{"id":4976,"date":"2026-08-18T10:45:34","date_gmt":"2026-08-18T08:45:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lead.se\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/"},"modified":"2026-08-18T11:37:04","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T09:37:04","slug":"daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/","title":{"rendered":"Daring to Rethink \u2013 Grafren\u2019s Journey Through LEAD"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Nine out of ten startups fail\u2014but what counts as a failure isn\u2019t always clear. For Grafren, the journey has been less about sticking to an idea and more about daring to change it time and time again. This past summer, the company was kicked out of LEAD\u2014a traditional rite of passage\u2014and is now ready for the next chapter.<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When the startup Grafren joined LEAD, the founders had a promising technology but no fully developed business model. Today, they are developing advanced materials for defense-related applications and have left the incubator to move on to the next phase of growth. The journey to this point has been marked by repeated reevaluations and an approach in which ideas are constantly tested, adjusted, and sometimes abandoned entirely.  <\/p>\n<p><span data-markjs=\"true\">Erik<\/span> Khranovskyy, CEO and co-founder, believes that the perception of failure in the startup world is often oversimplified.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think people are looking at it the wrong way. It\u2019s not the startup that fails\u2014it\u2019s the idea. To succeed, you have to be prepared to change it. We\u2019ve done that many times along the way\u2014probably a hundred times,\u201d he says.   <\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Behind Grafren are <span data-markjs=\"true\">Erik<\/span> Khranovskyy and Mykhailo Zhybak, both engineers with backgrounds in graphene research at Link\u00f6ping University.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Their research led to the development of a patented chemical process that makes it possible to produce a graphene powder that can be mixed with water. The result is a kind of \u201cink\u201d that can be applied to textiles and other materials, giving them new electrical and protective properties. <\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>From Research to Business<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In connection with the patent, they came into contact with LEAD and participated in the <a href=\"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/bootup\/\">BootUp<\/a> business development program. That\u2019s where the transition from research to business began, but it would take several years before the business found its more stable form. During its time in the incubator, Grafren worked simultaneously on developing its technology, market, and organization.  <\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Today, the company has four full-time employees, a couple of part-time employees, and an office in downtown Link\u00f6ping. In recent years, their technology has attracted interest, particularly in the defense sector, as reported by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.breakit.se\/artikel\/46402\/hemlig-mantel-skapas-av-grafren-i-linkoping-amerikanska-armen-horde-av-sig-direkt\">Breakit<\/a>, among others. At the same time, the company sees more potential applications in the future.  <\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cEverything from electronic solutions in the automotive industry to radiation protection for astronauts in space could become relevant in the long run,\u201d says <span data-markjs=\"true\">Erik<\/span> Khranovskyy.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>When Research Meets the Market<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For <span data-markjs=\"true\">Erik<\/span>, the transition from academia to entrepreneurship was a gradual one. The difference between developing a viable technology and building a commercial company only became clear when it was time to bring the technology to market. <\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2013 As a researcher, it\u2019s easy to feel that 90 percent of the work is done once the technology works. But in reality, you\u2019ve only just begun the journey. It\u2019s only when someone is willing to pay for the solution that you actually have a business.  <\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Support from LEAD<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">During his time at LEAD, Grafren has worked closely with several business coaches. Erik says that this outside perspective has been an important part of the company\u2019s development. <\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2013 As an entrepreneur, it\u2019s easy to get caught up in the momentum. That\u2019s why it\u2019s invaluable to have people around you who ask the right questions, challenge your thinking, and help you see both opportunities and risks. <\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8220;The sense of community with other entrepreneurs has also meant a lot,&#8221; he says.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2013 LEAD isn\u2019t just a business incubator; this is where you build companies. Being part of a community where others are grappling with similar challenges has been incredibly valuable. <\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Over time, attitudes toward pace have also changed. Whereas there used to be a strong desire for faster development, a more accepting view of uncertainty has emerged. <\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2013 For a long time, I wished things would move faster. But over time, I\u2019ve come to realize that uncertainty and stress are a natural part of life as an entrepreneur. You learn to deal with them and use them as a driving force.  <\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Next Step<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In June, Grafren left the incubator and <a href=\"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/grafren-and-roxen-innovations-are-ready-for-the-next-chapter\/\">received LEAD\u2019s Golden Shoe<\/a> \u2014an award that signifies a company\u2019s readiness for the next phase. The focus moving forward is on continued growth, attracting more customers, and building an organization that can stand on its own, independent of its founders. <\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2013 We\u2019ve shifted our focus from building the business to building the organization. The goal is to create a company that isn\u2019t dependent on any one person, but can continue to grow in a sustainable way. <\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span data-markjs=\"true\">Erik<\/span> has some clear advice for entrepreneurs who have just begun their journey in LEAD.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2013 If you don\u2019t know where you\u2019re going, you\u2019ll never get there. Set clear goals\u2014both for your business and for your life\u2014and make sure they\u2019re aligned. And take advantage of the LEAD community, because there\u2019s a lot to learn from the people around you\u2014but never forget why you\u2019re there.  <\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><em>Pictured: Erik Khranovskyy and his lab partner Iryna Kravchuck. Photo: Lisa \u00d6gren <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Nine out of ten startups fail\u2014but what counts as a failure isn\u2019t always clear. For Grafren, the journey has been less about sticking to an idea and more about daring to change it time and time again. This past summer, the company was kicked out of LEAD\u2014a traditional rite of passage\u2014and is now ready for [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[534],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4976","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-counts"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.5 (Yoast SEO v27.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Daring to Rethink \u2013 Grafren\u2019s Journey Through LEAD - LEAD<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Daring to Rethink \u2013 Grafren\u2019s Journey Through LEAD\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Nine out of ten startups fail\u2014but what counts as a failure isn\u2019t always clear. For Grafren, the journey has been less about sticking to an idea and more about daring to change it time and time again. This past summer, the company was kicked out of LEAD\u2014a traditional rite of passage\u2014and is now ready for [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"LEAD\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-08-18T08:45:34+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-18T09:37:04+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Malin Nyberg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Malin Nyberg\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Malin Nyberg\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/lead.se\/#\/schema\/person\/c027f7aa7debee6d9464870d05034c09\"},\"headline\":\"Daring to Rethink \u2013 Grafren\u2019s Journey Through LEAD\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-18T08:45:34+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-08-18T09:37:04+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/\"},\"wordCount\":854,\"articleSection\":[\"Counts\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/\",\"name\":\"Daring to Rethink \u2013 Grafren\u2019s Journey Through LEAD - LEAD\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/lead.se\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-18T08:45:34+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-08-18T09:37:04+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/lead.se\/#\/schema\/person\/c027f7aa7debee6d9464870d05034c09\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Hem\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/home\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Daring to Rethink \u2013 Grafren\u2019s Journey Through LEAD\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/lead.se\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/lead.se\/\",\"name\":\"LEAD\",\"description\":\"F\u00f6r tech-start som vill v\u00e4xa snabbare och s\u00e4krare.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/lead.se\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/lead.se\/#\/schema\/person\/c027f7aa7debee6d9464870d05034c09\",\"name\":\"Malin Nyberg\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/lead.se\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4932c2505bf6bad778330ab0f4e17ecde973adf82a5803aeb3b0a46a14a25158?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4932c2505bf6bad778330ab0f4e17ecde973adf82a5803aeb3b0a46a14a25158?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Malin Nyberg\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/author\/malin\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Daring to Rethink \u2013 Grafren\u2019s Journey Through LEAD - LEAD","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Daring to Rethink \u2013 Grafren\u2019s Journey Through LEAD","og_description":"Nine out of ten startups fail\u2014but what counts as a failure isn\u2019t always clear. For Grafren, the journey has been less about sticking to an idea and more about daring to change it time and time again. This past summer, the company was kicked out of LEAD\u2014a traditional rite of passage\u2014and is now ready for [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/","og_site_name":"LEAD","article_published_time":"2026-08-18T08:45:34+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-08-18T09:37:04+00:00","author":"Malin Nyberg","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Malin Nyberg","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/"},"author":{"name":"Malin Nyberg","@id":"https:\/\/lead.se\/#\/schema\/person\/c027f7aa7debee6d9464870d05034c09"},"headline":"Daring to Rethink \u2013 Grafren\u2019s Journey Through LEAD","datePublished":"2026-08-18T08:45:34+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-18T09:37:04+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/"},"wordCount":854,"articleSection":["Counts"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/","url":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/","name":"Daring to Rethink \u2013 Grafren\u2019s Journey Through LEAD - LEAD","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/lead.se\/#website"},"datePublished":"2026-08-18T08:45:34+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-18T09:37:04+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/lead.se\/#\/schema\/person\/c027f7aa7debee6d9464870d05034c09"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/daring-to-rethink-grafrens-journey-through-lead\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Hem","item":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/home\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Daring to Rethink \u2013 Grafren\u2019s Journey Through LEAD"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/lead.se\/#website","url":"https:\/\/lead.se\/","name":"LEAD","description":"F\u00f6r tech-start som vill v\u00e4xa snabbare och s\u00e4krare.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/lead.se\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/lead.se\/#\/schema\/person\/c027f7aa7debee6d9464870d05034c09","name":"Malin Nyberg","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/lead.se\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4932c2505bf6bad778330ab0f4e17ecde973adf82a5803aeb3b0a46a14a25158?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4932c2505bf6bad778330ab0f4e17ecde973adf82a5803aeb3b0a46a14a25158?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Malin Nyberg"},"url":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/author\/malin\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4976","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4976"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4976\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5018,"href":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4976\/revisions\/5018"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4976"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4976"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lead.se\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4976"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}