Dive Brief:
- American Battery Technology Co. has named Steven Wu as its new COO, effective Sept. 16, according to an Aug. 25 securities filing.
- Wu will succeed Andrés Meza, who has been in the role since July 2021. Meza’s last day was Sept. 1. He left to “pursue other opportunities,” according to an Aug. 26 press release.
- As ABTC’s new COO, Wu will oversee the company’s manufacturing operations and work with leadership teams on growth initiatives, according to the release.
Dive Insight:
Part of Wu’s duties will be to oversee the company’s escalation of commissioning and ramping up its first integrated lithium-ion battery recycling facility and the primary claystone-to-lithium-hydroxide pilot plant.
Wu will also manage the developed technologies within the battery materials manufacturing space as well as oversee the building of ABTC’s organizational and operational structures, according to the release.
Wu has an extensive background in scaling up manufacturing operations. He currently serves as Rivian’s director of product, programs, systems and triage and has been with the automaker since August 2023, according to his LinkedIn. He led the company’s endeavors to ramp products, as well as built and managed collaborations with key customers and suppliers.
Before joining Rivan, Wu was the head of new product introduction, manufacturing and quality and strategic partnerships at autonomous vehicle startup Nuro. During his five years there, he spearheaded revenue generation, OEM collaborations, manufacturing and process improvements, commissioned facilities and the scale-up of Nuro’s in-house production.
Wu also served in other operations and supply chain roles at Uber and Apple Inc.
Wu will have a starting salary of $300,000 and a yearly cash bonus worth 75% of his salary when ABTC reaches certain milestones, according to his offer letter.
