# Eric McShane

> Eric McShane is the co-founder and CEO of Electroflow Technologies, a San Bruno startup turning dilute saltwater brines into battery-ready lithium with an electrochemical process that collapses a ten-step mining chain into three. A UC Berkeley PhD and former Stanford postdoc, he is betting that the missing ingredient for cheap American batteries (LFP, which is 99% made in China) can be made domestically for 40% less. Electroflow has raised about $13 million from Union Square Ventures, Voyager Ventures and Breakthrough Energy, and reports lithium recovery rates near 96% versus the 40-60% typical of evaporation ponds.

- **Role:** Co-Founder and CEO at Electroflow Technologies
- **Organizations:** Electroflow Technologies, Breakthrough Energy, Stanford University, UC Berkeley, Cornell University
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** B.S., Chemical Engineering, Cornell University, PhD, Chemical Engineering (advisor: Bryan McCloskey), University of California, Berkeley, Postdoctoral Scholar, Cargnello Group, Stanford University
- **Known for:** Co-founded and leads Electroflow Technologies, raising roughly $13M to date., Reduced lithium extraction from a ten-step process to three using lithium-selective electrodes., Reports ~96% lithium recovery from dilute brines versus 40-60% for evaporation ponds.

## Career timeline

- **2016** — Earns B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Cornell; awarded NSF Graduate Research Fellowship.
- **2021** — Completes PhD at UC Berkeley with a thesis on graphite interphasial species and fast charging.
- **2021** — Joins the Cargnello Group at Stanford as a postdoc and meets co-founder Evan Gardner.
- **2023** — Co-founds Electroflow Technologies and is named a Breakthrough Energy Fellow.
- **2024** — Raises $2.8M pre-seed round.
- **2025** — Validates technology on geothermal brine in California; raises $10M seed led by Union Square Ventures and Voyager Ventures.

## Achievements

- Co-founded and leads Electroflow Technologies, raising roughly $13M to date.
- Reduced lithium extraction from a ten-step process to three using lithium-selective electrodes.
- Reports ~96% lithium recovery from dilute brines versus 40-60% for evaporation ponds.
- Targets LFP battery material at 40% below Chinese cost (<$2,500 per metric ton at full scale).
- Named a Breakthrough Energy Fellow (2023).
- Co-authored over 20 peer-reviewed papers cited more than 1,500 times.
- NSF Graduate Research Fellow; Marquis Who's Who honoree (2025).

## Latest updates

- **2025-07** — Appeared on the CleanTechies Podcast (Ep. 252) discussing US battery policy and Electroflow's roadmap.
- **2025-10** — Announced a $10M seed round and unveiled plans to make LFP for 40% less than Chinese producers.

## Links

- Website: https://www.eflowtech.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-eflow/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/eric-mcshane
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-24