Podcasts about climatetech

In dieser Folge ist Ilan zu Gast bei Ucaneo in Berlin-Marzahn, am Schwarze-Pumpe-Weg, wo gerade die größte Direct-Air-Capture-Anlage Deutschlands entsteht. Ilan spricht mit Florian, Mitgründer und Geschäftsführer von Ucaneo, über eine Technologie, die CO2 direkt aus der Luft filtert, inspiriert von der menschlichen Lunge. Statt klassischer hitzebasierter Verfahren setzt Ucaneo auf einen elektrochemischen Prozess, der über 50 Prozent energieeffizienter arbeitet und sich flexibel an erneuerbare Energien anpassen lässt. Wir sprechen darüber, wie Florian und seine Mitgründerin Carla mit 15.000 Euro Eigenkapital und Aquarienpumpen im Labor gestartet sind, in zwei Monaten 1,3 Millionen Euro eingesammelt haben und heute mit 27 Leuten und 17 Millionen Euro Risikokapital eine komplett neue Industrie aufbauen. Themen der Folge: Wie elektrochemische DAC-Technologie funktioniert und warum sie so effizient ist Warum Ucaneo Anfang 2023 die komplette Technologie umstellen musste Wie der CO2-Markt funktioniert: freiwillige Zertifikate, EU-ETS und Contracts for Differences Warum CO2 in Zukunft ein knapper Rohstoff werden könnte Use Cases von Zement über Bier bis zu synthetischen Treibstoffen Zusammenarbeit mit der Öl- und Gasindustrie und wie das Team damit umgeht Integration von DAC-Anlagen in den Strommarkt als flexible Last Politische Hebel: warum DAC in den EU-ETS gehört Wie man als Gründer sane bleibt Am 2. Juli eröffnet Ucaneo die Anlage in Berlin-Marzahn inklusive CO2 Store of the Future. Mehr zu Ucaneo: https://ucaneo.com Kontakt: hello@ucaneo.com Querverweise: Folge 39 mit Benjamin Schulz (Carbon Removal Partners), Ucaneos erstem Investor Folge 49 mit Stefan Permin (Universal Cell) zum Thema Batteriespeicher

In this episode, Luke Oberlander, shares insights from his journey through health technology and climate innovation, discussing the challenges of scaling new solutions, driving adoption, and creating long-term impact through operational excellence and cross-functional leadership.

Get in touch - leave me a messageNo one wants to ship water around the world. That one line says a lot about the next phase of energy storage.In this episode of Climate Confident, I'm joined by Min Tang, Director of International Business at Rongke Power, one of the world's leading vanadium flow battery companies. We get into why long-duration storage is moving from climate tech side-story to core grid infrastructure, and why that matters for decarbonisation, energy transition planning, net zero delivery, emissions reduction, and policy.You'll hear why vanadium flow batteries are not trying to replace lithium-ion batteries, and why that matters. Different problem. Different tool. Min explains how flow batteries can run for more than 20,000 cycles, retain capacity over decades, and support grid-scale black start, the kind of resilience that becomes rather important when grids are asked to absorb more renewables, power more electrification, and stay upright while demand from industry and AI data centres grows.We dig into the economics too: why storage duration changes cost, how electrolyte leasing can cut upfront CapEx, and why local supply chains could become a major strategic advantage. You might be shocked to learn that localisation is baked into this technology because the electrolyte is mostly water. Glamorous? No. Important? Absolutely.

In this episode, Luke Oberlander, shares insights from his journey through health technology and climate innovation, discussing the challenges of scaling new solutions, driving adoption, and creating long-term impact through operational excellence and cross-functional leadership.

The data says we're making real progress on climate. So why does the conversation still feel like we're losing, and what does it mean to finally separate the signal from the noise? Joe Speicher didn't arrive at Autodesk's Chief Sustainability Officer role through a conventional channel. Deutsche Bank, the Peace Corps in the Philippines, impact investing — each stop informed how he thinks about deploying capital and measuring what actually changes. That background matters now more than ever, because the sustainability conversation, he argues, has too often been happening at the wrong altitude. Organizations set targets, publish disclosures, and track compliance. Meanwhile, the real decisions — how a building gets designed, which materials get specified, how early-stage procurement choices lock in carbon for decades — happen elsewhere, mostly without sustainability in the room. Autodesk's software sits upstream in that process, shaping choices before ground is ever broken in industries responsible for roughly 40% of global emissions. "Sustainability cannot be a sidecar," Speicher says. It has to be embedded in the tools people use every day, making it everyone's job rather than one team's report. He also makes the case for reading the data honestly: 40% of global electricity now comes from renewables and nuclear, 43 countries have peak emissions behind them, and $2.3 trillion was invested in the energy transition in 2025. Are you building your strategy around the signals — or the noise?Joe Speicher is Chief Sustainability Officer at Autodesk, where he leads global ESG strategy and works to embed carbon intelligence across the tools used by architects, engineers, contractors, and asset operators — industries collectively responsible for roughly 40% of global emissions. His path to the role was anything but direct: he began his career in finance at Deutsche Bank, served in the Peace Corps in the Philippines, and spent years working at the intersection of impact investing and corporate philanthropy before becoming Autodesk's CSO. That cross-sector background — finance, development, technology — shapes how he approaches sustainability as a strategic business function rather than a compliance obligation, focused on translating climate risk into decisions that drive measurable resilience and performance. In This Episode:  (00:00) Joe Speicher's unconventional path to climate leadership (03:26) From Deutsche Bank and Peace Corps to leading Autodesk's sustainability strategy (06:41) Why a finance and development background sharpens climate decision-making (09:20) Reading the real signals: global emissions progress and the economics driving change (12:05) Moving from commitments to action: embedding carbon intelligence into daily workflows (14:11) Climate adaptation, wildfire recovery, and the CSO as strategic operator Share with someone who would enjoy this topic, like and subscribe to hear all of our future episodes, send us your comments and guest suggestions! About the show:  The Age of Adoption podcast explores the monumental transition from a period of social, economic, and environmental research and exploration – an Age of Innovation – to today's world in which companies across the economy are furiously deploying sustainable solutions – the Age of Adoption. Listen as our host, Keith Zakheim, CEO of Antenna Group, talks with experts from across the climate, energy, health, and real estate sectors to discuss what the transition means for business and society, and how corporates and startups can rise above competitors to lead in this new age.  This podcast is brought to you by Antenna Group, a global marketing and communications agency that partners with Fully Conscious brands — those with the courage to lead transformative change across Climate & Energy, Real Estate, Health, and beyond. Our clients include visionary corporations, startups, investors, and nonprofits who recognize that meaningful impact requires more than awareness; it demands bold action. In today's Age of Adoption, where every sector must incorporate sustainable solutions into foundational systems, we amplify brands standing at the forefront of change, shaping a better future for our planet and its people. To learn more, visit antennagroup.com. Resources: Joe Speicher: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joespeicher/Antenna GroupKeith Zakheim LinkedIn

Get in touch - leave me a messageWhat if the biggest greenwashing risk isn't bad intent, but business-as-usual marketing?In this episode of Climate Confident, I'm joined by Helen Neal, founder of HN Communications, to dig into one of the most under-discussed risks in decarbonisation: how companies talk about sustainability when regulation is tightening, public trust is fragile, and every net zero claim is being scrutinised. This matters because the energy transition will not be carried by technology alone. Climate tech, policy, capital, supply chains, and public confidence all depend on credible communication.You'll hear why traditional corporate messaging can push companies into unintentional greenwashing, why greenhushing is not a safe escape route, and why sustainability claims increasingly need the discipline of financial reporting: clear evidence, third-party verification, and language that can survive scrutiny.We dig into how AI can help check sustainability language, but also why human judgement still has to own the beginning and end of the process. Helen also explains why supply chain data, board accountability, regulation, and executive incentives are becoming central to credible climate leadership. A vague 2050 net zero pledge without a roadmap? That is not strategy. That is a red flag wearing a nice suit.If you care about emissions reduction, business resilience, decarbonisation, and the real-world mechanics of the energy transition, this one is worth your time.

Send us Fan MailFor decades, agriculture and energy were treated as separate worlds. But what happens when farms become part of the global energy infrastructure? Ofer Haviv joins us to discuss the rise of castor as a next-generation industrial crop, the future of sustainable aviation fuel, and how AI-driven biology is transforming agriculture itself.Ofer Haviv is CEO of Casterra ( https://casterra.co/ ) and longtime President and CEO of Evogene ( https://evogene.com/ ), one of the pioneers in computational biology and AI-driven agricultural innovation.For more than two decades, Ofer has helped lead the transformation of crop science from traditional breeding into a data-driven discipline powered by predictive biology, artificial intelligence, and advanced genomics. He played a key role in Evogene's spin-off from Compugen in 2002 and has guided the company through its evolution into a global computational biology platform with applications spanning agriculture, human health, industrial biotechnology, and sustainable materials.Today, Ofer also serves as CEO of Casterra, an Evogene subsidiary focused on transforming castor farming into a scalable industrial platform for the future bioeconomy. Through elite castor seed varieties and integrated farming solutions, Casterra is helping address growing global demand for sustainable feedstocks used in biofuels, aviation fuel, lubricants, polymers, cosmetics, and other bio-based industries.With increasing pressure on the world to decarbonize transportation, strengthen energy security, and develop more sustainable industrial supply chains, Casterra's work sits at the convergence of agriculture, climate technology, and renewable energy innovation.Ofer holds a degree in Economics and Accounting from Tel Aviv University and is a Certified Public Accountant in Israel.#OferHaviv #Casterra #Evogene #Biofuels #SustainableAviationFuel #SAF #ClimateTech #Agriculture #AgTech #Biotech #AI #ArtificialIntelligence #ComputationalBiology #RenewableEnergy #GreenEnergy #FutureOfEnergy #IndustrialBiotech #Castor #SustainableFarming #EnergyTransition #Bioeconomy #CarbonNeutral #FutureTech #ClimateInnovation #CleanTech #Aviation #JetFuel #SustainableTechnology #FoodTech #PrecisionAgricultureSupport the show

Dr Russell Thackeray interviews futurist and former venture capitalist Ryan Vet, who recounts his family name's changes after immigrating to the US and his career path from a childhood lemonade stand to a multinational marketing company and 20 years in venture capital, exiting in 2021 to research, write, and speak about the future. Vet outlines his “generational pendulum” framework across seven societal levers—religion, education, sex and gender, politics, economics, communication, and technology—moving through four phases: experience, challenge, overcorrect, and recalibrate, arguing cycles repeat but now accelerate as multiple levers shift at once. They discuss AI's rapid adoption, friction removal, the “velocity gap” between tech and morality, Gen Z's climate concerns versus AI's resource costs, risks to critical thinking and resilience, misinformation “AI slop,” space and drone warfare, and hopes including trades, mentorship, and regulation. Vet shares his show, newsletter, and books.00:00 Welcome and Introductions00:30 Name Story and Origins01:26 From Lemonade to Venture Capital02:43 Can We Predict the Future03:32 Generational Pendulum Framework04:45 Why Change Is Accelerating06:16 When Levers Collide07:19 Polarisation and Pendulum Phases08:27 Climate Tech and Velocity Gap09:08 Gen Z Paradox and AI Footprint12:31 Critical Thinking at Risk16:09 Mentorship Friction and Starlink19:06 Cycles of Consumption and War20:31 War and Mind Battles21:38 Tech Acceleration Era23:12 Can AI Create New24:00 AI Slop Feedback Loop25:28 Hope Through Friction27:45 Regulation and Antitrust28:52 Raising Adults With Grit30:51 Love Dating and LLMs31:32 Gender Power and Tech34:55 Democracy and Control36:23 Where to Find RyanYou can contact us at info@qedod.comResources can be found online or link to our website https://resilienceunravelled.com#resilience, #burnout, #intuition

Haroon Inam is Co-founder and CEO of DG Matrix, a company that makes the world's most compact Power Router, aggregating distributed energy for GenAI datacenters, microgrids, fleet electrification, and associated systems. As AI workloads drive unprecedented electricity demand and legacy grid infrastructure struggles to keep pace, DG Matrix has commercialized the world's first multi-port solid-state transformer to meet the energy needs. In this episode, Inam explains why transformer bottlenecks, distributed generation, and 800V DC architectures are reshaping the future of power delivery for AI infrastructure. He discusses DG Matrix's product strategy, manufacturing scale-up plans, and the role of software-defined power systems in next-generation data centers. Finally, Inam shares his take on the future of distributed microgrids and “cellular power” and how to scale power electronics manufacturing. DG Matrix recently closed a $60 million Series A led by Engine Ventures that MCJ is proud to have participated in.  Episode recorded on May 13, 2026 (Published on May 26, 2026) In this episode, we cover:  (00:00) Overview of DG Matrix  (01:41) Introducing the Founders: Haroon Inam and Dr. Bhattacharya (05:25) How traditional grid architecture became constrained for AI workloads (09:57) Solid-state transformers (SST), multi-port systems and voltage classes (12:18) Why early SST efforts struggled economically (13:13) How DG Matrix's multi-port architecture works (16:48) Comparing DG Matrix hardware footprint to legacy power systems (20:08) Transformer shortages and data center infrastructure bottlenecks (24:27) DG Matrix's medium-voltage and low-voltage product strategies (27:55) Product rebranding and current commercial deployments (30:45) Partnerships with EPC firms, battery providers, and turbine manufacturers (34:27) Manufacturing scale-up plan and hyperscaling production (36:36) Supply chain strategy to avoid rare earth dependencies (38:16) Reliability engineering and software-defined power systems (43:47) DG Matrix's go-to-market and hybrid hardware/software business model (46:36) The vision for distributed “cellular power” (48:14) Utilities, microgrids, and the future of interconnected distributed infrastructure Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a review! Share feedback or suggest future topics and guests at info@mcj.vc.Connect with MCJ:Cody Simms on LinkedInVisit mcj.vcSubscribe to the MCJ Newsletter*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant

Get in touch - leave me a messageFake people. Fake comments. Real clean energy projects killed.This is what climate delay looks like in the AI era.In this episode of Climate Confident, I'm joined by Leah Qusba, CEO of GoodPower, an organisation working at the intersection of climate tech, culture, policy, and decarbonisation. We explore a hard truth about the energy transition: solar, wind, batteries, and electrification may be ready, but public trust, local permission, and disinformation are now decisive barriers to getting projects built.You'll hear why Leah believes fossil fuel dependence is becoming harder to defend as “secure energy”, especially when oil and gas volatility keeps spilling into bills, food prices, business costs, and household budgets. We dig into why clean energy should be framed less as sacrifice and more as protection: protection from price shocks, geopolitical risk, climate impacts, and the charming little habit fossil fuels have of making everything more expensive.We also get into GoodPower's research on what actually changes minds. Their storytelling work has reached tens of millions of people and, in tested campaigns, shifted audiences from NIMBY to YIMBY by 11%. Leah explains why the right messenger can matter more than the perfect message, why rural voices can unlock rural support, and why creators in food, fashion, gaming, cars, comedy, and culture may be more effective climate communicators than traditional climate voices.And yes, we talk about AI-generated disinformation in permitting decisions, fake public pressure, and why pre-bunking false claims before they spread may become essential for emissions reduction, net zero delivery, and climate policy that survives contact with reality.

Climatetech is entering a different phase.The era of easy capital, oversized narratives, and growth-at-all-costs expectations is giving way to something more demanding: disciplined execution, durable business models, strong commercialization pathways, and teams that can scale proven solutions in real markets.In this live conversation, Nico Johnson sits down with longtime investor David Kirkpatrick, Managing Director at SJF Ventures, to unpack what experienced investors are actually paying attention to now and why the companies attracting long-term conviction may not be the ones making the loudest headlines.David has spent decades investing across renewable energy, efficiency, industrial innovation, resilience, and sustainability. He has watched the industry evolve from early-stage optimism into a global market measured in gigawatts, infrastructure, and real deployment. That long view makes this conversation especially timely for founders, operators, developers, policymakers, and anyone trying to understand how the market is maturing.This episode is less about chasing the next shiny technology and more about what it takes to build companies that can survive, scale, and create lasting value.Expect to learn:

Get in touch - leave me a messageCarbon data is no longer just something companies report. Increasingly, it may decide whether products can be sold at all.In this episode of Climate Confident, I'm joined by Stephen Jamieson, Chief Marketing Officer for SAP Sustainability, to explore why sustainability is moving from the ESG report into the systems businesses use to run supply chains, finance, product compliance, and AI-enabled decisions. We get into what this means for climate tech, decarbonisation, policy, emissions reduction, net zero, and the wider energy transition.You'll hear why product carbon footprints, digital product passports, CBAM, ESPR, and Scope 3 reporting are pushing companies towards far more granular, decision-grade climate data. Stephen explains why relying on averages will not be enough when carbon insights start shaping market access, investor confidence, supply chain resilience, and commercial competitiveness.We also dig into AI's double edge. AI agents could change the economics of sustainability by scaling product-level analysis across thousands of items, but only if carbon, water, recycled content, and other sustainability factors are embedded in core business decisions. Otherwise, AI may simply optimise the wrong things faster. Listen now to hear how Stephen Jamieson and SAP Sustainability are helping move climate data from reporting theatre into real-world business action.Sign up to Climate Confident+ for deep dive analysis of the major climate and energy stories of the day.Support the showPodcast subscribersI'd like to sincerely thank this podcast's amazing subscribers:Anita KrajncCecilia SkarupaBen GrossJerry SweeneyAndreas WernerStephen CarrollRoger ArnoldAnd remember you too can Subscribe to the Podcast  - it is really easy and hugely important as it will enable me to continue to create more excellent Climate Confident episodes like this one, as well as give you access to the entire back catalog of Climate Confident episodes.ContactIf you have any comments/suggestions or questions for the podcast - get in touch via direct message on LinkedIn. If you liked this show, please don't forget to rate and/or review it. It makes a big difference to help new people discover the show.

Peter Carlsson is Co-founder and former CEO of Northvolt, the European battery manufacturing company that raised more than $13 billion to build a homegrown battery supply chain for Europe, before filing for bankruptcy at the end of 2024. Before Northvolt, Carlsson spent more than a decade at Ericsson building global supply chains and later served as VP of Supply Chain at Tesla during the launch of the Model S. In this live episode of Inevitable from the AENU Summit in Berlin, Carlsson reflects on the rise and fall of Northvolt, the realities of competing with China's electro-industrial stack, and what Europe still gets right in manufacturing and innovation. Peter breaks down why batteries became strategically essential to Europe, what operational challenges slowed Northvolt's scale-up, and how changing EV markets, policy shifts, and financing pressures compounded those problems. Carlsson also mentions his new ventures: Aris Machina, an agentic operating system for manufacturing and Sonder Labs, a sodium-ion battery company focused on building chemistry and supply chains less dependent on China. He talks about AI-driven manufacturing, industrial automation, battery geopolitics, and where Europe can still compete in the next generation of energy and hardware systems.  Episode recorded on April 28 2026 (Published on May 19, 2026).  In this episode, we cover:  (0:00) What happened at Northvolt (2:33) Takeaways from Ericsson and Tesla on factory operations (5:52) Why Europe needed a battery champion like Northvolt (7:01) Northvolt's strategy (8:47) The fall of Northvolt (12:23) The decision Peter wishes he had made differently (15:46) Was Northvolt's chemistry bet a mistake? (17:29) Sonder Labs: The promise of sodium-ion batteries (21:42) Can Europe still compete with China in batteries? (24:05) Aris Machina: AI agents for manufacturing operations (27:31) How AI changes factory productivity and the labor market (29:05) Data sovereignty, AI infrastructure and software challenge (32:35) Industrial automation, precision manufacturing, and fusion (34:48) Where Europe still wins (36:01) Final thoughts on Europe's industrial future Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a review! Share feedback or suggest future topics and guests at info@mcj.vc.Connect with MCJ:Cody Simms on LinkedInVisit mcj.vcSubscribe to the MCJ Newsletter*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant

Where is Climate Tech heading? Certainly not dead — but constantly reinventing itself. So much so that you begin to wonder whether the label itself has outlived its original meaning.  Laurent and Gerard welcome Kim Zou, co-founder and CEO of Sightline Climate, the data and research platform mapping the climate-tech economy, and author of some of the sector's most influential newsletters, including CTVC and the newer Powerstack. Sightline has become essential reading for investors, utilities, corporates, and policymakers trying to understand where capital is flowing and how the energy system is evolving.  Together, they explore how Climate Tech has transformed over the past decade. Decarbonisation alone is no longer the central narrative. Today, AI, energy security, and industrial resilience dominate the conversation — often pushing sustainability itself into the background.  The discussion traces how funding has shifted from venture capital toward infrastructure and large-scale project finance. The spotlight has also moved away from “green molecules” — hydrogen, SAF, and carbon management — toward “green electrons”: virtual power plants, grid-enhancing technologies, and the race to accelerate datacentre construction.  They also examine the contrasting innovation models shaping global competition. In China, much of the breakthrough innovation happens inside corporations themselves, with companies like BYD employing more than 110,000 R&D staff, and CATL relying on a 20,000-engineer workforce. The United States, meanwhile, benefits from unparalleled access to capital and world-class universities and research centres. Europe sits somewhere in between, attempting to combine industrial policy with scientific excellence.  Finally, the conversation turns to one of Sightline's newest areas of focus: tracking data-center construction. The company currently follows 140 sites representing roughly 16 GW of announced capacity. Yet only about 6 GW are actually under construction — a reality check that has sent a chill through Wall Street.And Laurent goes on a rant of epic proportion against certain Hyperscalers!!!Useful links:Sightline website: https://www.sightlineclimate.com/Capital Stack and New Funds report: https://www.sightlineclimate.com/request-report?report-id=Dry-Powder-and-New-Funds-2026 ·        Data Center Q1 outlook report: https://www.sightlineclimate.com/request-report?report-id=data-center-outlook-q126 ·        2025 climate tech investment trends report: https://www.sightlineclimate.com/request-report?report-id=2025_investment_report ·        Article on our tour of China's electrostate: https://www.sightlineclimate.com/research/a-tour-of-chinas-electrostate ·        If people want to stay updated on our latest, they can subscribe to our CTVC climate tech newsletter here or our Powerstack power and data center markets newsletter here  

Vendor Financing Isn't Free Money – Extending supplier payment terms can improve runway and reduce dilution, but concentrated climate supply chains create hidden dependency risk when critical vendors effectively become reluctant lenders.Working Capital Can Distort Reality – Better short-term cash metrics may hide structural fragility if supplier leverage, component concentration, or financing assumptions shift during tougher fundraising markets.The Leadership Bias That Damages Teams – Founders often misread underperformance as character failure instead of contextual pressure, creating avoidable trust breakdowns and weaker decision-making cultures.Empathy Still Requires Accountability – Understanding context matters, but repeatedly tolerating poor execution can quietly transfer the cost of one person's struggles onto the broader organization.Why Great Operators Ask Better Questions – The strongest long-term partnerships in climate tech often come from listening well, speaking less, and focusing on genuine curiosity over transactional networking.--Join our confidential communityPrivate CEO group for VC/PE-backed climate tech founders navigating capital, strategy, and scale. Capped at 45 CEOs. See if you're a fit → entrepreneursforimpact.comNewsletterClimate tech finance, strategy, leadership. 2-min read. → entrepreneursforimpact.substack.comLeave a podcast reviewIf you got value, take 30 seconds and do the community a favor. It helps push more capital and talent toward scalable climate solutions.

Rob Black is Cabinet Secretary of the New Mexico Economic Development Department, and Bruce Brown is Head of Strategic Climate Initiatives at the New Mexico State Investment Council, the state's $72B sovereign wealth fund. Together, they are driving one of the most ambitious state-level strategies in the U.S. to turn energy wealth into long-term climate innovation and economic growth. The conversation also features MCJ portfolio founders building in the state: Carrie von Muench, Co-founder of Pacific Fusion, developing modular fusion energy systems, and Carl Hoiland, Co-founder and CEO of Zanskar Geothermal, using AI to discover and scale geothermal resources. Together, our guests explore how sovereign capital, policy, and startups intersect—from funding venture managers and attracting hyperscale projects to enabling first-of-a-kind (FOAK) infrastructure. The episode highlights what it actually takes to build (climate) companies in a new geography, and how New Mexico is positioning itself as a hub for advanced energy and climate tech. This episode of Inevitable was recorded in front of a live audience on April 22, 2026 at the SVB Experience Center during SF Climate Week. (Published on May 12, 2026). In this episode, we cover:  (0:00) Overview of New Mexico's development strategy (2:06) Becoming a climate innovation hub (4:31) An overview of the state's sovereign wealth fund: $72B capital (6:27) Investing for returns while hedging energy transition risk (10:34) Economic growth, poverty reduction, and workforce investment (14:20) Why New Mexico is betting on climate and energy (17:32) How the state supports startups: incentives and “white glove” service (20:26) The shift in strategy: from local funds to global venture partners (22:36) Scaling the model: billions into venture and new industries (25:03) Transmission, infrastructure, and enabling energy deployment (27:00) Building data centers, microgrids, and large-load demand (35:11) Pacific Fusion: building modular, scalable fusion systems (35:23) Zanskar Geothermal: AI-driven geothermal discovery and development (40:23) Why New Mexico: resource potential vs. siting strategy (45:29) What founders actually get from the state and what still needs work (50:22) Lessons for builders: permitting, incentives, and scaling fast Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a review! Share feedback or suggest future topics and guests at info@mcj.vc.Connect with MCJ:Cody Simms on LinkedInVisit mcj.vcSubscribe to the MCJ Newsletter*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant

Get in touch - leave me a messageStreetlights sound boring. Until the grid fails and they're the only lights left on.In this episode of Climate Confident, I'm joined by Liam Ryan, CEO of Streetleaf, a climate tech company rethinking one of the most overlooked pieces of public infrastructure: the streetlight. And yes, I know. Streetlights. Hardly the sexiest corner of the energy transition. But this conversation quickly becomes about something much bigger: resilience, decarbonisation, public safety, emissions reduction, and how we build communities that keep functioning as extreme weather puts more pressure on the grid.You'll hear why the real cost of streetlighting often isn't the electricity at all. It's trenching, wiring, maintenance, utility control, copper theft, repair delays, and infrastructure that can take far too long to fix. Liam explains how solar-plus-battery streetlights can avoid much of that mess while helping cities, developers, and communities move closer to net zero.We dig into how Streetleaf's lights performed during hurricanes, why three to five days of battery backup matters, how monitoring changes maintenance, and why policy can help but won't replace cost and performance. You might be shocked to learn that in some cases, utilities can delay streetlight repairs for months while the customer keeps paying. Delightful system design, if your goal is public frustration.This is a practical episode about climate tech that works in the real world: faster installs, fewer wires, lower emissions, better uptime, and infrastructure that earns its keep when conditions get ugly.

Join Kethees Ketheesan, Co-founder and CEO of Puloli (SkopeOne.io), for a masterclass on scaling deep-tech solutions for the planet's most urgent challenges. With over 20 years of experience in wireless infrastructure and R&D—spanning the evolution of 3G at Motorola to leading flagship RAN products at Netscout—Kethees is now applying his technical pedigree to the climate crisis. In this episode, we explore how SkopeOne.io is revolutionizing methane emissions monitoring through a data-subscription model and what it takes to build a resilient climate tech startup in the 2026 economic landscape.

Three decisions that determine if climate tech founders scale or stall: Customer focus, sustainable intensity, and information diet all compound into capital efficiency and judgment.Antelope vs mice – Why chasing small, fast customers can accelerate learning but trap you in low-value revenue, while large customers require patience but define the businessGTM timing – Matching customer type to runway and product maturity, not just who says yes firstStagnation vs safety – Why constant urgency degrades judgment and burns teams, especially in capital-intensive climate startupsSustainable intensity – Protecting thinking time as a core CEO function, not a luxury, to avoid reactive decision-makingNews vs history – How overconsuming short-term signals creates bias, while historical pattern recognition sharpens long-term strategy--Join: Confidential CEO communityPrivate CEO group for VC/PE-backed climate tech founders navigating capital, strategy, and scale. Capped at 45 CEOs. → entrepreneursforimpact.comNewsletter: 2-min readClimate tech finance, strategy, leadership. → entrepreneursforimpact.substack.comYour help: Leave a podcast reviewIf you got value, take 30 seconds and do the community a favor. It helps push more capital and talent toward scalable climate solutions.

The global financial system is undergoing a structural shift into a "volatile new world order," where unpredictability is the norm, and climate tech is uniquely exposed.  Venture investor Susan Su says the war in Iran is complicating the landscape. That's because about 40% of the world's capital comes from just four Gulf states, and those states are exploring whether the war allows them to invoke force majeure to legally exit binding financial commitments to fund billion-dollar projects – including energy projects. It's a move that's creating a chilling effect on large, long-term investments. Susan's warning for founders? "Be default alive by any means necessary." With the next 18 to 24 months predicted to be a brutal filtering environment, she recommends extending financial runways to three years, if at all possible. In this episode, Susan talks with Lara about why founders should act urgently and highlights the increasing availability of pockets of catalytic capital and downside-protected debt products as funding options. Credits: Hosted by Lara Pierpoint. Produced and edited by Ross Kenyon and Anne Bailey. Technical direction by Sean Marquand. Stephen Lacey is our executive editor. The Green Blueprint is a co-production of Latitude Media and Trellis Climate. Subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or anywhere you get podcasts. For more reporting on the companies featured in this show, subscribe to Latitude Media's newsletter.

Get in touch - leave me a messageWhat if better buildings are one of the most practical climate resilience tools we already have?In this episode of Climate Confident, I'm joined by Darren Macri, Co-CEO of Wythe Windows and rising president of the Passive House Network. We talk about why passive house is not just a building standard, but a practical climate tech pathway for decarbonisation, emissions reduction, energy security, healthier homes, and a more resilient built environment.You'll hear why buildings can cut heating loads by up to 90% through airtightness, better insulation, mechanical ventilation, thermal bridge-free design, and high-performance windows. We dig into how this shifts passive house from a niche green design idea into something far more urgent: infrastructure that helps people stay safe during outages, heatwaves, storms, and fires.You might be interested to learn how leaky buildings can make wildfire damage worse, how poor windows contribute to mould, noise, asthma, and energy poverty, and why retrofitting existing building stock may matter even more than making new builds cleaner. Darren also explains why adoption is often blocked less by technology than by training, policy, codes, business habits, and fragmented construction practices. Imagine that: the physics works, but humans still need meetings.We also cover affordability, net zero, the energy transition, local manufacturing, and why better buildings can reduce bills while improving comfort and health.

Everyone says AI is drinking the planet dry, right? Well, the numbers say your morning coffee uses 29,600× more water than a ChatGPT prompt! In this episode, I sit down with Alex Passini to pressure-test the dominant narrative around AI's water footprint - and what we found completely flips the story the media is telling. Here's what most "AI water crisis" headlines miss: → A single ChatGPT prompt uses roughly 16 milliliters of water. One cup of coffee uses ~140 liters when you count the beans. That's a 29,600× gap. → Of the water a hyperscale data center consumes, ~75% isn't used by AI at all — it's used upstream for the energy that powers it. Blame the grid, not the GPU. → One banana = ~6,250 ChatGPT prompts. One almond = ~12 prompts. The water-per-prompt math is rounding-error territory next to your lunch. → Florida already reuses 800 million gallons/day of treated wastewater. Data centers aren't the threat - they're an accelerant for the water reuse capex the sector has been waiting twenty years for. If you're an investor trying to figure out whether AI's water story is a real thesis or a media artifact, this episode gives you the framework (and the numbers) to decide.

Éco d'ici, éco d'ailleurs explore cette semaine les transformations majeures de l'économie mondiale à travers trois secteurs stratégiques : les infrastructures numériques, l'innovation technologique liée au climat et la conquête spatiale. Trois entrepreneurs européens livrent leur vision de ces nouveaux champs de compétition où se jouent souveraineté, innovation et croissance. Une bataille qui se joue désormais autant sur Terre… que dans l'espace. Immersion dans les data centers : la souveraineté numérique en action Invité : Louis Blanchot, CEO d'Etix Everywhere L'émission débute par une visite immersive dans un data center, infrastructure clé de l'économie numérique. Louis Blanchot présente les enjeux techniques et stratégiques de ces installations. Un pilier invisible de l'économie numérique Les data centers assurent le stockage et le traitement des données, indispensables au fonctionnement d'Internet, du cloud et de l'intelligence artificielle. Leur fonctionnement repose sur quatre piliers essentiels : une alimentation électrique continue un système de refroidissement performant une sécurité renforcée une connectivité optimale La gestion thermique est cruciale : les serveurs doivent fonctionner dans une plage de température précise pour éviter toute défaillance. Un secteur en pleine expansion Porté par l'essor de l'IA, le marché des data centers connaît une croissance rapide. Etix s'est spécialisé dans les « data centers de proximité » (edge), permettant de rapprocher les infrastructures des utilisateurs finaux et d'améliorer la performance des services. L'entreprise a connu une forte croissance, passant de quelques sites à un réseau national couvrant plusieurs régions françaises, avec des ambitions européennes. L'enjeu clé : la souveraineté des données Au-delà de la performance technique, Louis Blanchot insiste sur un enjeu stratégique majeur : la souveraineté numérique. Dans un contexte géopolitique tendu, la maîtrise des données devient essentielle, notamment pour les secteurs sensibles comme : la défense l'aéronautique la recherche et développement L'idée n'est pas de tout localiser, mais de protéger les données stratégiques. Le choix d'un opérateur de data center devient ainsi un acte politique autant qu'économique. Transformer la recherche en business : le modèle du startup studio Invité : Olivier Thirifays, cofondateur de BXVentures Deuxième étape de l'émission : la Belgique pour découvrir le modèle du startup studio avec BXVentures Un pont entre laboratoire et marché Le constat de départ est simple : l'Europe regorge de technologies innovantes issues de la recherche, mais celles-ci peinent souvent à atteindre le marché. Le startup studio propose une approche différente : collaboration étroite avec les chercheurs co-création de startups financement initial accompagnement stratégique Contrairement aux incubateurs classiques, le studio s'implique directement dans la création des entreprises et partage les risques. Focus sur les climate tech BX Ventures se concentre sur les technologies liées au climat, avec une double exigence : impact environnemental positif viabilité économique L'objectif est de développer des innovations capables de répondre à des besoins industriels concrets, sans dépendre uniquement de réglementations ou de subventions. Un écosystème à construire Le modèle repose sur une collaboration étroite avec les industriels dès les premières phases. Cela permet : d'évaluer la pertinence des technologies d'ajuster leur développement de sécuriser leur débouché commercial Un exemple emblématique est le projet Chipswin, qui vise à structurer un écosystème européen dans la microélectronique en mutualisant infrastructures, compétences et ressources. Un enjeu européen majeur Pour Olivier Thirifays, l'Europe doit accélérer la mise sur le marché de ses innovations. Trop souvent, les technologies restent bloquées au stade du prototype, alors que d'autres régions du monde avancent plus vite. L'enjeu est clair : renforcer la souveraineté industrielle en densifiant l'écosystème technologique. Le NewSpace : l'économie à la conquête du cosmos Invité : Charles Beigbeder, entrepreneur et investisseur, président du fonds Audacia, auteur NewSpace, l'économie à la conquête du cosmos (Eyrolles) L'entretien est à découvrir en vidéo ici L'émission s'ouvre sur un horizon encore plus vaste : l'espace. Charles Beigbeder, investisseur passionné, décrypte les nouvelles opportunités économiques du secteur spatial. Une révolution en cours Le spatial n'est plus réservé aux États. Grâce à la baisse des coûts : fabrication de satellites lancements en orbite de nouveaux acteurs privés investissent massivement ce secteur. Le « new space » devient ainsi un terrain de compétition économique majeur, avec des applications multiples : connectivité mondiale observation de la Terre exploitation future de ressources extraterrestre Trois phases historiques Charles Beigbeder distingue trois grandes étapes : une phase géopolitique dominée par la guerre froide une phase industrielle contrôlée par de grands groupes une phase actuelle marquée par l'arrivée d'acteurs privés Aujourd'hui, l'espace devient un domaine économique « normal », accessible aux entreprises et aux investisseurs. Un enjeu stratégique pour l'Europe Face à la domination des États-Unis et de la Chine, l'Europe doit structurer son écosystème spatial pour rester compétitive. Le NewSpace représente à la fois : une opportunité économique majeure un enjeu de souveraineté technologique Réalisation de l'émission : Lauren Némausat Choix musical : « Miss Yo » – Danitsa feat. Béesau

Éco d'ici, éco d'ailleurs explore cette semaine les transformations majeures de l'économie mondiale à travers trois secteurs stratégiques : les infrastructures numériques, l'innovation technologique liée au climat et la conquête spatiale. Trois entrepreneurs européens livrent leur vision de ces nouveaux champs de compétition où se jouent souveraineté, innovation et croissance. Une bataille qui se joue désormais autant sur Terre… que dans l'espace. Immersion dans les data centers : la souveraineté numérique en action Invité : Louis Blanchot, CEO d'Etix Everywhere L'émission débute par une visite immersive dans un data center, infrastructure clé de l'économie numérique. Louis Blanchot présente les enjeux techniques et stratégiques de ces installations. Un pilier invisible de l'économie numérique Les data centers assurent le stockage et le traitement des données, indispensables au fonctionnement d'Internet, du cloud et de l'intelligence artificielle. Leur fonctionnement repose sur quatre piliers essentiels : une alimentation électrique continue un système de refroidissement performant une sécurité renforcée une connectivité optimale La gestion thermique est cruciale : les serveurs doivent fonctionner dans une plage de température précise pour éviter toute défaillance. Un secteur en pleine expansion Porté par l'essor de l'IA, le marché des data centers connaît une croissance rapide. Etix s'est spécialisé dans les « data centers de proximité » (edge), permettant de rapprocher les infrastructures des utilisateurs finaux et d'améliorer la performance des services. L'entreprise a connu une forte croissance, passant de quelques sites à un réseau national couvrant plusieurs régions françaises, avec des ambitions européennes. L'enjeu clé : la souveraineté des données Au-delà de la performance technique, Louis Blanchot insiste sur un enjeu stratégique majeur : la souveraineté numérique. Dans un contexte géopolitique tendu, la maîtrise des données devient essentielle, notamment pour les secteurs sensibles comme : la défense l'aéronautique la recherche et développement L'idée n'est pas de tout localiser, mais de protéger les données stratégiques. Le choix d'un opérateur de data center devient ainsi un acte politique autant qu'économique. Transformer la recherche en business : le modèle du startup studio Invité : Olivier Thirifays, cofondateur de BXVentures Deuxième étape de l'émission : la Belgique pour découvrir le modèle du startup studio avec BXVentures Un pont entre laboratoire et marché Le constat de départ est simple : l'Europe regorge de technologies innovantes issues de la recherche, mais celles-ci peinent souvent à atteindre le marché. Le startup studio propose une approche différente : collaboration étroite avec les chercheurs co-création de startups financement initial accompagnement stratégique Contrairement aux incubateurs classiques, le studio s'implique directement dans la création des entreprises et partage les risques. Focus sur les climate tech BX Ventures se concentre sur les technologies liées au climat, avec une double exigence : impact environnemental positif viabilité économique L'objectif est de développer des innovations capables de répondre à des besoins industriels concrets, sans dépendre uniquement de réglementations ou de subventions. Un écosystème à construire Le modèle repose sur une collaboration étroite avec les industriels dès les premières phases. Cela permet : d'évaluer la pertinence des technologies d'ajuster leur développement de sécuriser leur débouché commercial Un exemple emblématique est le projet Chipswin, qui vise à structurer un écosystème européen dans la microélectronique en mutualisant infrastructures, compétences et ressources. Un enjeu européen majeur Pour Olivier Thirifays, l'Europe doit accélérer la mise sur le marché de ses innovations. Trop souvent, les technologies restent bloquées au stade du prototype, alors que d'autres régions du monde avancent plus vite. L'enjeu est clair : renforcer la souveraineté industrielle en densifiant l'écosystème technologique. Le NewSpace : l'économie à la conquête du cosmos Invité : Charles Beigbeder, entrepreneur et investisseur, président du fonds Audacia, auteur NewSpace, l'économie à la conquête du cosmos (Eyrolles) L'entretien est à découvrir en vidéo ici L'émission s'ouvre sur un horizon encore plus vaste : l'espace. Charles Beigbeder, investisseur passionné, décrypte les nouvelles opportunités économiques du secteur spatial. Une révolution en cours Le spatial n'est plus réservé aux États. Grâce à la baisse des coûts : fabrication de satellites lancements en orbite de nouveaux acteurs privés investissent massivement ce secteur. Le « new space » devient ainsi un terrain de compétition économique majeur, avec des applications multiples : connectivité mondiale observation de la Terre exploitation future de ressources extraterrestre Trois phases historiques Charles Beigbeder distingue trois grandes étapes : une phase géopolitique dominée par la guerre froide une phase industrielle contrôlée par de grands groupes une phase actuelle marquée par l'arrivée d'acteurs privés Aujourd'hui, l'espace devient un domaine économique « normal », accessible aux entreprises et aux investisseurs. Un enjeu stratégique pour l'Europe Face à la domination des États-Unis et de la Chine, l'Europe doit structurer son écosystème spatial pour rester compétitive. Le NewSpace représente à la fois : une opportunité économique majeure un enjeu de souveraineté technologique Réalisation de l'émission : Lauren Némausat Choix musical : « Miss Yo » – Danitsa feat. Béesau

Get in touch - leave me a messageJet fuel isn't just dirty. It is astonishingly good at its job. That is what makes aviation decarbonisation so hard.In this episode of Climate Confident, I'm joined by Dan Sutton, co-founder and CEO of Syntholene Energy, a climate tech company working on clean, drop-in synthetic aviation fuel, or eSAF. We talk about one of the thorniest challenges in the energy transition: how to cut emissions from aviation without pretending long-haul flight can simply be electrified into submission.You'll hear why synthetic fuel has struggled to scale, why hydrogen cost is often the defining economic bottleneck, and how Syntholene is betting that geothermal heat, solid oxide electrolysis, and captured carbon can shift the maths. We also dig into why cheap, baseload clean energy matters far more than glossy net zero pledges. Funny how physics remains stubbornly unimpressed by marketing decks.Dan also makes the case that fossil fuels carry a supply chain risk we still underprice: political volatility, fragile routes, and exposure to regions that can quickly turn energy security into an economic headache. We explore mandates, project finance, policy, the role of Iceland's geothermal resources, and whether synthetic aviation fuel can become cost-competitive without relying forever on subsidies.This is a practical, challenging conversation about climate tech, emissions reduction, aviation, infrastructure, and what it will really take to make clean fuels commercially credible.

Joel Gratz is Founding Meteorologist and CEO of OpenSnow, a weather platform used by hundreds of thousands of skiers, snowboarders, and outdoor enthusiasts to track snow conditions and forecast powder days. What started as a text thread among friends has grown into a profitable, bootstrapped business combining expert forecasting, data science, and increasingly AI-driven weather models. In this episode of Inevitable, Gratz breaks down one of the worst Western snowpack seasons on record and why he believes it's not as simple as blaming climate change.  The conversation explores the role of atmospheric variability versus long-term warming trends, why temperature matters more than precipitation for snowpack, and how mountain weather forecasting differs from traditional forecasts.  Finally, Gratz explains why emotional connection, not just accuracy, is what makes niche weather businesses work.  Episode recorded April 9, 2026 (published April 28, 2026) In this episode, we cover:  (0:00) An overview of OpenSnow (1:45) Weather conditions aren't just a climate change story (4:46) How warming temperatures impact snowpack quality (7:20) What OpenSnow is and how it started (12:46) OpenSnow's business model and growth (16:26) Why mountain weather is harder to forecast (21:16) How OpenSnow builds better forecasts from shared data (25:01) Powder quality vs snowfall: what actually matters (30:01) Snowpack as a water “battery” for the West (32:45) How ski resorts are adapting to climate variability (37:46) The reality of cloud seeding and weather modification (42:23) How emotional connection has helped OpenSnow succeed Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a review! Share feedback or suggest future topics and guests at info@mcj.vc.Connect with MCJ:Cody Simms on LinkedInVisit mcj.vcSubscribe to the MCJ Newsletter*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant

We are now recording an audio summary of written posts that we will upload to Apple, Spotify, and YouTube and you can listen to by clicking the button below.This week we expand on the Energy Technology component of our Geopolitical Super Vol framework we introduced last week (here). The massive unmet energy needs of the other seven billion people on Earth were already driving investment in new energy technologies in particular for countries not blessed with sufficient domestic resources like crude oil, natural gas, or coal. A backdrop of structurally increased geopolitical uncertainty and turmoil, in particular amongst the largest economies in the world, will drive a doubling, tripling, and quadrupling down on a wide swath of new technologies that help meet energy needs. For The Lucky 1 Billion of Us, there is a need to invest in the technologies that allow our industries to compete in a host a new areas and to no longer simply cede all manufacturing to China and other Asian countries—as the U.S. and Western Europe have done over the past 25 years.The new technology areas we are most interested in span four broad buckets:* Grid optimization and enhancement* Power generation* Demand diversification opportunities, which encompasses areas like EVs (electric vehicles), LNG (liquefied natural gas) trucks, and energy efficiency* Manufacturing and industrial competitiveness via physical AI, robotics, and automationIn this post we:* differentiate between “Energy Tech,” which we believe has a very favorable outlook, and “Climate Tech,” the latter of which always seemed non-sensical to us.* highlight the key areas we are watching most closely within the new technology buckets noted above.* provide a progress report on hyperscaler profitability given the massive ramp in CAPEX seen by those companies.* highlight Aramco as an AI and technology leader.The opportunity for investment spans a broad spectrum of companies, technologies, and regions across a range of sectors including technology, industrials, traditional energy, new energies, power, infrastructure, metals, minerals, and mining. In a nutshell, Energy & Power + Technology + Industrials + Metals & Materials convergence.For all Super-Spiked content, follow me at https://arjunmurti.substack.com or at https://veriten.com.X (Twitter): @ArjunNMurti DISCLAIMERMy views are my own and not attributable to any current or past affiliation.CREDITSIntro & Outro music: Wolf Hoffman on Apple Music: Concerto for 2 Cellos in G Minor, Rv 531: I. Allegro Moderato.This episode of Super-Spiked Videopods was edited and produced by Veriten Productions. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit arjunmurti.substack.com

Get in touch - leave me a messageConcrete alone accounts for around 7-8% of global emissions. So what happens when the real climate problem in buildings is no longer just energy, but the materials themselves?In this episode of Climate Confident, I'm joined by Alexander Sexsmith, architect and founder of Sexsmith Architects, to unpack what regenerative architecture means when stripped of the fluff. We look at the climate challenge hiding in plain sight across the built environment: embodied carbon, toxic materials, weak resilience, and the fact that standard construction often performs badly when fire, water, and heat hit. If we're serious about decarbonisation, net zero, and the energy transition, this matters now.You'll hear why cleaner grids are changing the climate maths for buildings, and why materials like concrete, petrochemical foams, and conventional drywall deserve a lot more scrutiny. We dig into how fast-grown bio-based materials such as hemp, straw, and cork could cut emissions reduction timelines, improve indoor air quality, and strengthen resilience. And you might be shocked to learn that some of the materials people still dismiss as fringe are already proving themselves on fire performance and commercial-scale construction.We also get into the harder bit: scale. Cost, code, skills, supply, consumer awareness, and policy all matter. Because climate tech alone won't fix construction unless markets, standards, and incentives move with it.

Whether or not we want to acknowledge it, we're in a new era of climate investing. Unprecedented uncertainty, federal policy upheaval in the United States, repeated energy shocks from wars, inflation, high interest rates, a persisting liquidity crunch, the AI data center boom – much has happened, the game has changed and investors are thinking very differently about climate than they did just a few years ago. Three expert climate finance advisors who have worked in climate finance for decades set out to understand what has changed in climate investing. Dan Firger, Will Coleman, and Bill Tarr are highly respected thought leaders and strategic advisors working with large family offices, foundations and prominent climate investors. They teamed up and interviewed over 150 investors and experts to develop Climate Capital Reset Project, a detailed account of the new thinking defining this new era of climate investing. We spoke about the trends reshaping climate finance today, emerging dynamics, recommendations for capital allocators, considerations for philanthropists, and much more. Dan, Will, and Bill's report will likely be one of the most influential pieces written on climate finance this year. It's already the basis for closed-door consultations and convenings with prominent investors, and our conversation shed incredible light on the new paradigms already driving climate finance today. On today's episode, we cover:03:01 – Guest Introductions & Backgrounds06:04 – Why the Climate Capital Reset Project Now?08:55 – Trend #1: Unprecedented Market Uncertainty11:13 – Trend #2: AI, Data Centers & the Grid13:23 – Trend #3: Liquidity Crunch & the Missing Middle15:42 – Trend #4: Narratives, Labels & Climate Messaging17:24 – How We Talk About Climate & Climate Investing19:37 – Theme: ‘Ruthless Pragmatism' in Climate Capital24:00 – Shaping Winners Through Consolidation26:57 – Domestic vs. International: Who Captures the Upside?27:31 – Blended Finance: Misuse, Scarcity & Focus30:48 – Examples of Effective Blended Finance31:56 – Geographic Arbitrage & Emerging Markets34:37 – Corporates' Role in Climate Tech & Scale38:05 – War in the Middle East, Energy Shocks & Resilience43:24 – New Investment Models & Insurance Innovation46:24 – Long-Duration, Asset-Heavy Climate Businesses48:43 – A Narrow Window for a Climate Capital Reset50:41 – What's Next for the Climate Capital Reset Project51:41 – Closing & Call to ActionResources MentionedClimate Capital Reset ProjectBuilder's VisionIntersect PowerLineage LogisticsDevoted Health Fervo EnergyFrontier Microsoft Carbon RemovalPJM Interconnection ERCOT (Electric Reliability Council of Texas) USAID (U.S. Agency for International Development)Bloomberg PhilanthropiesReGen VenturesMore Davidow Ventures (MDV)Connect with usDan FirgerWill ColemanBill TarrJason RissmanKeep up with Invested In ClimateSign up for our Newsletter (Other Future)LinkedInInstagramIf you like what you hear, subscribe and rate to support the show! Have feedback or ideas for future episodes, events, or partnerships? Get in touch!Share ideas for our newsletter here!

Dawn Lippert of Elemental Impact joins David Bank. The nonprofit accelerator and investor has for over 15 years been identifying climate solutions grounded in community benefits. Among the topics covered: the gap in financing first-of-a-kind commercial projects, AI and energy infrastructure, and a new role for the environmental movement now that renewable energy is rolling out at scale.

Dans cet épisode, je reçois Clément Buyse, Cofounder & General Partner de SlateVC, pour une discussion autour de la création d'un fonds Climate Tech growth en Europe, et du passage de l'entrepreneuriat à l'investissement.Nous avons parlé :De l'exit de PeopleDoc à 300 millions de dollars auprès d'Ultimate SoftwareDu tabou de l'exit dans les boîtes financées par des fonds, et de la façon dont Slate intègre dès le départ une réflexion sur les trajectoires de sortie, y compris les sorties industrielles, particulièrement nombreuses dans la climate techDu choix de se concentrer sur le segment early growth, séries A à C, auprès d'entreprises qui ont déjà du chiffre d'affaires et un produit — un positionnement conçu pour maximiser l'apport opérationnel de l'équipeDu rejet du Green Premium comme thèse d'investissement : Slate ne finance que des solutions qui génèrent des économies nettes day one pour leurs clients, comme Fairmat, qui recycle la fibre de carbone à un coût deux fois inférieur au matériau viergeDe la construction de l'équipe : quatre associés issus de l'entrepreneuriat, du VC institutionnel et du conseil en stratégie, avec une intention explicite de croiser les profils pour être utile dans les boards au-delà du seul suivi financierDe la levée GP décrite comme "la face nord de l'Everest" : 100 coups d'épée dans l'eau pour une touche, un premier closing à plus de 130 millions d'euros avec le Fonds européen d'investissement comme ancre institutionnelleDe la climate tech d'aujourd'hui face aux échecs de la première vague cleantech : trop d'intensité capex, trop de dépendance réglementaire — et des entrepreneurs mieux armés aujourd'hui grâce à l'IA, la robotique et des industriels plus réceptifsUn épisode dense sur ce que signifie vraiment aider une entreprise à croître quand on a soi-même construit, vendu, et recommencé.Recommandations de Clément : “Time to Shift” podcast du Shift Project : https://podcast.ausha.co/time-to-shift“Le Monde sans fin”, bande-dessinée de J-M. Jancovici et Ch. Blain: https://share.google/A4j7evqLyFIUTfomj“Comment marche vraiment le monde” de Vaclav Smil : https://share.google/jOiII6VQCRXdi4gZ8Liens utiles:Clément Buyse: https://www.linkedin.com/in/clementbuyse/?locale=enSlateVC: https://slate.vc***************************Finscale, c'est bien plus qu'un podcast. C'est un écosystème qui connecte les acteurs clés du secteur financier à travers du Networking, du coaching et des partenariats.

Dave McColl is Executive Director of Stanford Climate Ventures (SCV), a program designed to help students build climate companies through rigorous go-to-market strategy and hands-on company building. SCV is a project-based course at Stanford University that has helped launch dozens of startups across energy, infrastructure, and industrial decarbonization. In this episode of Inevitable, Yin Lu, General Partner at MCJ,  sits down with McColl to unpack the SCV playbook—from “earned secrets” to the importance of customer discovery. The conversation also features three founders who came out of the SCV ecosystem: Carla Pinzon, Founder of Expand Power, solid-state transformers for a more flexible grid Raj Tilwa, Founder of Focal, personalized heating systems for commercial spaces Nico Pinkowski, Founder of Nitricity, decentralized fertilizer with air, water, and renewable power Together, they share how SCV shaped their companies, from early pivots and customer insights to product-market fit, and what it takes to build sustainable businesses.  Episode recorded on March 13, 2026 (Published on April 14, 2026). In this episode, we cover:  (0:00) An overview of Stanford Climate Ventures (SCV) (5:12) The origin of SCV and its community-driven model (10:14) How SCV works: discovery, iteration, and “earned secrets” (16:25) The biggest founder mistake: ignoring the customer (18:56) What predicts success: discovery volume and team dynamics (25:51) Carla Pinzon (Expand Power): solid-state transformers for a modern grid (32:21) Finding product-market pull through customer discovery (35:56) Raj Tilwa (Focal): personalized heating vs heating entire spaces (44:21) 100+ interviews to find a real painkiller in hospitality (52:10) Nico Pinkowski (Nitricity): decentralized fertilizer production (58:31) How product-market fit can take years Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a review! Share feedback or suggest future topics and guests at info@mcj.vc.Connect with MCJ:Cody Simms on LinkedInVisit mcj.vcSubscribe to the MCJ Newsletter*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant

Send me a messageWhat if one of the most effective climate tech moves in hospitality isn't flashy at all, but simply wasting less food with far better data?In this episode, I'm joined by Olaf van der Veen, co-founder of Orbisk, to unpack a climate tech story that sits right at the intersection of decarbonisation, operational control, and the energy transition. We talk about food waste, but this is bigger than leftovers. It's about hidden system failure, margin pressure, emissions reduction, and why cutting waste may be one of the most practical net zero levers available to commercial kitchens right now.You'll hear why food waste in restaurants, hotels, cruise ships, and corporate dining is often less about bad habits and more about broken forecasting, poor process design, and weak visibility. We dig into how Orbisk uses AI, computer vision, and IoT to show kitchens exactly what is being wasted, when, and why, and how that turns a vague sustainability ambition into something measurable and fixable. You might be shocked to learn how often the real losses happen before food ever reaches a plate.We also get into the harder-edged business case: why food waste is pure bottom-line loss, why economics still drive most action faster than policy, and how the smartest operators are linking profitability and sustainability instead of pretending they sit on opposite sides of the ledger. No fluff. No green gloss. Just real-world climate solutions that cut costs, improve control, and reduce emissions.

In this episode of Enterprise Sessions from the University of Bristol, Professor Michele Barbour speaks with Professor Paul Bates, world‑leading expert in flood inundation modelling and co‑founder of Fathom, one of the University's most successful research‑driven companies.Paul reflects on a remarkable career that began with a Bristol PhD in the late 1980s and evolved into pioneering work that transformed global flood modelling. He describes the technological shift that enabled a new generation of high‑resolution terrain data, the academic debates that reshaped the field, and the multidisciplinary collaborations that built the foundation for Fathom's modelling techniques.The conversation traces Fathom's origins from two ambitious PhD students with an idea, through early years of bootstrapping, to international clients including insurers, banks, multinationals, and the World Bank. Paul also discusses the challenges of spinning out before universities had mature commercialisation systems, the importance of staying ahead of competitors through transparency and innovation, and the recent acquisition of Fathom by Swiss Re.Finally, Paul reflects on what research entrepreneurship means within academia, how Fathom has strengthened Bristol's scientific capabilities, and what lies ahead for both him and the next generation of global flood models.

In this episode, Nick sits down with Silas Mähner, founder of ErthTech Talent and the host of the CleanTechies podcast, to unpack how climate tech has evolved since 2020. Starting from Silas's upbringing in rural, conservative Wisconsin and his accidental entry into renewable energy recruiting, they trace his journey from a deep skepticism of renewables to seeing cleaner, greener, more sustainable technologies and businesses as a once in a century industrial opportunity as part of which “everything we touch physically can be reinvented.” Nick and Silas also explore how political backlash, culture wars, and corporate pragmatism have reshaped the climate narrative: Even as the term "climate" loses favor in many business circles, especially in the U.S., many of the world's largest companies are still quietly committing to technologies that cut emissions and drive other sustainability outcomes because they make good business sense, too.From there, Nick and Silas zoom out to discuss Silas' priviledged vantage point into the recruiting and company building side of the space. Drawing on his work placing sales talent and hardware engineers into early stage companies, Silas explains why traditional recruiting models are structurally misaligned with pre-seed and seed stage climate tech startups, and how Earthsearch flips that script by stripping out overhead and lowering fees so founders can access high impact hiring support far earlier. For Silas, helping a first time founder land a key early hire is another way of bending the curve on the energy transition. Finally, Nick and Silas use their joint focus on storytelling and media to probe bigger questions surrounding who feels “invited” and excited about climate work, how to tell compelling narratives without needing to rely on climate prerogatives, and why narrative and incentive design are often just as, if not more important, than the technologies, policies, and businesses in question themselves.Timestamps: 00:01:46 - Guest introduction: Silas Mähner, founder of ErthTech Talent00:02:08 - Evolution of "climate tech" and narrative semantics00:02:44 - Silas background and entry into Clean Tech00:07:29 - Silas' founding of EarthTech Talent and the Cleantechies podcast00:13:25 - Innovations in recruitment business models 00:18:12 - Hiring, narrative, and market trends across the climate tech landscape00:25:18 - Insights on building a durable company culture00:32:15 - The role of storytelling in recruitment and capital raising generally00:39:20 - The importance of maintaing and creating a positive worldview and vision 00:41:00 - Challenges and opportunities in the current climate tech environment00:45:00 - The human touch to all things capital allocation, recruiting, and fund raisingFor more from Silas, be sure to follow him on LinkedIn, check out his podcast, and connect with ErthTech Talent, whether you're a job seeker or a company looking for stellar hires.For more from Nick, follow him on LinkedIn, X, and subscribe to his newsletter, Keep Cool. Thank you so much.

Most people still treat climate solutions as a cost.Wanwipa Siriwatwechakul argues that this is exactly why so many leaders miss the real opportunity.The next industrial era will not be built by patching old systems, but by redesigning them from the ground up.In this episode of Beginner's Mind, Wanwipa explains why industrial decarbonization is not mainly about sacrifice, compliance, or adding expensive fixes to yesterday's infrastructure. It is about building better systems, stronger companies, and entirely new categories of value creation.A chemical engineer trained at MIT and Princeton, former professor, and Partner at Vectors Capital, Wanwipa works at the intersection of climate tech, synthetic biology, industrial innovation, and early-stage venture capital. Her perspective is grounded in both science and scale: what matters is not only whether a breakthrough works in the lab, but whether it can survive the journey from one gram to one ton, from prototype to product, from curiosity to adoption.We talk about why the strongest climate companies redesign industries instead of decorating old ones, why synthetic biology is emerging as a new industrial toolkit, how startups like Huue Bio, Ingrediome, and Solidec reveal very different scale-up strategies, and why the best founders treat breakthroughs as hypotheses to test rather than theories to defend.As Wanwipa puts it:(01:57:02) “See climate solutions not as cost, but as funding the next industrial era.” What you'll hear in this episodeWhy decarbonization becomes far more powerful when industries are redesigned, not merely optimized How synthetic biology can replace toxic, waste-heavy industrial chemistry with cleaner production models Why great science is only the starting point, and why scale is where most companies really live or die What founders can learn about resilience, coachability, timing, and relentless customer discovery How climate tech can create competitive advantage, new revenue streams, and distributed industrial resilience Why Southeast Asia may become a powerful region for the next wave of climate and bioindustrial growth Selected moments(00:00:56) From Professor to Climate Tech Venture Capital(00:09:27) Why Climate Change Became Personal in Thailand(00:14:11) From Pure Discovery to Real Market Impact(00:23:00) Decarbonization by Redesigning Industry(00:30:06) The Climate Tech Mistake Costing Investors Money(00:34:17) Solidec and the Future of Distributed Manufacturing(00:38:50) Why Big Companies Resist Industrial Reinvention(00:46:21) How Great Founders Turn Pivots Into New Markets(00:50:50) Customer Discovery in Deep Tech and Climate Startups(00:53:08) Great Science Must Become Products People Use(01:00:39) Synthetic Biology as the New Industrial Toolkit(01:10:15) How Climate Startups Find Early Adopters(01:13:19) Founder Resilience and the Stomach of Steel(01:21:15) Venture Capital and the Crucial Why Now(01:57:02) Climate Solutions as Funding the Next Industrial Era Follow the show for more long-form conversations on technologySend us Fan Mail Join Christian Soschner for expert coaching. 50% Off - With 35+ years in deep tech, startups/scaleups, and public companies, Christian offers power video sessions. Elevate strategy, execution, and leadership. Book Now.Support the showJoin the Podcast Newsletter: Link

In this episode of Climate Positive, Guy Van Syckle connects with Tripp Wall, CEO of Pantheon Regeneration, to explore how his team is turning degraded peatland ecosystems into high-impact stores of carbon with a wealth of additional benefits for biodiversity and resiliency. We dive deep into an unsung hero of carbon sequestration—peatlands—which cover just 3% of the earth's surface but store twice as much carbon as all the world's forests combined. Tripp explains the hydrological engineering and cutting-edge tech helping to restore and monitor these ancient ecosystems. We discuss the evolving Voluntary Carbon Market, the supply-demand mismatch approaching, and how nature-based solutions offer a highly scalable alternative to engineered carbon capture.  Additionally, Guy and Tripp explore how high-quality removal credits with biodiversity co-benefits are attracting major corporate offtakes, and the opportunities for traditional infrastructure investors to invest in natural capital to secure differentiated returns. Links: Pantheon Regeneration Website Tripp Wall LinkedIn Email your feedback to Gil, Guy, Hilary, and Kenny at climatepositive@hasi.com.

Send me a messageHeat is becoming a business risk in plain sight. And if cooling demand is set to soar, the energy transition has a problem most people still aren't talking about. In this episode, I'm joined by Rob Atkin, co-founder and CEO of Pirta, a climate tech company developing passive cooling coatings and additives. We dig into a part of decarbonisation and the energy transition that gets far too little attention: how we keep buildings, warehouses, data centres, and infrastructure cool in a warming world without driving up electricity demand, emissions, and cost. You'll hear why Rob says “sustainability doesn't sell itself”, and why that blunt truth matters for every founder, policymaker, and business leader chasing net zero. We dig into how Pirta is trying to turn passive cooling from clever materials science into something customers will actually buy, deploy, and scale. And you might be surprised to learn that air conditioning already accounts for about 15% of global electricity demand, with that figure set to triple by 2050. We also get into the hidden role of titanium dioxide, why reducing it matters for emissions reduction, and where passive cooling could have the biggest impact first, from affordable housing to warehouses to AI-era data centres. One of the sharpest insights in this conversation is that some climate solutions win not because they sound noble, but because, as Rob puts it, “a paint's not gonna break down.” Grimly practical. Exactly the point. 

Russell Sprole of Virta Ventures joins David Bank to talk about why Virta expanded its equity-light, software-focused climate-tech investment strategy to include hardware, AI and blended capital stacks. Virta Ventures has been an active and early user of ImpactAlpha Edge, ImpactAlpha's premium platform of data and tools for fund managers and other Agents of Impact.For more on the firm check out out David's piece on the firm's strategy from last year.

Send me a messageWhat if fossil fuels aren't just polluting, but a standing threat to economic stability?This episode makes the case that the energy transition is now as much about security and cost as it is about climate.In this solo Climate Confident+ episode, I dig into a brutal truth too many policymakers and business leaders still avoid: fossil fuels don't merely drive emissions, they drive volatility, fragility, and geopolitical risk. At a moment when war, price shocks, and supply disruption are once again rattling global markets, I unpack why this matters for climate tech, decarbonisation, and the wider energy transition.You'll hear why fossil dependence acts like “instability in a bottle”, and why renewables, storage, EVs, heat pumps, and grid upgrades are increasingly the smarter response, not just environmentally, but economically. We dig into how fuel shocks ripple through inflation, trade, competitiveness, and public finances. And you might be shocked to learn just how much fossil import dependence is still costing countries, businesses, and households, even before you count the pollution, health damage, and wider social harm.This is also a clear-eyed episode. I'm not pretending renewables solve everything by magic. We need grids, storage, flexibility, better policy, and faster deployment. But that's precisely the point: those are infrastructure challenges we can solve. Perpetual exposure to volatile fossil fuels is not a strategy. It's a liability.

Will the Iran War finally be the moment where countries move to renewables en masse, or will they rely more heavily on fossil fuels? This week on Zero, Akshat Rathi is joined by Aurore Belfrage, a tech investor, geopolitical risk advisor, and sustainability strategist, to look at how the energy investment landscape is changing with a fresh war in the Middle East, and how climate tech is making countries more resilient. Explore further: EU Weighs Ukraine Crisis Strategy to Calm High Energy Prices European Consumers Seek Out Solar, EVs as Energy Prices Surge Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. Our producer is Oscar Boyd. Special thanks to Sommer Saadi, Mohsis Andam, Sharon Chen and Laura Millan. Thoughts or suggestions? Email us at zeropod@bloomberg.net. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit https://www.bloomberg.com/green.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Send me a messageWhat if voluntary carbon markets are either a vital climate tool... or a polished excuse to delay real decarbonisation?In this episode of Climate Confident, I'm joined by Dr Jennifer Jenkins, Chief Science Officer at Rubicon Carbon, to unpack one of the most contested questions in climate tech and net zero strategy: what role, if any, should voluntary carbon markets play in real-world emissions reduction? At a time when companies are under pressure to decarbonise, prove integrity, and navigate fast-moving policy shifts, this debate matters more than ever.We dig into why some firms see carbon credits as a practical way to close the gap between ambition and operational reality, and why others see them as a dangerous distraction. You'll hear why quality, additionality, MRV, and long-term offtake agreements are becoming central to the future of the market, and why high-integrity supply may be far tighter than many buyers realise.Jennifer also explains how buyers like Microsoft are shaping demand, how voluntary and compliance markets may be starting to converge, and why policy tools like CBAM could reshape the market faster than most people expect. You might be shocked to learn that one of the clearest ways to think about this space is as outsourced mitigation, a framing that makes the economics easier to grasp, but also exposes the credibility problem at the heart of the whole system.

Climate-tech founder Eben Bayer is on a mission to protect Spaceship Earth. And he says it's time for climate control, i.e. active measure that cool the Earth. Why? " Because all other reasonable approaches have failed miserably," he says, slapping the table for emphasis.Eben is the co-founder of Ecovative and MyForest Foods, the makers of MyBacon, which is sold in more than three thousand stores. It's a non-meat bacon, made from mycelium, which (more or less) means mushrooms roots. Fewer people eating meat —> fewer farting animals —> a cooler planet. And Eben's latest Earth-cooling idea is (nearly) out of this world. Eben wants to put giant parasols in the stratosphere where they could block sunlight from reaching Earth. With "shade-as-a-service" a maxed-out utility (say in Phoenix) could pay for shade to cool a city or an individual could pinpoint a shadow over their backyard for an afternoon barbecue.The idea is in its early stages, but Eben says it's feasible and it's the kind of big idea we need to get climate change under control. And while the idea of messing with the sun may sound scary, he says we alter the climate in all sorts of ways already: " We are geo-engineers. We farm animal livestock. We live on Planet Earth. We have impact. We emit CO2. We should not limit ourselves to modifying just one or two atmospheric gases to modify the planet. It's not how we operate, and it's an unbelievably constraining framing if you actually want to address this problem in a practical manner... When you start to take that frame, the options open way up."Eben is a fascinating guy — very steampunk in his approach to entrepreneurship — and I'm sure you'll find this interview eye-opening.And a special shout out to my field producer for this onsite recording from Troy, NY: my eleven-year old son, Julian! He was my camera and sound guy and he also makes his long-awaited (YouTube!) debut to ask Eben a question about protecting Spaceship Earth.

Power demand is rising faster than the systems meant to support it.AI, electrification, and industry all need stable energy, but the dominant story sold to the public was far simpler than reality. In this episode, Bret Kugelmass explains why the real bottleneck was never just climate ambition, but how the West misunderstood energy itself.For years, nuclear was framed as too dangerous, too slow, too expensive, and politically untouchable. Meanwhile, electricity demand kept rising, industrial resilience became strategic again, and the gap between energy ambition and physical reality widened.This conversation gets underneath the narrative. (Recorded November 2023)Bret Kugelmass, Founder and CEO of Last Energy, argues that the nuclear debate was never only about science or safety. It was also about incentives, regulation, public perception, delivery models, and the failure to distinguish what is inherent to the technology from what is imposed by the system around it.Drawing on his path from Silicon Valley entrepreneurship into deep energy infrastructure, Bret explains why he believes the West solved for the wrong variables, why wind and solar alone cannot carry modern industrial societies in many regions, and why the real breakthrough in nuclear may not come from reinventing the reactor, but from reinventing how power plants are built, sold, and deployed.As he puts it: (00:33:11) “Solve the wrong problem brilliantly and you'll be the only one who cares.”This episode is not just about nuclear energy. It is about first-principles thinking, product-market fit in deep tech, and the kind of contrarian founder logic required to build where politics, infrastructure, and capital collide.What You'll Learn in This Episode 1️⃣ Why Bret says the West misunderstood the real energy bottleneck 2️⃣ Why net zero may be the wrong framing for climate ambition 3️⃣ What most people still get wrong about nuclear waste, safety, and Fukushima 4️⃣ Why nuclear's real challenge is cost and construction, not physics 5️⃣ How Last Energy reframed the business by selling electricity, not reactors 6️⃣ What founders can learn from solving the right problem before scalingSelected Timestamps (00:04:29) Introduction (00:04:29) Defining climate goals beyond net zero (00:13:46) Bret discovers nuclear mission and truth (00:19:44) Chernobyl versus Fukushima what truly matters (00:21:39) Nuclear's unmatched physics for abundant energy (00:30:08) Ideal world nuclear plants in 18 months (00:36:02) Solving the right problem before building (00:42:58) First principles simplicity as Last Energy's edge (00:51:16) Securing 30 billion through true product market fit (00:54:05) Last Energy vision for tens of thousands of gigawatts (00:56:12) Taking ultimate responsibility to drive massive global progress

Under the Trump administration, many entrepreneurs working on climate tech, renewable energy or environmental justice have found their grants delayed, threatened or rescinded. The federal headwinds threaten to slow Gov. Maura Healey's plans to make Massachusetts the global hub for climate tech.

In this Climate Positive episode (our 100th!), Chad and Guy talk with Matt Loszak, CEO and co-founder of Aalo Atomics, about their innovative approach to building factory-made advanced micro reactors to power the AI-driven energy demand surge. Matt shares his unconventional journey from nuclear engineering student to software entrepreneur to nuclear startup founder, explaining why he believes we're entering a "second atomic age" for clean energy. Matt discusses Aalo's strategy of vertical integration and mass manufacturing, inspired by SpaceX and Tesla, to deliver compact, liquid metal-cooled nuclear reactors that can be deployed rapidly for data centers and other applications. He explains how the regulatory environment has evolved with recent executive orders streamlining pathways to criticality, the company's ambitious timeline to achieve zero power criticality by July 2026, and their vision for 3-cent-per-kilowatt-hour nuclear energy at scale. Matt also addresses public safety perceptions, the advantages of particular reactor technologies, and how their 50-megawatt "Aalo Pod" architecture provides the redundancy and incremental buildout that hyperscalers need. Links: Aalo Atomics Website Matt Loszak on LinkedIn Email your feedback to Chad, Gil, Hilary, and Guy at climatepositive@hasi.com.

Send me a messageAI may be booming, but the real bottleneck to it's growth may be turbines. And if firm power can't scale fast enough, parts of the energy transition hit a wall.In this episode, I'm joined by Brad Hartwig, Co-founder and CEO of Arbor Energy, to unpack a part of the climate tech and energy transition story that gets far too little attention: the physical machinery needed to deliver reliable, round-the-clock power. Arbor is developing modular supercritical CO2 turbines with integrated carbon capture, aimed at tackling one of the hardest problems in decarbonisation: how to provide firm, scalable electricity while still driving emissions reduction and keeping net zero in view.We dig into why turbine shortages are becoming a serious constraint on hyperscale data centres, utilities, and industrial electrification, and you'll hear why Brad believes this is now a critical choke point for both AI infrastructure and climate progress. You might be surprised to learn how stretched the traditional turbine supply chain has become, and why legacy manufacturers may be structurally mismatched to meet the moment.We also get into oxy-combustion, methane leakage, biomass, carbon sequestration, long-duration storage, and the awkward reality that wind, solar, batteries, and grid expansion, while essential, may still leave gaps when it comes to firm power. This is a grounded conversation about climate tech, policy, energy transition strategy, and what serious infrastructure thinking looks like when the easy slogans run out.

Send me a messageWar doesn't just kill people. It also blows up energy security, drives up emissions, and exposes fossil fuels for the liability they've always been.In this first Climate Confident+ bonus episode, available exclusively to subscribers, I unpack the unnecessary, illegal, and profoundly ill-advised war being waged by the US and Israel on Iran, and why its fallout matters far beyond the battlefield. This is not just a military crisis. It is an energy transition, climate tech, decarbonisation, and policy story with real consequences for emissions reduction, net zero, inflation, and industrial resilience. In this episode, I look at how attacks on energy infrastructure and disruption in the Strait of Hormuz have once again exposed the fragility of fossil-fuelled “energy security”. You'll hear why fossil dependence is no longer a security strategy, but geopolitical exposure. I dig into how roughly $88.7bn was burned in the first 17 days of the conflict, and why the Pentagon's reported $200bn request to Congress shows just how grotesque the opportunity cost has become. We also dig into the emissions impact, including how gas shortages in India are already pushing parts of the economy back towards coal, kerosene, and biomass. And crucially, I lay out why electrification, renewables, storage, and stronger grids are now central to real energy security.Climate Confident+ is just €5, and gives you regular access to in-depth, timely analysis like this.

Send me a messageWhat if one of the biggest climate problems in our buildings isn't power generation, but the fact we're still burning fuel in the basement?In this episode, I'm joined by Dan Yates, CEO of Dandelion Energy, to unpack why geothermal may be one of the most overlooked tools in climate tech today, and why building decarbonisation deserves far more attention in the wider energy transition debate. If we're serious about net zero and real emissions reduction, we need to stop treating heating as a side issue. Dan lays out a blunt truth: heating and cooling account for the vast majority of emissions from buildings, yet much of the conversation still fixates on EVs, solar, and batteries. You'll hear why some forms of electrification can create a nasty unintended consequence by driving winter peak demand through the roof, and why geothermal flips that logic on its head. We dig into how ground-source systems can cut energy use, slash peak load, and potentially reduce the need for expensive new grid infrastructure. You might be shocked to learn that this isn't just an HVAC story. It's a grid story. A policy story. A housing story. We also get into cost, leasing, incentives, data, and why Dan believes geothermal should be seen as distributed infrastructure hiding in plain sight. If you want a clearer view of what practical climate action looks like beyond the usual talking points, this one's worth your time. 

In this episode of Climate Positive, Kenny Gayles talks with Vinnie Campo, CEO and co-founder of Haven Energy, about their unique batteries-as-a-service approach that reduces barriers to affordable, reliable backup power by integrating home storage into virtual power plants (VPPs) to support the electric grid.  Vinnie shares Haven's journey as a rapidly growing operator of distributed energy assets. He discusses the effects of California's policy impacts on battery adoption, the influence of electrification and AI-driven demand on utilities, and why batteries are vital for grid resilience. He also discusses regulatory and market trends transforming residential energy, and what it takes to scale integrated energy infrastructure solutions.  Links: Haven Website Vinnie Campo on LinkedIn Haven Blog: “Raising New Funds to Speed Distributed Power” LADWP Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP) Email your feedback to Chad, Gil, Hilary, and Guy at climatepositive@hasi.com.