With 39 million raised to date that's a lot of figuring.

https://www.google.com/search?q=niron+magnetics+funding

How much does a magnet factory cost? How big is the market? Does the market expand if the cost drops by a factor of 2? Of an order of magnitude?

I have no idea of the scale, except that rare earth element production appears to be about 250000 tonnes per year.

A typical magnet manufacturing installation is a few hundred K of Capital expense. You need to have a way to create blanks and then you need a way to magnetize the blanks. The usual method in a nutshell:

- combine the powdered raw materials in a die

- compress the powder to create a blank

- coat the blank to prevent oxidization

- magnetize the blank using a powerful electromagnetic field

- QA to ensure proper field strength and inspect for damage

I wonder what the hang-up here is.