Michelle Wang, an engineer working to develop next-generation magnetic materials that could unlock new opportunities in technology, research, and business, is the winner of a 2024 O’Shaughnessy Fellowship Grant. (Photo: Michelle Wang/PRNewswire)
O’Shaughnessy Ventures awarded Michelle Wang a $100,000 grant to continue her work in developing next-generation magnetic materials.
GREENWICH, Conn.—O’Shaughnessy Ventures LLC (OSV) reported that it awarded an O’Shaughnessy Fellowship to Michelle Wang, an engineer based in New York, to continue to develop 3D-printed magnets.
O’Shaughnessy Ventures is an investment firm that aims to inspire and empower creators to bring their ideas to life. The Fellowship is “a one-year program for ambitious people who want to build something great,” OSV said in a release.
Wang aims to improve manufacturing methods by enabling faster, low-waste magnet production and the creation of novel magnetic structures. A 3D-printed magnet would represent one of the most significant leaps in magnetic technology in more than 40 years and enable a range of new technologies, research projects, and business opportunities, the release stated.
An electrical engineering graduate from the California Institute of Technology, Wang is an experienced engineer who has helped build items such as prostheses and underwater robots. She began researching new ways to create magnetic materials in 2023 after leaving her engineering job to research power grid issues independently.
In January 2024, she received a fifteen-week Brains Fellowship from the nonprofit research organization Speculative Technologies (founded by OSV Advisory Council member Benjamin Reinhardt), where she developed a research proposal and began conducting experiments in her home laboratory.
O’Shaughnessy Ventures Founder and CEO Jim O’Shaughnessy said that magnets “are a key component of the manufacturing process.”
“By improving magnetic technology, we could unlock all kinds of exciting new opportunities. We were extremely impressed by Michelle’s vision and experience, and [we] look forward to supporting her with this project over the coming months,” he said in the release.
In 2024, OSV will award ten $100,000 Fellowships. O’Shaughnessy Fellows receive a $100,000 grant and access to OSV’s network of founders, investors, and experts to support them in bringing their projects to life. Applications for the 2024 Fellowships are now closed, and applications for 2025 will reopen on January 1, 2025, the release stated.
“I’m grateful to the OSV team for this opportunity, and for taking big bets on garage tinkering and early stage ideas,” said Wang. “I’m excited to develop new manufacturing methods for magnets, which I hope will expand our technological capabilities.”