Sanzhar Taizhan

Sanzhar Taizhan is a Kazakh entrepreneur and engineer who grew up in Almaty, Kazakhstan with an early passion for cars and a determination to build his own automotive company. At the age of five he had already decided on the name TaiSan for his future business. His parents, understanding his ambitions, sent him to the UK for summer schools and A-levels, and he went on to study Automotive Engineering at the University of Warwick, graduating in 2022.

During his undergraduate years, Sanzhar combined technical study with entrepreneurial activity. He founded and led Warwick Boring and Warwick Hyperloop — two University of Warwick student teams that competed in Elon Musk's Hyperloop and Not-A-Boring competitions, reaching the top four globally out of 400 applicants. He also undertook research placements at The Faraday Institution and Jaguar Land Rover's Advanced Battery Research Team, where he developed expertise in battery materials and electrochemistry that would directly inform the founding of TaiSan. He presented his early work on battery technology to the President, Prime Minister, and Minister of Transport of Kazakhstan, and was named on the Forbes Kazakhstan 30 Under 30 list.

In 2022, Sanzhar founded TaiSan to develop quasi-solid-state sodium batteries for the electric vehicle industry. The company's proprietary polymer electrolyte and metal anode system targets automotive-grade energy density with a projected 20 percent cost saving over lithium-ion, using sustainable materials and manufacturing processes compatible with existing battery production infrastructure. TaiSan received nearly £500,000 in government and research funding from the Department for Transport, The Faraday Institution, Innovate UK, the Advanced Propulsion Centre, and the Royal Academy of Engineering before raising its £1.3 million pre-seed round.

Sanzhar was awarded a Royal Academy of Engineering Enterprise Fellowship following his graduation. In 2023, he spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron and HRH Princess Anne about TaiSan's battery technology. He has been recognised with multiple UK battery awards and is passionate about inspiring a new generation of engineers in Kazakhstan, cultivating a social media presence with over 35,000 followers whose posts regularly appear in Kazakh national news.