Powering the Future: Dr. Denis Phares on Dragonfly Energy’s Path to Sustainable Lithium Innovation | Ep 1113

Summary

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Powering the Future: Dr. Denis Phares on Dragonfly Energy’s Path to Sustainable Lithium Innovation

The Digital Executive | Coruzant Technologies | Ep 1113 | September 17, 2025

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Episode Overview

This episode features Dr. Denis Phares, President and CEO of Dragonfly Energy, in a rapid, insight-packed conversation with host Brian Thomas. The main focus: Dragonfly Energy’s journey from academia-driven R&D to industry leader in lithium-ion battery innovation, with a special emphasis on sustainable American manufacturing, the “Battle Born Batteries” brand, and the ambitious vision to close the lithium loop in Nevada.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. From Academia to Entrepreneurship

• Personal Journey & Motivation

  • Dr. Phares left a tenured engineering professorship at USC to found Dragonfly Energy, prioritizing real-world impact over academic research.
  • His research expertise in energy, nanotechnology, and climate issues inspired him to commercialize his patents, culminating in Dragonfly’s founding.

• Quote:

  “I decided that the most impactful way for me to move forward if I was bringing new technology into the world, was to do it through my own company. So that was really the impetus initially.”
  (Dr. Phares, [01:29])

• Commercialization Lessons

  • Phares highlights the difficulties of balancing academia and entrepreneurship, eventually opting to get an MBA and fully commit to the business.

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2. Building a Brand-First Battery Business

• Early Go-To-Market Strategy

  • Dragonfly Energy focused on profitability and brand-building from the start, rare for “hard tech” companies which often chase VC funding over sales.
  • The “Battle Born Batteries” brand revolutionized the RV battery market by replacing unpopular lead-acid batteries, enabling true off-grid experiences.

• Quote:

  “Tech companies, often especially hard tech companies... tend to overlook the fact that the focus really should be on revenue rather than just going out and trying to get capital. That's a less risky way to run a tech company.”
  (Dr. Phares, [03:28])

• Self-Sustaining Growth

  • Early profitability funded further R&D and patent development, positioning Dragonfly Energy as a complete lithium-ion battery technology company.

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3. Innovating American Battery Manufacturing

• Proprietary Dry Electrode Technology

  • Dragonfly developed a unique dry electrode cell manufacturing process, shielding it with strong intellectual property.
  • The goal: achieve competitive, efficient, and cost-effective domestic production despite cheaper overseas alternatives.

• Domestic Advantage Through Vertical Integration

  • By establishing a solid brand and customer base before scaling manufacturing, Dragonfly avoids the pitfalls that doomed other U.S. battery startups.

• Quote:

  “When we are manufacturing cells domestically, we actually have a place to put those cells. We don't have to go look for customers because we've already found them. And in fact we're our own customer."
  (Dr. Phares, [05:49])

• Different Path to Scaling

  • Dragonfly’s approach: secure the offtake (customers and brand) first, then invest in manufacturing—opposite the typical VC-fueled gamble.

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4. Growth, Industry Impact, and the Nevada Lithium Loop

• Recent Business Milestones

  • As of July 2025: 23% YoY growth in Q2 sales, and reduced EBITDA losses, signalling a return to profitability after COVID- and interest-rate-driven RV market swings.

• Quote:

  “One thing that's really nice about being able to have a company that has revenue is that we can focus on revenue growth and start driving the profitability again. And that's exactly what we've done over the last few quarters.”
  (Dr. Phares, [08:52])

• Expansion Plans

  • Moving beyond RVs into heavy-duty trucking and other industrial applications where off-grid, robust battery solutions are needed.

• Vision for U.S. Manufacturing

  • Plans to manufacture battery cells domestically in Nevada, leveraging the state’s rich lithium resources and government support for the “lithium loop”: extraction, production, use, and recycling—all in-state.

• Quote:

  “We're actually in a great place. We're in the state of Nevada where we're very proud of the infrastructure that we're building here... the ability to take lithium out of the ground, produce cells, packs, and then recycle the lithium. And that's all in the state of Nevada. So we're really proud to be part of this whole ecosystem.”
  (Dr. Phares, [09:50])

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

• “The most impactful way to bring that new tech or make the world a better place... is by having control of it, having a company leading that charge and bringing those solutions again to the world.”
  (Brian Thomas, [02:46])
• “You built out this strong brand initially which helped solidify your customer base when products came off the line... you are your own customer and I think that's pretty cool.”
  (Brian Thomas, [07:52])
• “Lithium ion batteries are well known to be manufactured primarily overseas. So it's an industry that has to be grown domestically.”
  (Dr. Phares, [09:23])

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:52 – Dr. Phares introduces his background and inspiration for founding Dragonfly Energy
• 03:28 – Discussing the unique go-to-market strategy with the Battle Born Batteries brand
• 05:49 – The importance and challenge of onshoring battery manufacturing and Dragonfly’s differentiated approach
• 08:52 – Operational results and future outlook: Expansion beyond RVs and into new markets
• 09:50 – The Nevada lithium ecosystem and Dragonfly’s commitment to domestic innovation

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Episode Tone & Takeaways

The conversation is pragmatic yet optimistic, highlighting the gritty realities of battery manufacturing, the importance of being revenue-focused, and the role of homegrown innovation in America’s energy future. Dr. Phares comes across as both visionary and grounded—a rare blend in the clean tech startup space. His drive to create real-world impact through innovation, paired with disciplined business strategy, underpins much of Dragonfly’s success story as told in this episode.

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For listeners seeking a blueprint for tech entrepreneurship in sustainable manufacturing or insights into the U.S. battery industry’s future, this episode offers concise, actionable inspiration.

Transcript

[A]

Foreign welcome to Coruscant Technologies, home of the Digital Executive Podcast. Welcome to the Digital Executive. Today's guest is Dr. Dennis Faris. Dr. Dennis Farris leads with a passion for making the planet more sustainable. As the president and Chief Executive officer of Dragonfly Energy Corporation, he focuses on developing revolutionary technologies that will change the way we store and harness renewable energy. As a visionary leader, Ferriss has helped grow Dragonfly Energy and its brand battleborn Batteries into one of the leading lithium ion products in the market, while also leading a world class R and D team in the advancement of groundbreaking technologies and manufacturing processes. Well, good afternoon, Dennis. Welcome to the show.

[B]

It's great to be here.

[A]

Absolutely, my friend. I appreciate it. You're hailing out of Reno, Nevada today. I'm in Kansas City, so just a couple hours apart, but I know sometimes it's hard to get on a call and, and make something when the time zones can be a challenge, so appreciate that. And Dennis, jumping into your first question, after a distinguished tenure as a professor at USC with deep expertise in energy, nanotechnology and fluid mechanics, what prompted your decision to leave academia in 2012 and found Dragonfly Energy? How did your academic background shape Dragonfly's innovative direction?

[B]

Well, Dragonfly Energy is a technology company, so my background, obviously as a, as an engineering professor is technology heavy. And I was always working on issues related to energy from a climate standpoint, from a device fabrication standpoint. And so as I was developing technologies, I kind of learned about patents and how to file patents and sort of the interaction between academia and commercializing patents. And I decided that the most impactful way for me to move forward if I was bringing new technology into the world, was to do it through my own company. So that was really the impetus initially. I actually started company a couple, actually as a professor, and then realized that it was really difficult to do both well. And so I took the step of leaving a tenured position and going full speed into business. And I wanted to do it right. So I did get an MBA and founded Dragonfly Energy, which was really focused on a way to produce lithium ion battery cells in a very efficient manner using the technology that I've been working on for decades.

[A]

Love the story. And the backstory is usually how these podcasts start. So I appreciate that, you know, developing technologies as an engineering professor is pretty cool, but you're absolutely right. And I'll just kind of repeat what you said is the most impactful way to bring that new tech or make the world a better place. Right. Is by having control of it having a company leading that charge and bringing those solutions again to the world. So I appreciate that. And Dennis, under your leadership, Dragonfly Energy and its battleborn Batteries brand have become leaders in the lithium ion market, especially in rv, marine and industrial off grid applications. How have you balanced R and D manufacturing and brand growth to achieve this status?

[B]

That's a great question because it's pretty unique for a technology company to really focus on going to market with a brand. And after getting an mba, one of the first things that I wanted to do in terms of starting a company was making money. After all, that is the point of a company. And tech companies, often especially hard tech companies, they, they tend to overlook the fact that the focus really should be on revenue rather than just going out and trying to get capital. That's a less risky way to run a tech company. So, yeah, we went to market early on. We established the Battle Born Batteries brand and we looked at various industries that we felt could really benefit from lithium ion battery technology. And the one that really percolated to the top early on was the RV market, where RV owners really did not like their lead acid batteries. We offered an alternative whereby they could really change the way they use their rv. It really could be more of an off grid activity rather than having to drive to, you know, a national park where you have to plug into a pedestal and run all your appliances. So when we brought battleborn Batteries to market, we really revolutionized an industry, which is a great way for a tech company to get started. Not only did it make us profitable, but it allowed us to fund the lithium ion battery manufacturing processes that we were developing and expand our patent portfolio and really made us a holistic lithium ion battery technology company.

[A]

Thank you. Really appreciate that. And I like how you said that your approach in coming to the market, you know, you were kind of unique for a tech company to bring their market come to the market with that brand. In your case, Battle Born Batteries. And. But you revolutionized the market. You offered something. What I took away from this was the RV market. You know, you offer them an alternative to the traditional batteries. And I think that was important and obviously that caught on and it is catching on. And Dennis, Dragonfly Energy has developed a proprietary dry electrode cell manufacturing technology and recently strengthened its protection through new intellectual property. Why do you believe this approach is key to enabling domestic battery competitiveness? And what gives you confidence that it can successfully scale where others have struggled?

[B]

Well, yeah, there's a couple things there. First of all, in order to be competitive while manufacturing Domestically, you really need to innovate in the manufacturing space. You really need to figure out how to make things more efficiently, more cost effectively, because quite frankly, it's just cheaper to make things elsewhere, especially in Asia, especially in China. You have cheaper labor, you've got less regulation, you've got more established infrastructure for manufacturing. So if you want to compete while manufacturing domestically, you have to have some sort of step, function change and improvement in how you manufacture. And that's exactly what served as the basis of the technology that Dragonfly Energy was developing. Now why do we think that we're going to be successful at that? It really has to do with the uniqueness of the company and that we established the brand, we established the market first. So when we are manufacturing cells domestically, we actually have a place to put those cells. We don't have to go look for customers because we've already found them. And in fact we're our own customer. We assemble battery packs today and today we're using cells that we have to outsource. But ultimately when we are on shoring the production of the CE cells, we're going to keep the, the assembly process intact and then deliver fully American made battery packs to our existing markets. And I think that's something that lithium ion battery companies, especially technology companies outside of Asia, have really struggled with, is finding the offtake for their products before they spend the hundreds of millions of dollars to build a gigafactory. And that's, you know, there's, there's a long list of companies that have struggled trying to do it in that sequence. And I think what Dragonfly is doing is very much different and probably the right way to go about it because ultimately you get the offtake first, then you build the manufacturing plant and you know you've got a place to put your product.

[A]

Thank you. I think that's important. A different perspective. Of course. I did highlight, in order for you to be competitive in this market manufacturing, you need to be able to innovate in this space. It's important. Performance improvement is constant in this space as well. But I like what I also heard is you built out this strong brand initially which helped solidify your customer base when products came off the line. And the last thing that I thought was pretty neat was, you know, you are your own customer and I think that's pretty cool. Appreciate you definitely being a player in this space. And Dennis, the last question of the day. As of July 2025, Dragonfly reported a 23% year over year growth in Q2 sales and reducing its adjusted EBITDA loss, signaling progress towards profitability and operational strength. Looking ahead, where do you see Dragonfly in the next five years, particularly in terms of commercial adoption of your battery, tech rid integration and impact on the renewable transition?

[B]

Well, first I'll say that Dragonfly has a history of profitability. You know, we've been profitable for years before the company bec became a public company. And as interest rates rose, the RV industry experienced a pretty significant post Covid correction. So one thing that's really nice about being able to have a company that has revenue is that we can focus on revenue growth and start driving the profitability again. And that's exactly what we've done over the last few quarters. And now we're seeing the benefits of that because we're starting to grow into our core RV market while expanding into adjacent markets like heavy duty trucking, other industries that we know are ripe for our solutions. And now we've got a brand and a track record and a history of execution. So it really is important to have a functioning company when you're doing technology, because not only does it allow you to stay alive as a technology company, but it allows you to grow the markets where you're going to ultimately sell your product when you're making, when you're onshoring production of the of the core components like the lithium ion battery cells. So in the longer term, in the next five years, of course, we expect to be manufacturing our own cells. That opens up a huge array of new markets that are more specifically dependent on domestic sources. Lithium ion batteries are well known to be manufactured primarily overseas. So it's an industry that has to be grown domestically. The infrastructure needs to continue to grow. And we're actually in a great place. We're in the state of Nevada where we're very proud of the infrastructure that we're building here. There's a lot of lithium in the ground here. The state government is very dedicated to what they call the lithium loop, the ability to take lithium out of the ground, produce cells, packs, and then recycle the lithium. And that's all in the state of Nevada. So we're really proud to be part of this whole ecosystem.

[A]

That's awesome. And I'm glad that obviously you had the resources there in the state, but the state is making that easier for you to do that. But I did want to highlight a couple things. As you mentioned, Dragonfly has always been a profitable company, but this, because of that, allows you to drive more revenue growth in what you're doing and expand. And you are expanding beyond the RV space into the heavy equipment and transportation, as you mentioned. But what I really like to hear, the last thing I'll just say, is you expect to be manufacturing your own cells in the coming years, and that's great for onshore manufacturing and labor. As you know, there's been a lot of controversy in the news about tariffs, et cetera. But I think in the long term, having a lot of our manufacturing back here in the States makes a lot of sense, and I appreciate the fact that you'll be part of that. And, Dennis, it was just certainly a pleasure having you on today, and I look forward to speaking with you real soon.

[B]

Thanks for having me on, Brian.

[A]

Bye for now.