Aflevering How A Female Founder Is Fixing Solar Energy's Hidden Waste Problem With Andjela Bozinac | Ep. 154

The solar panels going up on rooftops everywhere are solving one problem, and quietly creating another. This episode is for female founders, women in tech, and anyone building at the intersection of sustainability and deep technology. Host Dirkjan talks with Andjela Bozinac, co-founder and CEO of Renovo Recycling. Andjela is building a modular, chemical-free system that uses Physical AI and robotics to deconstruct end-of-life solar panels and recover high-value materials like aluminum, silicon, and glass. Andjela's path combines mechanical engineering, intellectual property thinking, and a black belt in Taekwondo. She applies the same discipline she learned on the mat to building deep tech: showing up anyway, treating failure as feedback, and designing not just for what works in the lab, but for what gets adopted in the real world. In this episode, you'll hear: - Why solar energy is scaling fast while quietly creating a waste problem we don't know how to handle yet - How Renovo's "vending machine in reverse" approach recovers materials without crushing or chemicals - Why getting technology to work is only 30% of the journey — and what the other 70% actually requires - How to sell urgency in deep tech without selling the future - Why regulation in climate tech is a market, not a barrier - Why now is the moment for women to enter AI and robotics, while the rules are still being written Andjela also shares hard-won lessons from her first startup, TreeBlock, and how shifting from building the solution to building the right path to adoption changed everything about how she runs Renovo. Chapters: 00:00 Introduction 03:00 Andjela’s Founder Journey 06:02 Engineering Background and Its Impact on Entrepreneurship 08:40 Lessons from Previous Ventures: TreeBlock Experience 11:38 The Problem of Solar Panel Waste and Recycling Challenges 14:38 Identifying the Core Issues in Solar Panel Recycling 17:34 Innovative Solutions for Solar Panel Deconstruction 20:20 Modular Systems and Their Advantages in Recycling 21:19 Targeting Solar Installers: A Strategic Approach 23:51 Current Status and Future Plans for Renovo Recycling 24:02 The Role of AI in Physical Recycling 27:18 Preparing for the Solar Waste Surge 30:23 Fundraising in Deeptech 34:50 Convincing Stakeholders of Urgency 37:38 Regulatory Support and Compliance 39:04 Expanding Beyond Solar Panels 40:58 Practical Insights for Founders 45:30 Empowering Women in Tech 49:37 Building a Supportive Funding Ecosystem Connect with Andjela Bozinac and Renovo Recycling LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bozinac-andjela24/ Website: https://www.renovo-recycling.it/ Renovo on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@renovosrl Check out the show notes on https://womendisruptingtech.blog/2026/05/28/episode-154/ Women Disrupting Tech on Substack https://open.substack.com/pub/womendisruptingtech/p/episode-154?r=2v0lts&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true Enjoyed this episode? Follow Women Disrupting Tech on Spotify so you never miss a conversation with the women and ecosystem builders shaping the next generation of technology.