French (nobody's perfect 😅).

About (don't) Waste Water! | Water Tech to Solve the World

❓ Ever wondered how the #WaterIndustry was reacting to our World's Water Challenges? Water Scarcity? #SDG6? PFAS? Climate Change? Circular Economy? Digitization and Smart Water?

💪 Get the Water Market pulse for free. In one hour per week, while you do the dishes!

➡️ Leverage their insights, advice & experience and ensure to stay on top of best practices

🗓️ Tune in every Wednesday (don't miss out! 😅)

🌐 Find all the detailed episode notes, interviews, infographics, and more at http://dww.show

I actually firmly believe that regular listeners of the "(don't) Waste Water" podcast may, in the end, claim a "Water MBA!"

ABOUT ME:

I've then worked for SUEZ in Switzerland in strategic marketing, business development, and sales for the DACH and Nordic regions, with an emphasis on micropollutant removal.

I then joined GF Piping Systems in 2017 to take over the business development for the company's services in Europe, then for all Water Treatment and Lithium topics worldwide.

I've been a regular speaker at conferences on four continents, gave my first TEDx in 2022, and regularly acted as a host.

Since 2020, I've been hosting the "(don't) Waste Water" podcast and giving lectures in Business and Engineering schools.

I'm married, a happy father of three, and I'm French (nobody's perfect 😅).

Description

More #water insights? Connect with me on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/antoinewalter1/

#️⃣ All the Links Mentioned in this Video #️⃣

Will Gradiant succeed with H+E where SUEZ, Stulz, and Rena failed? https://youtu.be/GMk99gRjRSc?si=zAWY2rfg3GXFSWt2E

Gradiant's website: https://www.gradiant.com/

The Global Water Awards 2024: https://globalwaterawards.com/

Prakash Govindan's LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/prakash-govindan-87168310/

The 3 VCs that made money in Water Tech (the greatest success being... Gradiant): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqLn4j3w0P0

Full blog article: https://dww.show/how-gradiant-became-the-first-and-only-water-tech-unicorn/

Prakash Govindan on My Climate Journey: https://www.mcjcollective.com/my-climate-journey-podcast/gradiant

🎙️ Subscribe and Listen to the Don't Waste Water Podcast HERE 🎙️

Podcast Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@dwwpodcast

Main Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@AntoineWalterDWW

Smartlink: https://smartlink.ausha.co/dont-waste-water

Website: https://dww.show/podcast/

👋 SOCIAL MEDIA 👋

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/antoinewalter1/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dwwpodcast/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AntoineWalter7

🙋 QUESTION: What would you like me to cover next?

⏰ TIME CODES ⏰

00:00 In This Week's Episode

02:29 Will Gradiant be named Water Company of the Year?

04:20 Gradiant's "Special Sauce" by Prakash Govindan

05:46 How big is Gradiant today?

07:06 Where does Gradiant's journey start?

14:33 How did Gradiant strive where Incumbents gave up?

16:38 Why did Gradiant focus on the industrial market?

18:35 What is Turing, Gradiant's new AI spin out?

20:25 When did Gradiant start expanding its water tech portfolio?

23:02 How does Gradiant open a new region?

26:10 The secret to Gradiant's "Proprietary Deals"

30:50 How does Gradiant engineer its "unfair advantage"

31:23 Gradiant's unbelievable employee participation scheme

33:41 What's next after their record-breaking Series D?

36:53 Will Gradiant ever enter the municipal market?

38:04 Are Gradiant's founders ready to pass the baton?

39:53 Gradiant's new verticals: PFAS & DLE

42:20 Gradiant's two aces up their PFAS Removal sleeve

45:33 Gradiant's M&A tricks

48:18 Succeeding with H+E Mission Impossible?

50:07 Gradiant's plans for Europe

50:46 Gradiant's next M&A moves

51:50 What makes Gradiant the 2024 Water Company of the Year?

54:38 Rapid Fire Questions

57:53 7 Insights from the First Ever Water Tech Unicorn

#WaterTech #WaterUnicorn #WaterEntrepreneurship

Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Chapters

Will Gradiant be named Water Company of the Year?
02:29
Gradiant's "Special Sauce" by Prakash Govindan
04:20
How big is Gradiant today?
05:46
Where does Gradiant's journey start?
07:06
How did Gradiant strive where Incumbents gave up?
14:33
Why did Gradiant focus on the industrial market?
16:38
What is Turing, Gradiant's new AI spin out?
18:35
When did Gradiant start expanding its water tech portfolio?
20:25
How does Gradiant open a new region?
23:02
The secret to Gradiant's "Proprietary Deals"
26:10
How does Gradiant engineer its "unfair advantage"
30:50
Gradiant's unbelievable employee participation scheme
31:23
What's next after their record-breaking Series D?
33:41
Will Gradiant ever enter the municipal market?
36:53
Are Gradiant's founders ready to pass the baton?
38:04
Gradiant's new verticals: PFAS & DLE
39:53
Gradiant's two aces up their PFAS Removal sleeve
42:20
Gradiant's M&A tricks
45:33
Succeeding with H+E Mission Impossible?
48:18
Gradiant's plans for Europe
50:07
Gradiant's next M&A moves
50:46
What makes Gradiant the 2024 Water Company of the Year?
51:50
Rapid Fire Questions
54:38
7 Insights from the first ever Water Tech Unicorn
57:53

About (don't) Waste Water! | Water Tech to Solve the World

❓ Ever wondered how the #WaterIndustry was reacting to our World's Water Challenges? Water Scarcity? #SDG6? PFAS? Climate Change? Circular Economy? Digitization and Smart Water?

💪 Get the Water Market pulse for free. In one hour per week, while you do the dishes!

➡️ Leverage their insights, advice & experience and ensure to stay on top of best practices

🗓️ Tune in every Wednesday (don't miss out! 😅)

🌐 Find all the detailed episode notes, interviews, infographics, and more at http://dww.show

I actually firmly believe that regular listeners of the "(don't) Waste Water" podcast may, in the end, claim a "Water MBA!"

ABOUT ME:

I've then worked for SUEZ in Switzerland in strategic marketing, business development, and sales for the DACH and Nordic regions, with an emphasis on micropollutant removal.

I then joined GF Piping Systems in 2017 to take over the business development for the company's services in Europe, then for all Water Treatment and Lithium topics worldwide.

I've been a regular speaker at conferences on four continents, gave my first TEDx in 2022, and regularly acted as a host.

Since 2020, I've been hosting the "(don't) Waste Water" podcast and giving lectures in Business and Engineering schools.

I'm married, a happy father of three, and I'm French (nobody's perfect 😅).

About (don't) Waste Water! | Water Tech to Solve the World

❓ Ever wondered how the #WaterIndustry was reacting to our World's Water Challenges? Water Scarcity? #SDG6? PFAS? Climate Change? Circular Economy? Digitization and Smart Water?

💪 Get the Water Market pulse for free. In one hour per week, while you do the dishes!

➡️ Leverage their insights, advice & experience and ensure to stay on top of best practices

🗓️ Tune in every Wednesday (don't miss out! 😅)

🌐 Find all the detailed episode notes, interviews, infographics, and more at http://dww.show

I actually firmly believe that regular listeners of the "(don't) Waste Water" podcast may, in the end, claim a "Water MBA!"

ABOUT ME:

I've then worked for SUEZ in Switzerland in strategic marketing, business development, and sales for the DACH and Nordic regions, with an emphasis on micropollutant removal.

I then joined GF Piping Systems in 2017 to take over the business development for the company's services in Europe, then for all Water Treatment and Lithium topics worldwide.

I've been a regular speaker at conferences on four continents, gave my first TEDx in 2022, and regularly acted as a host.

Since 2020, I've been hosting the "(don't) Waste Water" podcast and giving lectures in Business and Engineering schools.

I'm married, a happy father of three, and I'm French (nobody's perfect 😅).

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