Two scientists, one glass thermometer, and a notebook: Alok Tayi saw a business in the awkward mechanics of an ordinary experiment. His route from materials science to TetraScience reveals a founder drawn to the work that gets in the way of the work.
He hired his first employee as the dot-com boom was coming apart. From Rearden Commerce to Deem to TetraScience, Patrick Grady has kept returning to a stubborn question: why must people do the work their software ought to handle?