Starting small, thinking big

Emily Dickens ’19, MEM ’20, passed on the corporate world to join a battery startup. She saw a better chance at doing something awesome.

In her role at Octet Scientific, Emily Dickens helps the lab understand the needs of customers.

Nearing a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering, Emily Dickens faced a decision. Major employers, including General Electric, beckoned with jobs. But her heart steered her to Octet Scientific, a tiny Cleveland startup trying to re-engineer traditional zinc batteries for the clean energy age.

In 2019, she became the second employee at the science startup. Octet has since drawn support from the National Science Foundation, venture capitalists and battery makers. Dickens, the company’s chief commercial officer, talked with Case Alumnus about her decision to take the road less travelled and how Case prepared her to be an innovator.

What brought you to Case from Chicago?

Soccer and engineering. I was looking for excellent institutions that could provide both. I really liked the Case campus, the connections to the city. And when I met some of my teammates, I loved them.

Why the interest in batteries?

I’m interested in clean energy, what can be done with electrochemistry. I worked in Professor (Robert) Savinell’s lab on flow batteries and that was really interesting. Then I did a ThinkEnergy Fellowship my senior year. I loved it.

Tell us about your experience as a ThinkEnergy Fellow with the Great Lakes Energy Institute.

There were 14 of us. We met every Friday. Students from all kinds of majors. There’re so many people working on new ideas in clean tech, because they’re trying to solve climate change. And there’re so many ways that we can improve. My team (of four) looked at a system to enable a car battery to provide backup power to a home. We never launched a business, but we did well at pitch competitions. It was a great experience.

You also did a co-op with General Electric. Were you at NELA Park?

Yes, the industrial lighting sector. I was on the technical sourcing team. We worked with suppliers to find materials for lighting products. I saw sales negotiations and was part of cross-functional teams — engineers, buyers, product managers. The sale of the division was pending, so we were short staffed, and sometimes I was the one representing the team.

Octet is designing and testing materials that might make zinc batteries rechargeable.

Emily Dickens started all 17 games during her senior season in 2018.

And afterward GE offered you a job. Yet you joined a startup. How did you make that decision? It was a hard one.

It was a hard one. GE was a good experience. I had great mentors. I just never felt a big sense of mission. I told my advisor, Professor (Rohan) Akolkar, I wanted to do something more. He knew my research background, my passion for energy storage. He said, “Let me see if I can get you into it.’ He introduced me to Onas (Bolton, the founder of Octet).

What did you like about Octet?

Onas had an idea to develop chemicals for zinc batteries, using his background in the electroplating world. I saw the opportunity to do something that no one’s really done before. It was very exciting to think about the potential — and the part I would play. We’re trying to improve the performance of zinc batteries, make them rechargeable, so they can be used on the grid. Flashlight batteries are zinc. They’re safe; they’re water based; zinc is plentiful. They’re not as light or energy dense as lithium ion, which is why those batteries are used in consumer electronics and electric vehicles. But zinc batteries are safer. They’re better as a big battery.

So you were Octet’s first hire, the second employee. What was that like?

Onas had an idea to develop chemicals for zinc batteries, using hisI started part-time, the summer after my senior year. Onas needed a battery tester. He was like, ‘Oh, and I need you to set up our electrochemistry lab’ (laughs). It was daunting at first. I had to dive right in. It was the R&D stage. I was also pursuing my master’s in engineering management. I had a lot on my plate. background in the electroplating world. I saw the opportunity to do something that no one’s really done before. It was very exciting to think about the potential — and the part I would play. We’re trying to improve the performance of zinc batteries, make them rechargeable, so they can be used on the grid. Flashlight batteries are zinc. They’re safe; they’re water based; zinc is plentiful. They’re not as light or energy dense as lithium ion, which is why those batteries are used in consumer electronics and electric vehicles. But zinc batteries are safer. They’re better as a big battery.

How does the future look?

Now we have seven employees, including two great PhD scientists in our lab. We’re planning a Series A funding round next year, to raise $5 million to start manufacturing. We have a lot of customer interest. People reach out to us, day by day. We’re the experts in this chemistry. I think you are going to see zinc batteries on the grid.

Have a candidate for an Alumni Interview? Email robert.smith@casealum.org.