When paramedics guess patient weight in the field, lives are at risk. What began as a college project for Tristan Hazlett turned into Hinckley Medical a hard-tech, FDA-regulated medical device company bringing real-time patient-weight measurement to ambulances across the U.S.

In this episode, DeAndre and Grant sit down with Tristan to unpack one of the most fascinating hard-tech origin stories we’ve ever featured. From early prototypes that smoked on power-up to solving complex statics equations, waterproofing nightmares, FDA requirements, and real-world field testing, Tristan shares the full journey of building hardware for one of the harshest environments on earth: the back of an ambulance.

We dive into:

Why weight estimation errors can mean life or death in EMS

How Hinckley built an 18-sensor load-cell platform that works at any gurney angle

The engineering breakthroughs (and failures) that shaped the product

What it takes to build FDA-compliant hardware as a first-time founder

Lessons from scaling manufacturing, fundraising, and growing a 10-person hard-tech team

The emotional rollercoaster of building regulated medical hardware from scratch

Why embracing the suck is the only path in real hard tech

If you love stories about real engineering, high-stakes environments, founder grit, and hardware that actually saves lives this is one you won’t forget.

Special Guest: Tristen Hazlett.