Co-Founder, Spectra Plasmonics: Christian Baldwin

(1) Who are you and what do you do?
My name is Christian Baldwin and I am one of the Co-Founders of Spectra Plasmonics.
 
(2) In two sentences or less, describe how you participate in the startup ecosystem.
I started my company Spectra Plasmonics at the Queen’s Innovation Connector summer program which is a University run incubator. We are currently working on tools that allow cities to measure, monitor and manage the opioid crisis.
 
(3) What are you currently reading right now and would recommend to others?
I’ve been listening to a ton of audio books recently as I’ve been driving more and the best book I have completed is The End is Always Near, by Dan Carlin. It goes over multiple periods in history where cataclysmic events have caused technological regression. I always enjoy when the author is the narrator for their audiobook and his passion for the subject made it an incredible listen.
 
(4) What makes you stay in the startup ecosystem?
I love working in an environment that is constantly evolving. Anything that resembles stagnation or repetition can be an immediate turnoff so working in a fast-paced growth focused start up is really satisfying.
 
(5) What drives your passion about the startup ecosystem?
I spend the majority of my time on product. This means I get to spend an equal amount of my week with the engineering team as I do with our end users. It’s a very satisfying process to find pain points and then work with my team to build out features that address these issues. That feedback loop is extremely gratifying to see play out and is what keeps me invested in our mission.  
 
(6) Where do you see the startup ecosystem in 5 years?
The concentration of talent and capital in San Francisco will always be undeniable, but I think work from home is more than just a trend of the moment and will outlast the pandemic meaning a more decentralized workforce across North America and abroad. As a Canadian I’m happy to say that we are well positioned to take advantage of these trends.
 
(7) How has failure, or apparent failure, set you up for later success?
For our first development project, which was for a marijuana breathalyzer, we did not get the results we wanted, so we had to pivot. Closing that first chapter of our company was difficult. It felt like this one failure was going to define the rest of our company’s story. Over time some of the learnings from that project became essential to the product we are currently working on. For me, the biggest takeaway is that nothing is ever as bad as it seems. It really helps to put things into perspective especially because starting a company has so many ups and downs.
 
(8) What do you do to refocus yourself when you feel overwhelmed or unfocused?
It’s a very non-original answer but for me its going for a run. It’s a great way to clear my head and refocus.
 
(9) What’s one piece of advice you would give someone trying to break into the startup ecosystem?
When you start out, be a sponge for information and advice, as you need to learn quickly in order to avoid any fatal errors during that beginning phase. As you make progress keep absorbing information, but make sure to flex your convictions more. A commonality in founders I respect is a deep belief in their vision and their abilities.