Speaker 0:  today, we're talking about a breakthrough that could finally end our toxic relationship with traditional batteries. imagine a world where the power inside your remote or your kids' toys comes from invasive weeds and water instead of destructive mines and flammable chemicals. this is the era of plant based batteries, and it's hitting the market faster than you think. we're looking at a fundamental shift in energy storage where cellulose, the stuff found in plant cell walls, replaces plastic and heavy metals and batteries. companies like flint are now using invasive plants, species, and food safe minerals to create double a and triple a batteries that are biodegradable and nonflammable. it's a win for the planet and a win for home safety, turning the environmental waste into portable power. what do you think about this, john?

Speaker 1:  i love this. i actually saw a video of this. so this was actually, showcased at ces twenty twenty six this year. and they they had these paper batteries that someone so they showed the, the capacity of it, then they cut it. and they showed a diminished capacity, which was cool. so it didn't explode. it didn't do anything. it just reduced the capacity. so i'm sure for those of you that don't know, which if you don't know by now, it's it'd be surprising. but traditional rechargeable batteries, they rely on heavy earth metal metals, and they're expensive to produce. and they have complicated recycling processes. it's like you can't throw them in the garbage. you gotta dispose of them separately, and they catch on fire, or they release toxic materials when damaged. so flint, is they're they're planning to replace with, like you said, plant derived cellulose fibers. so in a typical battery, the anode, cathode, and separator, they're arranged so that ions can flow between them during charge and discharge cycles. that's how you charge and discharge your battery. flint's paper battery, it uses cellulose as the structural medium, which can facilitate ion transfer while remaining lightweight, flexible, and even get this biodegradable, obviously. so the combination of carbon ink binder gels and water based electrolytes, that's what lets this battery operate similarly to conventional cells, but with far fewer toxic substances and much better safety performance. it's non flammable. it's non explosive. if you puncture it, it doesn't explode. if you cut it, it doesn't explode. i think this is super cool. my cons the only concern i have is capacity. what are your thoughts on this, craig? like, what do you like this? is this do you feel like this could be, the next battery technology other than solid state, or what are your thoughts?

Speaker 0:  so if a tesla battery is a high performance, high risk chemical engine, these are like cardboard straws of the power world. renewable, safe, and designed to disappear when you're done with them. and, you know, you can sit back and say, what's still unknown is when you get a cardboard straw. is it gonna hold up to the job at hand? is it gonna last longer than you drink or not? so same things with these batteries. we don't know shelf life, how long it'll last, and we don't know, what level of density we can get to. but, you know, double a, triple a batteries, i'd love to try them out. the idea that they don't explode, they don't leak, and that they're fully ethical source. it stops, you know, the reliance on cobalt lithium mining, which are often linked to human rights issues environmental, destruction. because the juice inside is water based, these batteries won't explode or catch fire, like you mentioned. and it actually helps the environment by using invasive weeds, know, versus, which governments usually have to pay to burn. kids safe toys, guilt free disposal, drop in ready so you don't need new gadgets. you sit perfectly into your double a and triple a stuff. i really love this. i'm loving it. i wanna see how long, you know, they last, in your devices and on the shelf and see what the next generation will hold. but i definitely am, you know, excited about this. what about you?

Speaker 1:  yeah. so i don't think that this will ever replace those big tesla batteries. where i see them is where safety is critical. so we're talking kids' toys. we're talking medical devices. we're talking wearables. i think that's where it's gonna replace maybe even cell phones. i don't know. again, it's gonna come down to the capacity that they can achieve from these batteries. but if they can, ramp up production, and get these batteries to a usable capacity, i think they're they're slated to disrupt the battery industry, and make things safer overall, i think.

Speaker 0:  yeah. and this isn't just, you know, in a lab. the factory is ramping up now. they're taking orders at cas, that which is what they were doing. and so we expect that it'll be a little more expensive. i've got a small green premium first, so the cost slightly more than your normal alkaline or whatnot batteries. so with just a question about shelf life, but there's some facts people might not know. like, governments currently spend millions to landfill invasive plants. so flint would turn these waste into batteries backbone. so we'll just take those, and you don't have to spend that money, and we're saving the government money. or maybe the government pays them to take it, and they spend less money or whatnot. but eventually, you know, it's completely recycled. food safe, zinc and magnesium are the same mean minerals you'd find in a multivitamin, fireproof. so the company wants its batteries to fit into the existing battery ecosystem, changing materials rather than user behavior. so, i love this. and we're finally moving toward a circular economy for power where our energy storage comes from plants and returns to the earth without leaving a toxic footprint. and, you know, canada's got, renewable forests, like, you know, a lot. so this is, interesting another alternative for green energy for canada.

Speaker 1:  yeah. so you were talking about shelf life. right? so because cellulose, can improve safety and reduce supply chain risk, the research also suggests that it can help prevent battery degradation, which is caused by dendrites, which is these tiny metal formations that shorten battery life. so maybe these will have a longer shelf life than current batteries.

Speaker 0:  well, we'll see. i doubt that, but you never know. you're you're they never do. that's what i'm saying. like, that's optimistic. it never happens that way. maybe eventually, but we'll have to see. so tell us, would you pay a few extra cents for a battery made of weeds if it meant your trash was no longer toxic? i'm generally excited to see these hit the shelves this year. let me know in the comments. are you ready to go plant based with your power or just sticking with the old school alkaline batteries? i know i'll be looking for these to give them a try, and i'll let you know when i find them and dry them.