ABSTRACT: A dramatic shift is underway in mining. Changes in geopolitics, technology, and a generational divide have created huge problems – and opportunities – in the industry. Silicon Valley, Saudi Arabia, and other emerging financial centers are capitalizing on these opportunities by backing new entrants like KoBold Metals and Fleet Space Technologies. Can the traditional mine finance centers in Toronto and Sydney maintain their dominance? In this talk, we’ll explore these fundamental shifts, and the opportunities they create, in more detail. We’ll demonstrate, with real-world case studies, ExploreTech’s approach to navigating this world – combining boots-on-ground work with software that helps field teams move 10x faster. In addition, we’ll highlight a few other companies and technologies to keep an eye on. Finally, we’ll dig into the big question of whether the new entrants are prepared for the real-world challenges of mining – or if they’re doomed to make the same mistakes of the past.
BIOGRAPHY: Alex Miltenberger is an entrepreneur and geophysicist in the mineral exploration industry. He was inspired to pursue a career in mining during his undergraduate studies at Michigan Tech, located in the historic Keweenaw copper district. After Michigan Tech, he attended Stanford University, where he completed a PhD in geophysics. Upon graduating from Stanford, Alex worked as a computational geoscientist for Rio Tinto Exploration before co-founding ExploreTech, a mineral exploration company that uses software to speed up discovery timelines.
