Alex Roy

Autonomous race cars. AI copilots. Racing beyond Earth. The future of F1 & motorsports is here. And it is rewriting the rules of who, or what, wins. In this episode, Chief Futurist Kimberly Bates speaks with Alex Roy, legendary endurance driver, mobility futurist, and long-time provocateur at the edge of automotive culture. From setting cross-country speed records to exploring the cultural consequences of autonomous driving, Alex has always lived at the edge of what’s next. Roy reflects on setting a fully autonomous, zero-intervention Cannonball record in a self-driving Tesla (Tesla FSD cross-country) and what it taught him about trust between humans and machines. The conversation expands into how AI is already embedded in elite racing. From predictive strategy and telemetry optimization in Formula 1 to the Indy Autonomous Challenge, algorithms are not waiting for the future to arrive. They are here. Guest co-host and AI CEO Nick Connor enters the chat. The group explores what augmented intelligence means for drivers, how autonomy might reshape personal vehicles, where the human consequences story will remain the heart of motorsport, and a future of suborbital racing and personal racing holo-mobility devices. This episode blends the real, the radical, and the road ahead. Takeaways · AI is amplifying, not replacing, human drivers. The real breakthrough lies in the collaboration between machine precision and human instinct. · Autonomous milestones, including Roy’s zero-intervention Cannonball run record, signal that self-driving capability is no longer theoretical. · Data-driven strategy, real-time analytics, and emerging tools such as drone-based insights are reshaping competitive advantage in motorsport. · The future vehicle will likely blend autonomous and manual modes, giving drivers both control and intelligent assistance. · The future of racing will intertwine with entertainment and all-new personal mobility devices. · No matter how advanced the tech becomes, risk, consequence, and human narrative must remain central to preserve the meaning and thrill of racing. CHAPTERS 00:00 Preview 01:31 Introduction to Alex Roy 01:59 Alex Roy's Racing Career & Legendary Stories 09:48 Alex's Film: Apex The Secret Race Across America 11:37 AI in Motorsport: The Future of Racing Technology 24:47 The Power of Augmented Intelligence & Driver Safety 26:39 Drone Technology 29:20 The Importance of Human Stories, Rituals, and Authenticity in Motorsport 34:11 Tesla vs. Waymo: The Race for Autonomous Mobility 40:12 The Future of Driverless Economies 46:26 A Futurist's 2040 Predictions- Space Racing and Hyper-Performance Holo-Mobility STAY CONNECTED Website Instagram Watch the Episodes on YouTube Legal Disclaimer ABOUT THE FUTURECASTER PODCAST: The World is Moving Fast. Futureproof Yourself Your NEW front-row seat to the future of Business, Tech, Life, and Human Potential. Join world-renowned futurist Kimberly Bates each week for mind-opening conversations with world-leading scientists, engineers, doctors, technologists, business leaders, investors, and builders to uncover the real opportunities shaping what’s coming tomorrow, and the blind spots we can’t afford to ignore along the way. Making future thinking, science, and technology available to everyone can help us all achieve a brighter future together. If people can see these opportunities for themselves, they can help create them. ©2026 Futurecaster. Futurecaster®

🎙️ Maneva is building video-based AI agents that plug directly into real-world manufacturing environments and deliver real-time insights across safety, uptime, quality, and process improvement without changing the floor layout or installing a new camera system. This week on TOOL OR DIE, we talk to Rae Jeong, Maneva co-founder and CEO. From his roots in a blue-collar Alberta town to AI research at Google DeepMind, Rae shares how his experience in robotics, factory work, and frontier AI led to Maneva’s mission: to democratize high-performance factory intelligence through edge-deployed, reinforcement-learning-driven video agents. We cover the surprisingly hard edge of video AI in manufacturing—from jammed conveyors and missed safety protocols to process drift and equipment failure—and how learning systems trained on video, not just static images, might define the next wave of manufacturing optimization. Timestamp: 01:00 – From South Korea to Alberta to DeepMind: Ray Kim’s unusual path06:30 – What AI at DeepMind taught him about the limits of research10:30 – Why he left DeepMind to start Maneva13:00 – Maneva’s core pitch: video-to-action AI for messy, real-world factories17:00 – Why reinforcement learning on the edge matters21:00 – Mission-critical AI that integrates with PLCs, not the cloud24:00 – Beyond defect detection: using AI for downtime and predictive maintenance28:00 – Introducing Kaizen: factory-wide root cause analysis across agents31:00 – Real-world RCA: how video caught a missing prep station34:00 – The cost of jams and what video AI can really prevent Key Topics: * Edge-deployed AI in high-variance, high-volume environments * Reinforcement learning vs pretraining for real-world reliability * Why video (not “vision”) matters in industrial intelligence * Video-based RCA: identifying bottlenecks and preempting downtime * Oneva’s broader thesis: Kaizen 2.0 powered by AI agents, not binders 🔧 Learn more: Maneva.ai Sponsor This episode of TOOL OR DIE is brought to you by DOSS , the adaptive ERP. DOSS kills implementation hell by working directly with your team, connecting all your systems to minimize data entry so you can focus on production. Instead of barging in like a bull in a china shop, they take a deep look at your actual operations and build a system that matches how you operate today , replacing only the parts that need improving—rather than trying to fix what’s already working great. DOSS — One Platform, Total Visibility TOOL OR DIE is hosted by Joel Johnson, former science & tech journalist turned corporate strategist who built brands like Gizmodo, WIRED.com, and Wirecutter; and Alex Roy, General Partner at New Industry Venture Capital (NIVC.us), known for breaking the Cannonball Run record and his work in autonomous vehicles. Each week, they speak with the people actually rebuilding American manufacturing—one machine, one company, one idea at a time. Follow them at:LinkedIn: joeljohnson | alexroy X: @joeljohnson | @alexroy144 Get full access to TOOL or DIE at www.toolordie.com/subscribe

Kevin William is a car journalist. He keeps going to China to drive new Chinese cars, write about what he sees and experiences and feels with his own two hands. But his reports about the rapidly increasing quality of Chinese cars for InsideEVs.com over the last year have been controversial for Western audiences, many of whom simply can’t believe a really easy-to-fathom, if painful concept: Chinese cars aren’t just really good now. They might be better than every other car being made.This episode isn’t about politics or U.S. ambition—it’s about reality. About what happens when you ignore a competitor for too long, and then wake up to find they’ve leapfrogged you. From the software-defined vehicle myth to the quality gap between Tesla and Chinese EVs, Kevin walks us through how and why the Chinese car industry matured so fast and why so many in the West still don’t get it. Timestamp : 01:00 – Kevin Williams’ viral “Chinese cars are good” reporting05:00 – Debunking software-defined vehicles in the West08:00 – BYD, Xiaomi, and China’s EV quality edge12:00 – IP theft vs. learning by doing: what’s really going on18:00 – Nationalism, media backlash, and the fragility of Western auto pride24:00 – Why OEMs ignored China’s rise—and now regret it30:00 – Which Chinese brands are actually good? And which are failing?34:00 – Tesla’s fading advantage in China38:00 – What U.S. and European automakers need to do—now Key Topic : * How Chinese EVs leapfrogged Tesla in infotainment and ride quality * Why "IP theft" isn’t the core issue—complacency is * OEMs’ blind spot: millions of sales in China, zero situational awareness * The backlash to truth-telling in auto journalism * InsideEVs’ Kevin Williams on what Western execs won’t say out loud 🔧 Read Kevin's latest: InsideEVs.com Sponsor This episode of TOOL OR DIE is brought to you by DOSS , the adaptive ERP. DOSS kills implementation hell by working directly with your team, connecting all your systems to minimize data entry so you can focus on production. Instead of barging in like a bull in a china shop, they take a deep look at your actual operations and build a system that matches how you operate today , replacing only the parts that need improving—rather than trying to fix what’s already working great. DOSS — One Platform, Total Visibility TOOL OR DIE is hosted by Joel Johnson, former science & tech journalist turned corporate strategist who built brands like Gizmodo, WIRED.com, and Wirecutter; and Alex Roy, General Partner at New Industry Venture Capital (NIVC.us), known for breaking the Cannonball Run record and his work in autonomous vehicles. Each week, they speak with the people actually rebuilding American manufacturing—one machine, one company, one idea at a time. Follow them at:LinkedIn: joeljohnson | alexroy X: @joeljohnson | @alexroy144 Get full access to TOOL or DIE at www.toolordie.com/subscribe

🎙️ Not every manufacturing company is a giant or a startup. Some are still family-owned companies slogging it out, making key components that look simple but involve detailed problem solving every single day. Numberall Stamp & Tool Co. is a family-run, rural Maine manufacturer making industrial marking tools for everything from lobster traps to Apollo missions. You’ve probably touched something they helped serialize—metal tags, numbered seals, marked valves—and never known it. But the company’s real story is in its resilience. Founded during the Great Depression to stamp poultry leg bands, Numberall grew into a small but essential supplier for defense, aerospace, medical, and heavy industry. Now in its third generation, it’s modernizing under pressure—holding tight tolerances, adding CNC machining, and training the next wave of machinists (when they can find them), all from a town of 800 people. Daniel, Alex, and Dieter—two generations of the Numberall family—join TOOL OR DIE to explain how rural manufacturers survive offshoring, boom-bust cycles, and demographic shifts. From WWII bomb sights to GE medical cuffs to engraved tags on the moon, this episode explores what legacy craftsmanship looks like when it’s still alive and evolving—and what it will take to pass it on. Timestamps 01:00 – Numberall’s founding: chicken bands and rotary stamps in 1930s New York04:00 – The move to Maine and becoming a three-generation family business07:00 – What modern industrial marking looks like—and why it still matters10:00 – Surviving downturns: dot-com crash, 2008, COVID, and inflation14:00 – CNC modernization and cutting down weeklong jobs to hours17:00 – Why tight tolerances matter in precision stamping21:00 – Small team, long tenures: how to grow without losing legacy skills25:00 – Workforce scarcity in rural towns and the automation trade-off30:00 – From Apollo to Saudi oil rigs: Numberall’s surprising global footprint34:00 – The role of human-readable marks in a digital supply chain37:00 – Made in Maine: rebuilding manufacturing from small-town shops40:00 – What federal support would actually help Main Street manufacturers Key Topics * Numberall’s 95-year evolution and intergenerational leadership * How industrial stamping still outperforms lasers in speed and simplicity * Tight tolerances and raised engraving: the machining behind the marks * Surviving multiple manufacturing downturns as a small supplier * The strategic role of rural U.S. manufacturers in global supply chains * CNC upgrades and macro programming for legacy products * Why reshoring alone isn’t enough: training, capital, and market access * Engraving bomb sights and stamping serials for the moon missions 🔧 Learn more: numberall.com Sponsor This episode of TOOL OR DIE is brought to you by DOSS , the adaptive ERP. DOSS kills implementation hell by working directly with your team, connecting all your systems to minimize data entry so you can focus on production. Instead of barging in like a bull in a china shop, they take a deep look at your actual operations and build a system that matches how you operate today , replacing only the parts that need improving—rather than trying to fix what’s already working great. DOSS — One Platform, Total Visibility TOOL OR DIE is hosted by Joel Johnson, former science & tech journalist turned corporate strategist who built brands like Gizmodo, WIRED.com, and Wirecutter; and Alex Roy, General Partner at New Industry Venture Capital (NIVC.us), known for

🎙️ Austin Bishop, co-founder of the New American Industrial Alliance ( NAIA )—known by most as the people behind the REINDUSTRIALIZE conference —joins TOOL OR DIE to explain how an engineering kid from Cleveland ended up helping create one of the most influential gatherings in American manufacturing. From early days of Atomic Industries to igniting a movement, Austin breaks down the convergence of venture capital, legacy SMBs, and policy leaders that’s driving America’s reindustrialization wave. REINDUSTRIALIZE isn’t another trade show—it’s a new convening model for serious builders, capital allocators, and government leaders reshaping U.S. industry, one where old heads and new make plans to accelerate American manufacturing. TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 – On location at the Reagan Library02:14 – Austin Bishop joins: from Cleveland roots to venture capital04:45 – Founding Atomic Industries and confronting the tooling bottleneck10:00 – Why venture capital ignored manufacturing until supply chain collapse14:00 – How REINDUSTRIALIZE started as a small meetup and went viral20:00 – The real mandate: connecting capital, operators, and policymakers26:00 – Why REINDUSTRIALIZE avoids the trade show model33:00 – Building a true cross-sector network: startups, SMBs, primes, and government38:00 – The European industrial retreat vs. U.S. industrial resilience44:00 – Reindustrialization as a nonpartisan national security imperative50:00 – Why longtime U.S. manufacturers remain skeptical—and why that’s logical55:00 – The last firms standing: SMBs thriving after 50 years of offshoring pressure1:02:00 – Innovation isn’t always tech—it’s often business model expansion Key Topics: * Why tooling remains the hidden bottleneck for global manufacturing * How venture capital is finally waking up to industrial capacity gaps * The accidental product-market fit behind REINDUSTRIALIZE’s rapid growth * Bridging venture, policy, defense, and legacy industrial operators * The deeply rational skepticism inside America’s remaining industrial base * The structural advantage the U.S. holds over Europe in industrial policy * Reindustrialization as a politically non-aligned but nationally urgent project * How SMBs are evolving to capture defense and government work 🔧 Learn more: reindustrialize.com TOOL OR DIE is hosted by Joel Johnson , former science and technology journalist and corporate strategist who pioneered brands like Gizmodo, WIRED.com, and Wirecutter , and Alex Roy , a General Partner at New Industry Venture Capital (NIVC.us) known for breaking the Cannonball Run record and his work in autonomous vehicles . Each week, they speaks with the people actually rebuilding American manufacturing—one machine, one company, one idea at a time. Follow them at: * LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/joeljohnson | linkedin.com/in/alexro y * X: @joeljohnson | @alexroy144 Get full access to TOOL or DIE at www.toolordie.com/subscribe

🎙️ Matt Puchalski, founder and CEO of Bucket Robotics , joins TOOL OR DIE to explain how building defect-detection cameras for self-driving cars led him to modernize factory inspection systems. Bucket is attacking the quality-critical task of surface inspection with synthetic data, low-cost cameras, and vision software designed for factory floors, not research labs. From his time at Argo AI to leading reliability teams, Matt shares how empathy, donut diplomacy, and deeply nerdy tooling are giving American manufacturers better ways to detect defects and stay competitive. TIMESTAMPS:02:14 Matt Puchalski: from Argo AI to launching Bucket Robotics04:45 What’s broken in factory vision systems—and why most inspection tech is obsolete10:00 Making defect detection scalable with cheap cameras and smart software14:00 Why factory floors don’t need better hardware—they need better lighting and code21:00 The pricing model: how Bucket sells defect detectors per-part, not per-factory26:00 Hidden complexity: why manufacturing tires is a masterclass in material science33:00 What trade shows reveal about the people actually fixing U.S. manufacturing36:00 The missing middle: how reindustrialization needs capital, not content Key Topics: * Why low-cost cameras + synthetic data beat expensive vision hardware * What manufacturers actually want from defect detection systems * The cultural and technical gap between software startups and factory operators * Surface inspection as the gateway to smarter QA and modular manufacturing * The true challenge of selling to manufacturing: empathy and 6:00 a.m. Teams calls * How to bootstrap job shops—and why we need more of them 🔧 Learn more: bucket.bot TOOL OR DIE is hosted by Joel Johnson, former journalist, corporate strategist, and builder of brands like Gizmodo , Jalopnik , and Wirecutter . Each week, he and co-host Alex Roy speak with the people actually rebuilding American manufacturing—one machine, one company, one idea at a time. Get full access to TOOL or DIE at www.toolordie.com/subscribe

🎙️ Industrial designer and former auto journalist Peter Holderith joins Tool or Die to talk about… well, we should be talking about the hybrid kit sports car he’s designing and building from scratch with no hard tooling, no team, and no OEM funding.But instead we’re talking about this toaster that he’s designing because Jim Belosic of SendCutSend challenged him (and others!) to design a 100% Made In America Toaster. (Peter’s design is…very kickass.) Thankfully this is a podcast and I edit it so I can talk about whatever I want, so we also go into Peter’s true life mission as a car nut and engineer: making an entirely new type of kit car. From 3D-printed body panels to aluminum tube chassis construction, Peter explains why this might be the first real kit car of the new reshoring era.Oh, we also talk about his Peltier-cooled beer chiller that pulls 800 watts and needs two gaming PC power supplies to operate.This is what modern manufacturing looks like when you give an insane clever man access to SendCutSend, tasteful New England ales, and not nearly enough time or self-control. Loved this talk. TIMESTAMPS * 00:00 Redefining the American toaster * 02:00 Why SendCutSend is sponsoring maker weirdos * 05:00 Peter’s path from industrial design to automotive journalism * 09:00 Making the “Weather Orb” from scratch * 14:00 The science and art of a 5-minute beer chiller * 18:00 Building a hybrid kit car with no hard tooling * 24:00 Flat-pack sports cars and the future of Osh Cut & SendCutSend * 31:00 What even *is* a modern car now? * 36:00 How to make the front axle electric and the rear gas-powered * 39:00 Safety, SolidWorks, and sane madness Key Topics * Modern prototyping using SendCutSend, Osh Cut, and RMFG * Hybrid drivetrain design with decoupled axles * 3D printing for structural and body components * Why we’re finally ready for real reshored kit cars * The crossover between car culture and manufacturing revival * Low-volume production without compromise 📺 YouTube: Peter Holderith’s channel 🔧 Follow Peter: [@holderithdesign](https://twitter.com/holderithdesign) Tool or Die is hosted by Joel Johnson (with visits from Alex Roy), former tech journalist and co-founder of brands like Gizmodo, Jalopnik, and Wirecutter. Each week, Joel speaks with people building the future of American manufacturing. #KitCars #HybridSportsCars #SendCutSend #AmericanManufacturing #DIYEngineering #ToasterChallenge #AutoDesign #Reshoring Get full access to TOOL or DIE at www.toolordie.com/subscribe

🎙️ Ted Feldmann ( @teddyfeld ), founder of Durin , joins Tool or Die to discuss how his startup is tackling one of the most overlooked but vital problems in American reindustrialization: the lack of modern drilling rigs for mineral exploration. Ted explains why the U.S. is decades behind on core sampling tech, how Durin is building a programmable drilling rig from the ground up, and what it would take for the U.S. to decouple from China’s stranglehold on critical minerals. TIMESTAMPS: * 00:00 The goblin problem and bad sci-fi drilling * 01:00 What Durin actually does: small-bore exploration rigs * 03:00 Why drilling is the single biggest cost in mineral exploration * 06:00 Automation vs. skilled labor in the field * 08:00 Real-time sensor challenges underground * 11:00 U.S. resource potential and rare earths supply constraints * 14:00 How public data could kickstart a new gold rush * 17:00 The regulatory bottleneck: permitting vs. drilling * 21:00 Naming a mining company after a Tolkien character * 23:00 Space mining and what Durin might do next * 25:00 Rig update: pilot test in Nevada and what comes after Key Topics: * Why U.S. mining is bottlenecked at the exploration stage * How Durin is building “programmable rigs” for remote, autonomous core sampling * The massive opportunity in rare earths—and why we’re under-exploring * A more cost-effective path to identifying economic deposits * What mining (and drilling) automation really looks like * The national security implications of letting exploration lag behind 👉 Learn more: durin.com TOOL OR DIE is produced by Johnson & Roy ( Johnson-Roy.com ), a strategic advisory firm focused on technology, mobility, manufacturing, and robotics . Your hosts are Joel Johnson , tech media veteran behind Gizmodo, Jalopnik, and Wirecutter , and Alex Roy , General Partner at New Industry Venture Capital (NIVC.us) and longtime voice in autonomy and transportation. Follow them: * LinkedIn: alexroy | joeljohnson * X: @alexroy144 | @joeljohnson * Web: johnson-roy.com Get full access to TOOL or DIE at www.toolordie.com/subscribe

🎙️ Tool or Die welcomes three fine gentlemen from IACMI – The Composites Institute , who are leading national efforts to rebuild America’s manufacturing workforce from the ground up. Justin Brooks oversees workforce development initiatives like America’s Cutting Edge (ACE) and METAL, programs designed to tackle the skilled labor shortage in machining, casting, and forging. David Roberson , a Marine Corps veteran and ACE’s lead instructor, shares his personal story of transition from the military to machining—and how he’s helping others do the same. And Greg Harrell , Workforce Coordinator for METAL, brings decades of experience in precision engineering and technical education to connect schools, veterans, and industry. TIMESTAMPS: * 00:00 Introduction to IACMI and the METAL program * 06:00 From DOD bombs to boot camps—Justin’s story * 11:00 David’s transition from the Marines to machining * 18:00 How the ACE and METAL programs actually work * 24:00 The hands-on appeal of pouring real molten metal * 30:00 Changing perceptions about dirty jobs and skilled trades * 36:00 How students and veterans are finding purpose in manufacturing * 43:00 What’s next for IACMI and nationwide manufacturing training Key Topics: * Why machining, casting, and forging are critical to defense reshoring * How short boot camps are giving veterans and students career-launching skills * The DOD’s role in scaling workforce training programs nationwide * Fixing the broken pipeline between education and skilled industrial jobs * Why “dirty” doesn’t mean dead-end—and why Gen Z is starting to get it * The unexpected power of making something real with your own hands 👉 Learn more: iacmi.org | americascuttingedge.org | MetalforAmerica.org TOOL OR DIE is produced by Johnson & Roy ( Johnson-Roy.com ), a strategic advisory firm focused on technology, mobility, manufacturing, and robotics . Your hosts are Joel Johnson , tech media veteran behind Gizmodo, Jalopnik, and Wirecutter , and Alex Roy , General Partner at New Industry Venture Capital (NIVC.us) and a longtime voice in autonomy and transportation. Follow them: * LinkedIn: alexroy | joeljohnson * X: @alexroy144 | @joeljohnson * Web: johnson-roy.com Get full access to TOOL or DIE at www.toolordie.com/subscribe

🎙️ Caleb Chamberlain , co-founder of Osh Cut , joins Tool or Die for a loose conversation about the viral video that hit a nerve in U.S. manufacturing circles. The video—posted by a frustrated entrepreneur—calls out American manufacturers for being unwilling or unable to build a simple ATM kiosk enclosure, contrasting that experience with seamless production in China. Joel, Alex and Caleb break down where he's right, where he's wrong, and what the story reveals about the structural gaps in American industry—especially for high-mix, low-volume manufacturing. TIMESTAMPS: * 00:00 Intro & viral video setup * 02:00 The mystery of WTI Wireless * 04:00 Why Osh Cut was founded * 07:00 U.S. manufacturers: optimized for repeat jobs, not first-time customers * 10:00 “American manufacturers are babies?” Not quite * 13:00 Why high-mix, low-volume work is still so hard * 20:00 What’s missing: no U.S. equivalent of Alibaba * 28:00 What Caleb would do with $250 million * 33:00 Should you scale services or open new shops? * 38:00 Could Osh Cut’s platform become a SaaS business? * 44:00 Why many legacy shops won’t survive the next decade Key Topics: * The real reasons U.S. manufacturers turn down small or custom jobs * Why digitizing quoting is only 20% of the challenge * The case for vertically integrated, software-native factories * What it would take to build an American manufacturing marketplace * Reshoring, tariffs, and the shrinking pool of capable shops * Why Caleb thinks this is the time to build in U.S. manufacturing 👉 Website: oshcut.com TOOL OR DIE is produced by Johnson & Roy ( Johnson-Roy.com ), a strategic advisory firm focused on technology, mobility, manufacturing, and robotics . Your hosts are Joel Johnson , longtime tech journalist and builder (General Motors, Gizmodo, Wirecutter), and Alex Roy , General Partner at New Industry Venture Capital (NIVC.us) and veteran of the autonomy and mobility space. Follow them: * LinkedIn: alexroy | joeljohnson * X: @alexroy144 | @joeljohnson * Web: johnson-roy.com Get full access to TOOL or DIE at www.toolordie.com/subscribe

🎙️ Gabe Elias , CEO of Material , joins Tool or Die to discuss his journey from Honda engineer to Formula One designer to battery manufacturing innovator. We explore how Gabe's determination to work in F1 led him to quit his stable job at Honda, move to England, and eventually land a position at Mercedes F1 , where he contributed to seven world championships. Now, Gabe's startup is revolutionizing battery manufacturing with 3D printing technology that allows for custom-shaped batteries that could transform everything from consumer electronics to electric vehicles. TIMESTAMPS: * 00:00 Introduction * 00:15 Gabe's journey to Honda and F1 aspirations * 08:30 Moving to England and Oxford Brookes University * 14:00 Landing a job at Mercedes F1 * 19:40 Formula One engineering experience * 22:30 Crossover between F1 and mass market manufacturing * 26:50 Leaving F1 for Rivian * 29:20 Tesla's innovations in EV manufacturing * 32:20 Founding Material and 3D printed batteries * 39:40 Material's business model and future plans Key Topics: * How Gabe strategically targeted Honda hoping for a path to F1 * Quitting his job and telling his manager he'd be an F1 engineer within a year * The rigorous technical interview process at Mercedes * Why F1 engineering knowledge has limited crossover to mass manufacturing * How Tesla's zonal architecture is revolutionizing EV production costs * Material's ability to create custom-shaped batteries for any device * The chemistry-agnostic approach to battery manufacturing at Material * How 3D printed batteries could extend the range of EVs and runtime of devices TOOL OR DIE is produced by Johnson & Roy ( Johnson-Roy.com ), a strategic advisory firm specializing in technology, mobility, manufacturing, and robotics . Your hosts are Joel Johnson , a former technology journalist and media executive who pioneered brands like Gizmodo, Jalopnik, and Wirecutter , and Alex Roy , a General Partner at New Industry Venture Capital (NIVC.us) known for breaking the Cannonball Run record and his work in autonomous vehicles . Follow them at: * LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/alexroy | linkedin.com/in/joeljohnson * X: @alexroy144 | @joeljohnson * Web: johnson-roy.com #Manufacturing #Batteries #Formula1 #StartupLife #3DPrinting #EVs #Engineering #MaterialScience Get full access to TOOL or DIE at www.toolordie.com/subscribe

🎙️ Gavin Stener , founder of 67 Designs , joins Tool or Die to discuss his journey from ERP software to building a U.S.-based manufacturing company focused on high-quality off-road vehicle mounts and accessories. We explore the challenges of American manufacturing, the fight against counterfeiters, generational knowledge transfer, and the cultural shift needed for reindustrialization. TIMESTAMPS: * 00:00 Introduction * 02:33 Gavin's background and early engineering experiences * 05:00 ERP software and manufacturing challenges * 15:35 Why Goldratt's "The Goal" is essential reading * 25:15 Manufacturing culture and respect for tradespeople * 33:45 The founding mission of 67 Designs * 38:20 Counterfeiting challenges and IP protection * 50:40 Patent prosecution and Chinese IP tactics * 58:10 The path forward for American manufacturing * 01:05:45 Closing thoughts on reindustrialization Key Topics: * How early experiences with machining in Australia shaped Gavin's manufacturing philosophy * The history and evolution of ERP systems in manufacturing * The critical importance of respecting skilled trades workers * Why 67 Designs was founded to transfer knowledge from older generations * How counterfeiting and Amazon impact small American manufacturers * The challenges of patent protection and intellectual property * Why manufacturing revival needs educational, legal, and supply chain reform * The importance of domestic manufacturing for national security and economy 👉 Follow: 67designs.com | X: @67designs TOOL OR DIE is produced by Johnson & Roy , a strategic advisory firm specializing in technology, mobility, manufacturing, and robotics . Your hosts are Joel Johnson , a former technology journalist and media executive who pioneered brands like Gizmodo, Jalopnik, and Wirecutter , and Alex Roy , a General Partner at New Industry Venture Capital (NIVC.us) known for breaking the Cannonball Run record and his work in autonomous vehicles . Follow them at: * LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/alexroy | linkedin.com/in/joeljohnson * X: @alexroy144 | @joeljohnson * Web: johnson-roy.com #Manufacturing #AmericanManufacturing #CounterfeitPrevention #IntellectualProperty #Reindustrialization #ERP #OverlandGear #SkilledTrades Get full access to TOOL or DIE at www.toolordie.com/subscribe