This season on Build Mode, we’re diving into what it takes to build a world-class founding team. This week we’re exploring different kinds of co-founder dynamics and what it takes to build a startup with your family. Building with a family member or spouse comes with major benefits like built-in trust and an “always-on” mentality, but it can also create challenges when all the startup risk is coming from one household. 

Build Mode’s Isabelle Johannessen sat down with Hala Jalwan and Alessio Tresanti, spouses and co-founders of Rivio, an AI procurement startup. Jalwan and Tresanti both believe in going all in on their ideas and loved building things together, from community events to cross-country road trips. They found they naturally took simple ideas and blew them up to their most epic potential. So when they got the idea for Rivio, they were confident that they would both be able and willing to commit fully. 

As Rivio has grown, they have two main takeaways: First, co-founders should have clearly defined lanes. Second, it’s a good idea to bring in a third co-founder as a tie-breaker. 

Rivio’s third co-founder and CTO is Leo Larrere. “It’s great because honestly it fits perfectly into this relationship,” Tresanti said about Larrere. “It’s obviously a three-co-founder relationship. He’s also the one that brings sanity to the conversation and can draw the line sometimes.”

In the second half of the episode, Johannessen talks with Anna Sun, the co-founder of Nowadays, an AI co-pilot for corporate event planning that she launched with her sister Amy shortly after graduating from MIT. Sun spoke about how the two built their team out of friends and former co-workers, and created a culture that’s based in community. There’s a built-in trust, not only between the sisters-turned-co-founders but also throughout the team as a whole. 

“Because we’re sisters, we trust each other so much that I remember even previously, when I would start ideas with friends, you always feel like, ‘Oh, I don’t want to step on the other person’s toes,’ or ‘I don’t know if this feedback is too direct,’” Sun said. “But because we grew up in the same household, we have a lot of the same values, and we’re very direct to each other. We don’t want to waste time.”

These conversations shed light on how founders can build a truly effective and happy team as long as there’s a foundation of trust, clearly defined ownership, and a willingness to navigate conflict respectfully. 

Apply to Startup Battlefield: We are looking for early-stage companies that have an MVP. So nominate a founder (or yourself). Be sure to say you heard about Startup Battlefield from the Build Mode podcast. Apply here.  

TechCrunch Disrupt: We’re back for TechCrunch Disrupt on October 13 to 15 in San Francisco, where the Startup Battlefield 200 takes the stage. So if you want to cheer them on, or just network with thousands of founders, VCs, and tech enthusiasts, then grab your tickets.

Isabelle Johannessen is our host. Build Mode is produced and edited by Maggie Nye. Audience Development is led by Morgan Little. And a special thanks to the Foundry and Cheddar video teams.

Electric vehicle drivers and smartphone power users have been salivating over the prospect of silicon anode batteries, which promise to dramatically boost energy density and lower charging times.

Several companies have been working on silicon anodes over the last decade or so, and the tech has started creeping into consumer electronics. Wearable maker Whoop, for example, uses materials from Sila, while Group14‘s batteries can be found in a range of smartphones.

But the real prize is the EV market, which dwarfs consumer electronics by an order of magnitude, according to Benchmark Minerals. To break into this space, however, startups need to produce silicon anode material in far larger quantities than they have been so far.

To hit that scale, Group14 on Thursday said it had started production at its BAM-3 factory in South Korea. The facility is capable of producing up to 2,000 metric tons of silicon battery materials annually, enough for 10 gigawatt-hours of energy storage, or about 100,000 long-range EVs.

“It’s a big deal for us, and I think it’s a big deal for the industry, too,” Rick Luebbe, co-founder and CEO of Group14, told TechCrunch.

The BAM-3 facility broke ground as a joint venture between Group14 and SK, the Korean battery manufacturer. SK owned 75% of the project, but sold its stake to Group14 last summer. 

“SK has had their own challenges — financial and reprioritizing their battery and battery materials strategies all at the same time,” Luebbe said. “It did open up a great opportunity for us to acquire it from SK.”

The startup has been working with a number of companies, including Porsche’s battery division Cellforce Group, StoreDot, Molicel, and Sionic. Porsche has also invested in Group14 through its venture arm.

Most modern batteries use carbon as the anode material. It works well enough, but scientists have long known that silicon, which can store up to 10 times more lithium ions, would be better for energy storage if they could only solve some vexing durability problems: Pure silicon anodes are prone to swelling and crumbling in short order, making them unsuitable for repeated charging cycles over several years.

Group14’s answer is a hard carbon scaffold that holds minuscule silicon particles in place, preventing the anode from swelling or crumbling. That scaffold is shot through with nanoscale holes that allow the lithium ions and electrons to pass through. It also helps the anode charge quickly without breaking down. 

Some of Group14’s customers, like Sionic, are using silicon anodes to boost energy density by up to 50%. Others, like Molicel, are focused on utilizing silicon’s fast-charging capabilities, including a design that can take a battery from flat to full in just 90 seconds. 

That sort of application of silicon anodes could upend the EV market. Chinese EV maker BYD is already aiming to build that sort of capability: It last week revealed a new battery pack that can “flash” charge from 10% to 70% in five minutes. (Luebbe is convinced BYD is using silicon-carbon in its new battery. “It has to be,” he said.)

If charging networks can accommodate such an EV, range anxiety would be a thing of the past. Today, automakers have been striving to deliver 300 miles to 400 miles of range mostly to alleviate consumer concerns, but hitting those numbers requires large batteries that add bulk, heft, and cost. Flash charging that can deliver meaningful range in seconds could allow carmakers to slim down battery packs, saving cost and weight.

“I’ve got a Rivian with a 130 kilowatt-hour battery in it, which is ungodly expensive,” Luebbe said. But with flash charging, concepts like inductive charging at stoplights — which might seem outlandish today — start becoming more feasible, he said. “You’d never think about charging ever again.”

Google announced on Thursday that Google Maps is introducing a Gemini-powered conversational “Ask Maps” feature along with an updated “Immersive Navigation” experience that brings a 3D view, road details, natural voice guidance, and more to the app.

The new “Ask Maps” feature lets users ask complex, real-world questions using natural language, such as “My phone is dying, where can I charge it without having to wait in a long line for coffee?” or “Is there a public tennis court with lights on that I can play at tonight?”

The tech giant says the feature can also be used to quickly plan trips. For example, you could ask: “I’m headed to the Grand Canyon, Horseshoe Bend, and Coral Dunes, any recommended stops along the way?” Maps will then give you directions, ETAs, and tips from real people, like how to find a hidden trail or get a free entry ticket.

Ask Maps personalizes its answers using signals including places a user has searched for or saved to their account, Google said. So if a user asks something like, “My friends are coming from Midtown East to meet me after work. Any cozy spots with a table for four at 7 tonight?” Ask Maps may already know the user prefers vegan restaurants and will suggest convenient options that offer vegan choices.

Ask Maps is rolling out now in the U.S. and India on Android and iOS. The feature will be available on desktop soon, Google said.

As for the new “Immersive Navigation” update, Maps is getting a 3D view that reflects nearby buildings, overpasses, and terrain, similar to Apple Maps. The app will also highlight road details like lanes, crosswalks, traffic lights, and stop signs.

In addition to the visual changes, Maps is getting more functionality that’s designed to help drivers stay better informed on the road.

Maps now gives drivers a broader view of their route through smart zooms and transparent buildings to help them look ahead and prepare for tricky turns and lane changes in advance.

Additionally, Google has updated Maps’ voice guidance to sound more natural. For example, if you’re getting off the highway in two exits, you will now hear something like, “Go past this exit and take the next one for Illinois 43 South.”

Maps will now also explain the trade-offs for alternate routes, such as a longer trip with less traffic or a faster one that includes a toll. The app will also alert you to real-time disruptions along your route, such as road construction and crashes. These features will use data from both the Google Maps and Waze communities.

Google also announced that before you head to your destination, you can preview it and its surroundings using Street View imagery and get recommendations on where to park. As you get closer, Maps will highlight the building’s entrance, nearby parking, and which side of the street to be on.

“Our team set out to redesign the driving experience with the objective of taking the guesswork out of trips,” said Miriam Daniel, VP of Google Maps, in a briefing with reporters. “Immersive navigation is a complete transformation of the navigation experience. It’s got redesigned visuals, fresh real-world information that’s brought to you just in time, and more intuitive guidance.”

Immersive Navigation begins rolling out across the U.S. today, with availability expanding over the coming months to eligible iOS and Android devices, as well as CarPlay, Android Auto, and vehicles with Google built-in.

Thursday’s announcement comes as Google baked Gemini into Maps late last year, allowing the AI assistant to answer questions about places along a route, provide information on topics like sports or news, and add events to a calendar. It also started using Gemini with Street View to improve navigation instructions by referencing nearby landmarks like gas stations, restaurants, or famous buildings instead of just distances.