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William Layden is Co-founder and CEO at Rune, a company building modular, behind-the-meter micro data centers that plug directly into solar and wind plants. These units operate on a fully electric, DC-to-DC architecture—bypassing the traditional grid and unlocking new economics for compute at renewable energy sites.In this episode of Inevitable, Layden explains how solar clipping and curtailment leave vast amounts of clean power stranded—and how Rune's “RELIC” units turn that waste into usable compute. The conversation dives into DC architecture, Bitcoin as a beachhead market, and why traditional data centers are ill-suited to an era of distributed energy. Layden also unpacks why modular infrastructure may be the fastest path to deploying AI-scale compute at the edge of the energy transition.Episode recorded on Jan 27, 2026 (Published on Feb 17, 2026)In this episode we cover: (0:00) Intro(3:19) An overview of Rune(7:15) How energy flows and gets los in today's power stack(10:50) Clipping: the hidden inefficiency in solar(14:17) Curtailment: why the grid rejects clean energy(20:47) Starting with Bitcoin before scaling to AI workloads(25:50) Which compute loads can run interruptibly(27:26) Rune's business model and value to power producers(33:16) Where Rune operates and who's backing it(36:10) Why modular, DC-native design matters for scaleLinks:William Layden on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/william-laydenRune: https://www.rune.energy/ 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
‘I think the biggest thing to unlock right now is that credit vehicle that will support independent transmission projects' – Seithati Bolipombo from alternative energy company Mulilo.
In this episode of People in Power, Abigail Sawyer talks with Peter Ferrell, senior director of government relations for the National Electrical Manufacturers Association, about supply chain challenges and how they are affecting the buildout and modernization of the U.S. electric grid. From tariffs, trade and immigration policy to workforce shortages and natural disasters, supply chain concerns are contributing to numerous other challenges facing electric utilities as they work to improve and expand the complicated system that delivers power to a growing number of end users.
Today: environment reporter Michael Booth and health reporter John Ingold update listeners on a crucial and wrenching court case involving the future of gender-affirming care, and a new round of layoffs at Colorado's storied renewable energy lab. Photo: AP Photo/Jacquelyn MartinSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
One renewable energy advocate believes New Zealand would be better off burning our coal reserve than building a liquefied natural gas terminal. The Government's aiming to sign a procurement contract for a Taranaki LNG site by mid-year, and hoping to have it running by late next year or early 2028. An electricity levy of two to four dollars per megawatt-hour will fund the build, which is expected to save each household around $50 a year when up and running. Rewiring Aotearoa CEO Mike Casey told Kerre Woodham that while he likes to think of himself as a renewable energy advocate, he's also a pragmatic person. He says that the dry year problem has to be solved, but we should use the fuel we already have and import, instead of importing a new, incredibly expensive fuel, at a capital cost that would lock us into using it for a very long time. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Imagine having an automated marketing and sales machine generating qualified leads on tap, even whilst you're sleeping.In this podcast episode, I reveal why relying on outdated website contact forms, social media DMs, and email enquiries is killing your sales and costing you jobs. If your sales process depends on you being available to respond, your business effectively closes when you stop working. Instead, I explain how building an automated, well-oiled funnel can generate pre-qualified enquiries, book surveys directly into your calendar, and nurture prospects through automated emails, texts, and WhatsApp, keeping your business open 24/7, 365 days a year.WHAT YOU WILL LEARN AND KEY ACTIONS FROM THIS EPISODE:Uncover what a funnel is, how it works and why you must have them in your businessDiscover how you're silently killing your own sales by using outdated lead generation Learn the 2 most important sales triggers that you are missing yet customers craveDiscover the 6 vital components you need to build the ultimate sales funnel Join the LeadZilla community and training platform, access courses and live trainingsIf you're ready to generate vetted leads, save hours of time and win more work you need to listen to this powerful episode now.BECOME A MEMBER: Join our Growth Club and get instant access to live marketing training, business coaching, courses and a thriving community of professional trades. Guaranteed to help you to achieve time and financial freedom. JOIN OUR FACEBOOK GROUP: Join our free and thriving Facebook group and community APPLY TO JOIN OUR INNER CIRCLE: Apply to join our 12-month business and marketing coaching programme LeadZilla - Marketing and Sales Software: Start your 14 day free trial nowServiceM8 - Job Management Software: Start your extended 28 day free trial and bonuses WHO WE HELP AND SUPPORTAt the Trades Freedom Club, we help tradesmen and tradeswomen such as Plumbers, Heating Engineers, Electricians, Renewable Energy, Plasterers, Builders, Joiners, Roofers, Flooring, HVAC, Glazing, Scaffolders, CCTV, Security companies and Sub Contractors to build, grow and scale their trades or construction businesses.
It's the hottest sector in the global energy industry right now, driven by rising power demand, the need to back up variable renewable generation, and escalating threats to grid resilience. It is of course, battery storage. Host Ed Crooks and regular guest Amy Myers Jaffe speak with Julian Nebreda, CEO of energy storage systems company Fluence, about why batteries are becoming essential grid infrastructure. At peak hours during the bitterly cold weather that has covered much of North America in recent weeks, batteries accounted for about 1% of US power supply. But even a relatively small share of battery capacity can play an outsized role in preventing outages, Julian says. He argues that batteries are best understood not as replacements for fossil fuels, but as system optimizers: delivering fast-response capacity, stabilizing grids, and allowing generation assets to run more efficiently. With Amy and Ed, he addresses some of the common myths around batteries' cold-weather performance, multi-peak demand days and reliability compared with traditional generation.The gang explores the next wave of demand growth for batteries, particularly from new data centres for AI. Julian points to “speed to power” as a major new driver for storage deployment, as the hyperscalers and other tech companie try to bring new data centre capacity online as quickly as they can. There discussion also covers the geopolitical significance of storage, the attempt to build a battery supply chain in the US, the strngths of distributed versus centralised system designs, and examples of operations from Texas to Ukraine. As Amy notes, the industry is still catching up to the full potential of storage, but the potential is enormous.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
After more than a decade of flat demand, the US power sector is now facing explosive growth, arriving faster than grids, generation, and transmission can be built. In this episode, Interim host of Interchange Recharged Bridget van Dorsten is joined by Chris Seiple, Vice Chairman of Power & Renewables at Wood Mackenzie, to unpack one of the defining challenges facing the modern energy system: how utilities, developers, and policymakers are responding to an unprecedented surge in electricity demand driven by data centres, AI, and reshoring manufacturing. Bridget and Chris explore what makes this moment different, why planning cycles are colliding with short technology investment horizons, and how this mismatch is forcing a fundamental rethink of how the power business works, from energy policy to energy finance. The main point is that the difference between regulated and deregulated markets is widening, as vertically integrated utilities strengthen their advantage in managing large loads.New mechanisms like large-load tariffs are reshaping rate design, investment risk, and affordability - Chris explains how. Plus, deregulated markets may be approaching a tipping point, as traditional price signals struggle to accommodate demand arriving at this scale and speed. What does it all mean for energy?Crucially, the episode looks beyond the immediate crunch to the longer-term implications for the energy transition. From renewable energy and solar energy pipelines to grid resilience, transmission innovation, and behind-the-meter solutions, this demand boom could become a powerful catalyst for clean tech, clean technology, and energy innovation, even as subsidy regimes change and capital costs rise.The discussion also touches on the role of hydrogen, nuclear, and emerging grid technologies in supporting future energy projects, and why this period of rapid load growth may ultimately accelerate decarbonisation rather than slow it. If you're tracking climate policy, climate change, green finance, and long-term energy predictions, this episode is for you; hear why today's data centre boom could shape the next several decades of the power system.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Cape Town is often praised for having one of South Africa’s most progressive residential solar programmes, but the rollout has not been without controversy. Kadri Nassiep, Executive Director of City Electricity at the City of Cape Town, speaks to John Maytham about the City’s approach to encouraging solar uptake. Households can benefit from incentives including cash or bill credits for excess power fed back into the grid and the City has paid millions to residents for their contributions. Some administration fees have been reduced to make solar adoption easier. However, critics argue that additional costs such as feed-in meters and fixed infrastructure charges make participation complicated and expensive, particularly for middle-income households, high-value properties, and those using less municipal electricity. More than 14 000 objections and petitions have been lodged against the City’s tariff structures, with residents saying that fixed charges disproportionately affect disposable income. The City maintains that charges are necessary to cover the cost of pipes, cables, and staff, even as more households generate their own power, highlighting the tension between supporting renewable energy and maintaining municipal infrastructure funding. Presenter John Maytham is an actor and author-turned-talk radio veteran and seasoned journalist. His show serves a round-up of local and international news coupled with the latest in business, sport, traffic and weather. The host’s eclectic interests mean the program often surprises the audience with intriguing book reviews and inspiring interviews profiling artists. A daily highlight is Rapid Fire, just after 5:30pm. CapeTalk fans call in, to stump the presenter with their general knowledge questions. Another firm favourite is the humorous Thursday crossing with award-winning journalist Rebecca Davis, called “Plan B”. Thank you for listening to a podcast from Afternoon Drive with John Maytham Listen live on Primedia+ weekdays from 15:00 and 18:00 (SA Time) to Afternoon Drive with John Maytham broadcast on CapeTalk https://buff.ly/NnFM3Nk For more from the show go to https://buff.ly/BSFy4Cn or find all the catch-up podcasts here https://buff.ly/n8nWt4x Subscribe to the CapeTalk Daily and Weekly Newsletters https://buff.ly/sbvVZD5 Follow us on social media: CapeTalk on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CapeTalk CapeTalk on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@capetalk CapeTalk on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ CapeTalk on X: https://x.com/CapeTalk CapeTalk on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CapeTalk567 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
We're back! And we're talking about the value of post-occupancy evaluation (POE) with Tom Robins and Leigh Fairbrother of Switchee.Their business is POE for landlords that's intended to improve the quality of life for the residents that they rely on. Capturing sensor data, analysing it, and synthesising that into something their clients can use.Essentially, this means validating the quality of fabric, the impact of retrofit works, and anticipating car crashes—metaphorical ones.We get a really helpful explanation of Awaab's Law around 25–30 minutes in, too. (Thank you Leigh.)Notes from the showTom Robins on LinkedInLeigh Fairbrother on LinkedIn The Switchee website (sign up in the footer)Switchee on LinkedInPH+ coverage of that early work in Thamesmead (the Clockwork Orange estate) **SOME SELF-PROMOTING CALLS TO ACTION**We don't actually earn anything from this podcast, and it's quite a lot of work, so we have to promote the day jobs.Follow us on the Zero Ambitions LinkedIn page (we still don't have a proper website)Jeff and Dan about Zero Ambitions Partners (the consultancy) for help with positioning and communications strategy, customer/user research and engagement strategy, carbon calculations and EPDs – we're up to all sortsSubscribe and advertise with Passive House Plus (UK edition here too)Check Lloyd Alter's Substack: Carbon UpfrontJoin ACANJoin the AECB Join the IGBCCheck out Her Retrofit Space, the renovation and retrofit platform for women**END OF SELF-PROMOTING CALLS TO ACTION**
Steve Goreham Author of Green Breakdown_ The Coming Renewable Energy Failure
with Brad Friedman & Desi Doyen
Recorded live at the Energy Transition Centre in Calgary, David, Sara, and Ed took on one of the toughest questions in Canadian climate politics: what does energy transition actually look like for Alberta? They dug into emissions, economics, diversification, and the uncomfortable trade-offs that tend to get glossed over in public debate. It's a fun conversation with an extended Q&A from the live audience. Just a note, unfortunately we had some mic issues so apologies for any audio hiccups you might notice.
Norway is normally an exporter of electricity to its neighbours , but experts are sounding alarm bells. They warn that the increase in demand from electrification and data centres will eclipse the country's abundant power supply. Has Norway now reached that crucial turning point? In this episode, Richard sits down with Nordic market experts at the Pareto Securities conference in Oslo to discuss the how government subsidies are distorting investment decisions, and why major demand drivers like data centres need faster grid reforms and connections. Host: Richard Sverrisson - Editor-in-Chief, Montel NewsGuests: Erik Strømsø - CEO and Co-Founder, BW ESSJørn Skaane - CEO, Lefdal Mine DatacenterLars Ove Skorpen - Director of Power & Renewable Energy, Pareto SecuritiesContributor: Petter Udland - Norway Reporter, Montel NewsEditor: Oscar BirkProducer: Sarah KnowlesSubscribe to the podcast on our website, via Apple Podcasts or Spotify
2/4/26 Northwestern District Attorney David Sullivan: Gov Healey responds to ICE & new plan to combat sex trafficking Lora Wondoloski, Jessa McCormack, Henry Morgan—Peace Dev Fund funding the movement & Phenom's fight to democratize higher ed. Brian Adams with UMass Professor of Public Policy Juniper Katz on renewable energy challenges and successes. Cool Films with Larry Hott on Oscar nominees for best short documentary
with Brad Friedman & Desi Doyen
Comments/ideas: asiaclimatefinpod@outlook.comUnlock the secrets of solar bankability in this episode with Harsh Goenka from Solargis, a leading solar data and software provider. We explore how high-quality satellite data and AI-driven forecasting reduce investment risk and manage weather variability. Discover how precise resource assessment helps grid operators transition from coal to reliable, base-load renewable energy by optimising battery storage. Learn why accurate solar data is the essential "fuel" for scaling climate finance and navigating extreme weather risks like hailstorms in emerging markets.ABOUT HARSH: Harsh Goenka is the Regional Sales Director for Europe and APAC at Solargis. An engineer by training, Harsh brings over a decade of expertise in the renewable energy sector, specialising in bridging the gap between technical solar engineering and financial risk assessment. Prior to his current leadership role, he was instrumental in mentoring commercial teams and forging strategic partnerships with major institutional investors and IPPs globally. He remains committed to advancing data-driven decision-making to accelerate the global transition to clean energy.HOST, PRODUCTION, ARTWORK: Joseph Jacobelli | MUSIC: Ep76 onward excerpts from Vivaldi's La Follia, played by Luca Jacobelli.
Many have tried, but no one has quite perfected the solar car.The average vehicle spends most – or all – of its time outside, either in use or parked, and with more than 6 million electric vehicles now present on American roads, many auto companies have been captivated by the prospect of capturing the energy of the sun to provide a boost in range.One of those is Nissan, which recently unveiled a concept that pairs its all-electric Ariya model with solar panels. Nissan says the project hopes to target the ambitious question that many have posed over the years: what if electric vehicles could charge themselves?Unveiled in time for Clean Energy Day in January, the concept features an array of flat photovoltaic panels on the Ariya's hood, liftgate and roof – visible to the eye, but not adding bulk. #Nissan, #ElectricVehicles, #SolarCar, #EVTechnology, #CleanEnergy, #RenewableEnergy, #AutomotiveInnovation, #FutureOfMobility, #SustainableTransportation, #EVCharging, #SolarPanels, #GreenTechnology, #AutoIndustry, #ConceptCars, #EVAdoption, #EnergyEfficiency, #ClimateTech, #IndustryTrends
Hvordan står det egentlig til med sektoren for fornybar energi når kostnadene øker, teknologien utvikler seg raskere enn noen gang, og etterspørselen etter elektrisitet eksploderer? Vi har oppsummert de viktigste perspektivene fra Pareto Securities' 28. Power & Renewable Energy Conference i Oslo – fra sol og vind til KI og datasentre. Det globale strømforbruket øker raskt, drevet av AI, datasentre og digital infrastruktur. Samtidig bygges det mindre ny kraft enn på lenge. I denne episoden av Paretopodden diskuterer vi hva dette betyr for energimarkedene – og for Norge som kraftnasjon.Gjest er Lars Ove Skorpen, Director of Power & Renewable Energy i Pareto Securities. Med ferske innsikter fra Pareto Securities' 28. årlige Power & Renewable Energy Conference i Oslo deler han sine tanker om utfordringene og mulighetene innen kraftsegmentet.Samtalen tar også for seg paradoksene i norsk kraftpolitikk: store mengder strøm som går rett ut i Nord-Norge, politisk usikkerhet rundt rammevilkår, og hvorfor ordninger som Norgespris kan svekke både energieffektivisering og investeringer. Dette er en episode for deg som vil forstå hvordan kraft, kapital og politikk henger sammen i en tid der etterspørselen etter strøm bare vil øke og det kan være mange muligheter for investorer.Disclaimer:Pareto Securities' podkaster inneholder ikke profesjonell rådgivning, og skal ikke betraktes som investeringsrådgivning. Handel i verdipapirer medfører til enhver tid risiko, og historisk avkastning er ingen garanti for fremtidig avkastning. Pareto Securities er verken rettslig eller økonomisk ansvarlig for direkte eller indirekte tap, eller andre kostnader som måtte påløpe ved bruk av informasjon i denne podkasten.Se våre nettsider https://paretosec.com/our-firm/compliance/ for mer informasjon og full disclaimer. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Electricity prices are rising across New York, and understanding what drives those costs has never been more important. In this Power Trends podcast, NYISO Vice President of Market Structures Shaun Johnson breaks down the factors shaping today's electricity supply charges and explains how wholesale markets produce the most cost-efficient solutions to meet consumer demand. Wholesale electricity supply costs have been climbing as natural gas prices — New York's primary fuel for electricity — have nearly doubled in the past year. Most of what customers pay goes toward utility delivery charges, taxes, and other non-supply components. Electricity bills can be confusing, but Johnson breaks down the two primary charges: The supply cost makes up approximately one third of your bill. The other two thirds are the retail rates your utility company charges plus taxes and fees.The physical composition of the gas pipeline infrastructure factors into retail delivery costs as well. Because New York and New England sit at the tail end of a pipeline network that originates in the Colorado Rockies and the Gulf Coast, delivery costs to northeastern states are among the highest in the nation.As the state moves toward greater electrification and new large loads emerge, demand is expected to keep growing. At the same time, aging generation and long lead times for new resources are tightening supply. These realities put upward pressure on prices too.“Our market philosophy has always been sort of simple,” Johnson notes, “how do we keep the lights on at the lowest cost via competition.”Check out the complete podcast to explore how wholesale markets function, what's driving today's costs, and how NYISO works to maintain grid reliability at the lowest cost — even when fuel prices surge.More resourcesPlease visit our new winter pricing resource page to explain what's behind rising costs.Learn More Follow us on X/Twitter @NewYorkISO, LinkedIn @NYISO, Bluesky @nyiso.com Read our blogs and watch our videos
Welcome to Exponential View, the show where I explore how exponential technologies such as AI are reshaping our future. I've been studying AI and exponential technologies at the frontier for over ten years.Each week, I share some of my analysis or speak with an expert guest to make light of a particular topic.To keep up with the Exponential transition, subscribe to this channel or to my newsletter: https://www.exponentialview.co/-----At Davos 2026, the mood was unlike any previous World Economic Forum gathering. With Donald Trump arriving amid escalating geopolitical tensions and European leaders sounding alarms about sovereignty, I recorded live dispatches from the ground. In this special episode, I bring together observations from four days at the annual meeting, tracking the seismic shifts in global order alongside the practical realities of AI adoption in the enterprise.Skip to the best bits:(00:38) Day one at Davos(02:10) Three recurring themes through the week(03:55) Day three at Davos(05:12) Mark Carney's stirring speech(05:52) Why European leaders are sounding the alarm(06:51) Why technological sovereignty just became urgent(09:31) Day four at Davos(12:59) What leaders really have to say on AI adoption(14:07) The case for only using open source modelsWhere to find me:Exponential View newsletter: https://www.exponentialview.co/Website: https://www.azeemazhar.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/azhar/Twitter/X: https://x.com/azeemProduction by supermix.io and EPIIPLUS1. Production and research: Chantal Smith and Marija Gavrilov. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
In a speech last week in a speech at the World Economic Forum, President Trump said China was making a lot of wind turbines, but not using much wind power in their own country. Is that right? China studies professor Jeremy Wallace joins Host Ira Flatow to talk about the renewable energy landscape in China. They'll dig into how China is flooding the world with affordable solar technology, making it the cheapest form of electricity in history. Plus, what energy tech China is manufacturing, what it's using domestically, and what it's exporting.Guest: Dr. Jeremy Wallace is the A. Doak Barnett Professor of China Studies at Johns Hopkins UniversityTranscripts for each episode are available within 1-3 days at sciencefriday.com. Subscribe to this podcast. Plus, to stay updated on all things science, sign up for Science Friday's newsletters.
At Davos, Donald Trump claimed that China doesn't use wind energy, or in his words, “windmills.” He could not be more wrong. In 2024, China accounted for 40% of the globe's wind energy generation and in 2025, over a quarter of China's energy came from wind and solar power. As the U.S. reverts to coal, gas and oil for its energy needs, China is emerging as the world leader in renewables. We talk about whether the U.S. will be left irrevocably behind by Trump's energy policy and what it all means for California's renewable energy industry. Guests: Jeremy Wallace, professor of China Studies, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS); author, "China Lab" newsletter; author of recent WIRED article, "China's Renewable Energy Revolution Is a Huge Mess That Might Save the World" Mark Jacobson, professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Stanford University; author, "Still No Miracles Needed: How Today's Technology Can Save Our Climate and Clean Our Air" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
https://youtu.be/3fntze01h_kMatt and Sean talk about a new material we might see in solar panels, and Matt's invasion on Hank Green.Watch the Undecided with Matt Ferrell episode, Why This Solar Breakthrough Matters More Than Perovskite https://youtu.be/F_OPrOpccJs?list=PLnTSM-ORSgi7uzySCXq8VXhodHB5B5OiQ(00:00) - - Intro & Feedback (16:23) - - Kesterite Discussion YouTube version of the podcast: https://www.youtube.com/stilltbdpodcastGet in touch: https://undecidedmf.com/podcast-feedbackSupport the show: https://pod.fan/still-to-be-determinedFollow us on X: @stilltbdfm @byseanferrell @mattferrell or @undecidedmfUndecided with Matt Ferrell: https://www.youtube.com/undecidedmf ★ Support this podcast ★
Send me a messageEurope is drowning in cheap clean power, and still wasting it.The problem isn't renewables. It's what happens when the grid can't cope with abundance.In this episode of the Climate Confident Podcast, I'm joined by Oonagh O'Grady, Vice President of International Origination at Hydrostor, a global leader in long-duration energy storage. We dig into one of the most under-discussed blockers of the energy transition: what happens after wind and solar scale, but before the grid is ready.Oonagh explains why short-duration batteries, while essential, aren't enough once renewables reach 40–50% of the system. We unpack why grids are hitting curtailment, negative pricing, and instability, and why eight to twenty-four hours of long-duration energy storage is fast becoming the backbone of a reliable, net-zero power system.You'll hear why advanced compressed air energy storage can deliver fossil-free, utility-scale flexibility for decades, how it compares with batteries and pumped hydro on cost and performance, and why inertia and grid stability are suddenly back in the spotlight after recent European outages. We also get into the policy side: what leading regions like California, Australia, and the UK are getting right, and what Europe must do now if it wants secure, affordable, decarbonised electricity in the 2030s.This is a grounded, evidence-led conversation about climate tech that actually works at scale - and a reminder that without long-duration storage, the energy transition stalls just when it should be accelerating.
Ayla Burnett and Abigail Sawyer chat with Sarah Edmonds and Rebecca Sexton of the Western Power Pool on their backgrounds and the paths that led them to be leaders in the Western energy world. They also discuss the inception of two groundbreaking initiatives: the Western Resource Adequacy Program and the Western Transmission Expansion Coalition.
As Texas battles another bout of bitterly cold weather, Energy Gang looks at the lessons that one generation and transmission electric co-operative learned from Winter Storm Uri in 2021. The freeze and subsequent shock to energy prices showed providers how dangerous it can be to rely on the market alone.For Rayburn Electric, a not-for-profit, member-owned cooperative, incurring years of power costs in just days was a catalyst for a fundamental reset of its approach to risk and resilience.Host Ed Crooks is joined by Rayburn's President & CEO David Naylor, and General Counsel Chris Anderson, to hear the story of how they rethought how the co-op could best serve its members, and implemented its new strategy. The crucial steps included a first-of-its-kind securitization for a co-op, to spread costs over decades, and a strategic pivot toward owning generation as a natural hedge for its electricity sales. The co-op bought a power plant, now called the Rayburn Energy Station, and has RES 2 in the works, to meet reliability needs amid rapid load growth. David and Chris share what changedinside the organization too, driven by the principle that ‘status quo is not company policy.' Operating exclusively within ERCOT, Rayburn provides power to approximately 625,000 Texans across sixteen counties, working collaboratively with four local distribution co-ops. Its infrastructure includes more than 265 miles of transmission lines and more than 1,000 MW of owned generation capacity, including the Rayburn Energy Station, a combined-cycle natural gas plant added to strengthen reliability after Winter Storm Uri.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
US data centre announcements are averaging 435MW a month, and there's around 175GW of large-load capacity already committed or under construction. AI hyperscalers are looking for innovative ways to meet their energy demands. It's one of the biggest infrastructure challenges in energy right now: how to deliver reliable, fast power without derailing climate and decarbonisation goals. Joining interim host Bridget van Dorsten is Akhil Batheja, Director of Technology Strategy at Bloom Energy, to unpack why fuel cells have moved from “interesting clean technology” to the epicentre of the data-centre power conversation - and what that shift means for utilities, energy projects, and energy policy.Together they discuss how solid oxide fuel cells differ from turbines, engines and batteries - from efficiency and permitting advantages to “Lego block” scalability - and why “time to power” is becoming the defining metric for data center owners. Bridget and Akhil explore grid resilience and the realities of operating off-grid campuses, how fuel cells can handle spiky AI workloads using supercapacitors, and why a future high-voltage DC architecture could reshape data-centre efficiency. Finally, they look at pathways to cleaner fuels, including hydrogen, renewable energy-linked fuels like biogas/RNG, and carbon capture, plus the role of energy finance and green finance in accelerating climate change solutions across the energy transition.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Ten countries, including the UK, back a vast fleet of offshore wind projects in the North Sea and outline security co-operation. Then: Life in Iran, and high jewellery at Paris Couture Week.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
X: @RogerHelmerMEP @ileaderssummit @americasrt1776 @NatashaSrdoc @JoelAnandUSA @supertalk @JTitMVirginia Join America's Roundtable radio co-hosts Natasha Srdoc and Joel Anand Samy with Roger Helmer, former Member of the European Parliament representing the United Kingdom and business leader who served in Asia and Europe. Topics include President Donald Trump's speech in Davos, America's economic growth for 2026 in light of key reforms implemented, Europe's challenges as stated by Germany's Chancellor Merz, issues impacting Britain, the future of Greenland, and US national security. The conversation will also focus on Nigel Farage's leadership at the helm of the United Kingdom's Reform Party and how that may impact Britain's reform agenda. Speaker Johnson's speech to the U.K. Parliament to be remembered as a historic moment, as the first American Speaker of the House of Representatives adressed the U.K. Parliament. The China threat and Iran's brutal oppression of its own citizens and especially the youth yearning for freedom will be brought under the spotlight as more than 5,000 protestors have been killed and over 20,000 imprisoned. Mr. Helmer has published two books on European issues, "Straight Talking on Europe" in 2000, and "A Declaration of Independence" in 2002. He also served as Chairman of The Freedom Association in the United Kingdom. He was a supporter of the Better Off Out campaign - the Brexit Movement, that called for the UK to leave the European Union. Roger Helmer is a founding leadership member of the Jerusalem Leaders Summit in Israel. americasrt.com https://ileaderssummit.org/ | https://jerusalemleaderssummit.com/ America's Roundtable on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/americas-roundtable/id1518878472 X: @RogerHelmerMEP @ileaderssummit @americasrt1776 @NatashaSrdoc @JoelAnandUSA @supertalk @JTitMVirginia America's Roundtable is co-hosted by Natasha Srdoc and Joel Anand Samy, co-founders of International Leaders Summit and the Jerusalem Leaders Summit. America's Roundtable radio program focuses on America's economy, healthcare reform, rule of law, security and trade, and its strategic partnership with rule of law nations around the world. The radio program features high-ranking US administration officials, cabinet members, members of Congress, state government officials, distinguished diplomats, business and media leaders and influential thinkers from around the world. Tune into America's Roundtable Radio program from Washington, DC via live streaming on Saturday mornings via 68 radio stations at 7:30 A.M. (ET) on Lanser Broadcasting Corporation covering the Michigan and the Midwest market, and at 7:30 A.M. (CT) on SuperTalk Mississippi — SuperTalk.FM reaching listeners in every county within the State of Mississippi, and neighboring states in the South including Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana and Tennessee. Tune into WTON in Central Virginia on Sunday mornings at 9:30 A.M. (ET). Listen to America's Roundtable on digital platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon, Google and other key online platforms. Listen live, Saturdays at 7:30 A.M. (CT) on SuperTalk | https://www.supertalk.fm
Bertie is joined by Mark Jacobson, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Stanford University, whose research formed the foundation for the Green New Deal. In his new book, “Still No Miracles Needed: How Today's Technology Can Save Our Climate and Clean Our Air,” he underlines that we have already developed the technologies necessary to solve the climate crisis.Dr. Jacobson argues that wind, water and solar power are the most effective tools for reducing emissions, that the development of energy-intensive “unicorn technologies” such as carbon capture and storage only prolongs fossil fuel use.Mark Jacobson is Director of Stanford's Atmosphere and Energy Program and a co-founder of The Solutions Project, which advances clean, renewable energy systems. His new book is available to buy here from Cambridge University Press, with 20% off using the discount code “NOMIRACLES20”.Further reading:'Carbon capture does not reduce emissions: these three case studies prove it', Mark Z. Jacobson, Land and Climate Review, 2026. Wind and solar overtook fossil fuels for EU power generation in 2025, report finds, Ajit Niranjan, The Guardian, 2026.No Miracles Needed: How Today's Technology Can Save Our Climate and Clean Our Air, Mark Z. Jacobson, Cambridge University Press, 2023. 100% Clean, Renewable Energy and Storage for Everything, Mark Z. Jacobson, Cambridge University Press, 2020. 'A path to sustainable energy by 2030', Mark Z. Jacobson and Mark A. Delucchi, Scientific American, 2009 Correction notice: in the original upload of this podcast, Bertie mistakenly referred to the publisher of Still No Miracles Needed as 'Stanford University Press', rather than Cambridge University Press. This was removed on 27/1/25.Send us a textClick here for our website to read all our most recent Land and Climate Review features and pieces.
Can we have guilt-free flying?David, Sara, and Ed chat with Sebastian Eastham, associate professor of sustainable aviation at Imperial College London, about the climate impacts of aviation and what we can actually do about it.The conversation covers immediate levers like contrail avoidance and operational changes that don't require waiting decades for new tech—plus the real potential (and limitations) of sustainable aviation fuels.It's a lively and at times blunt conversation, with sharp audience questions and limited patience for climate cosplay. You'll get the cosplay bit once you listen...
Joe Heinrich comes from a multi-generation Iowa farming family. As executive director of the non-profit Farm-to-Power, he's helping farmers to navigate the new world of renewable energy. Solar and wind developers are looking for land, which farmers have; farmers are looking for extra income steams, which energy can provide. But what happens to land with utility-scale energy installations? Some farmers are making sure that the panels are high enough off the ground that cattle can graze under them—and take advantage of the shade they provide. Others are grazing sheep under the panels, providing landscaping services and keeping the land healthy. Still others are growing crops. All of these are examples of agrovoltaics, or what Heinrich calls "double cropping"—harvesting food and energy at the same time.
Send me a messageEurope doesn't have a clean energy problem. It has a grid problem.Solar is cheap. Batteries are scaling. Demand is exploding. The system in the middle is cracking.In this episode, I'm joined by Rob Stait, Managing Director of Alight's behind-the-meter business, to unpack why the energy transition is now being held back less by technology and more by infrastructure, regulation, and outdated thinking. Alight develops and owns onsite solar and battery systems for large energy users across Europe, using long-term PPAs to lock in savings, cut emissions, and build resilience.We dig into why waiting for cheaper solar or batteries is often the wrong call, and why businesses that move early gain a structural advantage. You'll hear how behind-the-meter solar and battery storage bypass grid bottlenecks entirely, why blaming renewables for blackouts misses the real issue, and how decentralised generation is reshaping energy security, affordability, and decarbonisation all at once.We also explore the uncomfortable reality facing Europe's grids, the growing role of data centres and electrification, and why microgrids are starting to look less like an edge case and more like the logical endgame of the energy transition. This is a grounded conversation about climate tech that works, emissions reduction that scales, and why net zero will be built through economics as much as policy.
Wen-Yu Weng, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation's Critical Minerals Lead, joins Lou to explain why critical minerals are currently taking centre stage in global political conversations. They explore:How we can create secure and resilient supply chains to close the gap on fast growing demandThe circular opportunities that currently lie in shaping supply chains to capture value right nowThe enabling factors that have opened windows of opportunity for immediate actionIf you enjoyed this episode, then please share with your colleagues, or leave us a review or comment on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or YouTube.
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Subscribe to receive transcripts by email. Read along with this episode.'Global investment in the energy transition reached $2.2 trillion in 2025, up 5% from the previous year despite political headwinds intensified. Peter Fusaro has watched this market evolve from a niche curiosity into a systemic financial concern. As founder of the Wall Street Green Summit, he's spent a quarter century connecting capital to climate solutions. This year's summit, the 25th in its history, will take place on March 10 and 11 in New York. This critical conversation arrives at an historic inflection point: insurance companies are withdrawing from climate-vulnerable states, AI data centers are straining electrical grids, and the economics of clean energy have fundamentally shifted.The energy transition's bottleneck isn't capital, it's infrastructure. The U.S. went from 110 investor-owned utilities in 1992 to just 40 today, and consolidation meant underinvestment in transmission and distribution. Data centers consumed 2% of U.S. energy demand in 2020; Peter sees that climbing to 10-12% by 2030. Blackouts and brownouts are inevitable, he says. Yet his message is pragmatic optimism: ignore Washington and watch the capital markets and blue states where climate policy is embedded in law. Many companies are "green hushing," quietly pursuing sustainability without public positioning. The energy industry thinks in 40-year cycles, making the current political moment a blip. "I've spent 56 years now in sustainability, before it had a name," he says. "What I've learned is change takes decades."Peter argues that Wall Street has genuinely internalized climate as systemic risk—not because of ideology, but because of opportunity. "Wall Street likes exchanges, likes to trade, likes volatility, and certainly likes uncertainty," he explains. "What people don't understand about Wall Street, it's about the edge. What's the arbitrage opportunity?" The reinsurance industry has stepped forward aggressively, funding carbon credits and sustainability projects. Peter's recent Earth911 article, "Climate Risk Has Become a Defining Economic Issue," explores these themes in depth.However, he sees natural gas and renewables dominating the next 15 years, while geothermal is enjoying a genuine renaissance. His optimism rests on a demographic bet: "I have a tremendous valuation on young people. I'm 75. They're inheriting this world, and they get the sustainability message globally." The summit attendees includes no government officials and no academics, just people in the trenches building and financing solutions.You can learn more at TheWallStreetGreenSummit.com. Earth911 is a media sponsor for the event.Subscribe to Sustainability In Your Ear on iTunesFollow Sustainability In Your Ear on Spreaker, iHeartRadio, or YouTube
CES 2026 Just Showed Us the Future. It's More Practical Than You Think.CES has always been part crystal ball, part carnival. But something shifted this year.I caught up with Brian Comiskey—Senior Director of Innovation and Trends at CTA and a futurist by trade—days after 148,000 people walked the Las Vegas floor. What he described wasn't the usual parade of flashy prototypes destined for tech graveyards. This was different. This was technology getting serious about actually being useful.Three mega trends defined the show: intelligent transformation, longevity, and engineering tomorrow. Fancy terms, but they translate to something concrete: AI that works, health tech that extends lives, and innovations that move us, power us, and feed us. Not technology for its own sake. Technology with a job to do.The AI conversation has matured. A year ago, generative AI was the headline—impressive demos, uncertain applications. Now the use cases are landing. Industrial AI is optimizing factory operations through digital twins. Agentic AI is handling enterprise workflows autonomously. And physical AI—robotics—is getting genuinely capable. Brian pointed to robotic vacuums that now have arms, wash floors, and mop. Not revolutionary in isolation, but symbolic of something larger: AI escaping the screen and entering the physical world.Humanoid robots took a visible leap. Companies like Sharpa and Real Hand showcased machines folding laundry, picking up papers, playing ping pong. The movement is becoming fluid, dexterous, human-like. LG even introduced a consumer-facing humanoid. We're past the novelty phase. The question now is integration—how these machines will collaborate, cowork, and coexist with humans.Then there's energy—the quiet enabler hiding behind the AI headlines.Korea Hydro Nuclear Power demonstrated small modular reactors. Next-generation nuclear that could cleanly power cities with minimal waste. A company called Flint Paper Battery showcased recyclable batteries using zinc instead of lithium and cobalt. These aren't sexy announcements. They're foundational.Brian framed it well: AI demands energy. Quantum computing demands energy. The future demands energy. Without solving that equation, everything else stalls. The good news? AI itself is being deployed for grid modernization, load balancing, and optimizing renewable cycles. The technologies aren't competing—they're converging.Quantum made the leap from theory to presence. CES launched a new area called Foundry this year, featuring innovations from D-Wave and Quantum Computing Inc. Brian still sees quantum as a 2030s defining technology, but we're in the back half of the 2020s now. The runway is shorter than we thought.His predictions for 2026: quantum goes more mainstream, humanoid robotics moves beyond enterprise into consumer markets, and space technologies start playing a bigger role in connectivity and research. The threads are weaving together.Technology conversations often drift toward dystopia—job displacement, surveillance, environmental cost. Brian sees it differently. The convergence of AI, quantum, and clean energy could push things toward something better. The pieces exist. The question is whether we assemble them wisely.CES is a snapshot. One moment in the relentless march. But this year's snapshot suggests technology is entering a phase where substance wins over spectacle.That's a future worth watching.This episode is part of the Redefining Society and Technology podcast's CES 2026 coverage. Subscribe to stay informed as technology and humanity continue to intersect.Subscribe to the Redefining Society and Technology podcast. Stay curious. Stay human.> https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/7079849705156870144/Marco Ciappelli: https://www.marcociappelli.com/ Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
People in Power Episode 20: Abigail Sawyer talks with Carrie Simpson, vice president of markets for the Southwest Power Pool, about her experience in energy, which goes back to the early 2000s when she worked as an energy trader for Enron. Since then Carrie has been involved in power markets in both the Western and Eastern Interconnection. She is anticipating the expansion of SPP's RTO—which will be the first organized wholesale market to operate in both interconnections—and also preparing for SPP's day-ahead market offering, Markets+, which will begin serving entities in the Western Interconnection in October 2027.
AI is changing the energy system faster than almost anything we've seen in decades. Interim host, engineer and energy analyst Bridget Van Dorsten is joined by Ed Crooks, host of Energy Gang and Vice-chair of the Americas at Wood Mackenzie, for a wide-ranging conversation about what's really driving energy decisions in 2026. From data centres and “speed to power” to energy affordability and US energy dominance, they unpack why reliability, cost and scale are now front of mind for governments, utilities and technology companies.Bridget and Ed discuss which technologies could step up to meet the demand, from long-duration storage and advanced nuclear to geothermal and grid-enhancing technologies, and whether AI itself could help accelerate innovation across the energy system. Then they debate the costs; how much does AI really cost us in emissions and capital that could arguably be better spent elsewhere. Are data centres out-competing the energy transition for capital and grid access? And what happens if today's AI investment boom starts to cool, or the bubble bursts?See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Big things come in small packages. Could something smaller than a deck of cards be instrumental in our ability to meet the needs of the energy transition?In the ever-evolving landscape of power electronics, one material has been steadily gaining prominence due to its exceptional properties and transformative potential: Silicon Carbide (SiC). This remarkable semiconductor has revolutionized various industries, from automotive to aerospace, with its ability to operate at high temperatures, voltages and frequencies.As data centers and energy infrastructure increasingly need higher-voltage, higher-current devices to meet the demands for AI, this technology will enable the transition to a higher voltage platform while maintaining the high-efficiency requirements for continuously running, power-intensive systems.In today's conversation, Josh Beck chats with Infineon Technologies' Daniel Dalpiaz and Navid Riaz to explore the breakthrough hardware enabling the next generation of renewables, energy storage, EV charging, and high-power data centers. Infineon's silicon carbide devices pack serious voltage into incredibly compact, rugged designs, and have become the “intel-inside” of the clean energy revolution.In this episode, you'll hear how Infineon's latest innovation could shrink your cooling system, boost reliability, and push clean energy forward at scale.Expect to learn:
Philip Johnston is co-founder and CEO of Starcloud, a company building data centers in space to solve AI's power crisis. Starcloud has already launched the first NVIDIA H100 GPU into orbit and is partnering with cloud providers like Crusoe to scale orbital computing infrastructure.As AI demand accelerates, data centers are running into a new bottleneck: access to reliable, affordable power. Grid congestion, interconnection delays, and cooling requirements are slowing the deployment of new AI data centers, even as compute demand continues to surge. Traditional data centers face 5-10 year lead times for new power projects due to permitting, interconnection queues, and grid capacity constraints.In this episode, Philip explains why Starcloud is building data centers in orbit, where continuous solar power is available and heat can be rejected directly into the vacuum of space. He walks through Starcloud's first on-orbit GPU deployment, the realities of cooling and radiation in space, and how orbital data centers could relieve pressure on terrestrial power systems as AI infrastructure scales.Episode recorded on Dec 11, 2025 (Published on Jan 13, 2026)In this episode, we cover: [04:59] What Starcloud's orbital data centers look like (and how they differ from terrestrial facilities)[06:37] How SpaceX Starship's reusable launch vehicles change space economics[10:45] The $500/kg breakeven point for space-based solar vs. Earth [14:15] Why space solar panels produce 8x more energy than ground-based arrays [21:19] Thermal management: Cooling NVIDIA GPUs in a vacuum using radiators [25:57] Edge computing in orbit: Real-time inference on satellite imagery [29:22] The Crusoe partnership: Selling power-as-a-service in space [31:21] Starcloud's business model: Power, cooling, and connectivity [34:18] Addressing critics: What could prevent orbital data centers from workingKey Takeaways:Starcloud launched the first NVIDIA H100 GPU into orbit in November 2024 Space solar produces 8x more energy per square meter than terrestrial solar Breakeven launch cost for orbital data centers: $500/kg Current customers: DOD and commercial Earth observation satellites needing real-time inference Target: 10 gigawatts of orbital computing capacity by early 2030s 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
The new year has only just begun, and already we have seen an event with massive significance for the world of energy. The US operation to remove Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro opens a new era for a country that holds – according to some definitions – the world's largest oil reserves.So far there has been little impact on oil markets. But what are the implications going to be for energy in the months and years to come? To discuss how this volatile situation might evolve, host Ed Crooks is joined by regular guest Amy Myers Jaffe, Director of NYU's Energy, Climate Justice and Sustainability Lab, and an expert on oil earlier in her career. History never repeats itself, the saying goes, but sometimes it rhymes. Amy draws a parallel between Venezuela today, and Iraq after the US-led invasion and the overthrow of Saddam Hussein in 2003. There are some similarities in the position of the two oil-rich countries, which were both dragged down by mismanagement and sanctions. But Amy argues that Venezuela's oil system is in far worse shape, with looted equipment, chronic power and fuel shortages, and damage that may not be reversible.Melissa Lott, another Energy Gang regular, also joins the show, and raises the question of what regime change in Venezuela might mean for the energy transition. Melissa is a partner at Microsoft, but appearing on the show in her usual role as an independent commentator and energy expert. Then it's on to the other places, people and technologies that are likely to make a big impact on energy this year. Ed is watching the Gulf Coast buildout of new liquefied natural gas (LNG) plants. It is a boom so big that Wood Mackenzie expects US LNG exports to roughly double from 2023 levels by around 2030, with more growth beyond.The gang assesses the likely consequences of surging LNG supplies: downward pressure on global gas prices, and potential financial strain for exporters. There is also the possibility that a peace deal in Ukraine could make the oversupply even worse, by allowing more Russian gas to flow west into European markets. Next up, it's people to watch in 2026. Melissa names the US energy secretary Chris Wright, and Ed picks new FERC chairman Laura Swett. As the US power grid, and its energy system more generally, face mounting challenges because of the growth in data centers needed for AI, effective policy and regulation will be critical. Amy chooses China's President Xi Jinping: the country's next five-year plan could reshape the global competition for energy dominance.On technologies to watch, battery storage is a hot topic. Melissa and Ed discuss the supply chains needed to meet growing demand, and innovative products such as Form Energy's iron-air batteries, which are being deployed in a first-ever commercial project that will be fully operational this year. Amy's choice is humanoid robots. They're expensive and still imperfect, but are they going to rule the future? They are already being trialled for repetitive factory tasks. Amy says her Roomba can't cope with a spilt bowl of cereal. But will new flexible AI-guided robots be able to do the job properly?Follow the show so you don't miss an episode this year – it's going to be a busy one.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
https://youtu.be/SrkuzIo1liMMatt and Sean talk about the current status of perovskite solar progress, plus your responses to our previous episodes.Watch the Undecided with Matt Ferrell episode, What Solar's 2025 Breakthroughs Mean for 2026 https://youtu.be/FffKMMnisu4?list=PLnTSM-ORSgi7uzySCXq8VXhodHB5B5OiQ(00:00) - - Intro & Feedback (15:00) - - State of Solar Discussion YouTube version of the podcast: https://www.youtube.com/stilltbdpodcastGet in touch: https://undecidedmf.com/podcast-feedbackSupport the show: https://pod.fan/still-to-be-determinedFollow us on X: @stilltbdfm @byseanferrell @mattferrell or @undecidedmfUndecided with Matt Ferrell: https://www.youtube.com/undecidedmf ★ Support this podcast ★
The Angry Clean Energy Guy on data centers in space: the good, the bad and the ugly - and why they are inevitable by 2030
Send me a messageWhat if the biggest barrier to decarbonising buildings isn't technology, cost, or ambition - but sheer complexity?The built environment produces nearly 40% of global emissions, yet we still make low-carbon construction harder than it needs to be.In this episode, I'm joined by Tommy Linstroth, founder of Green Badger, to unpack why construction remains one of the most overlooked climate battlegrounds, and why that's a mistake. We dig into LEED v5, embodied carbon, and the growing gap between climate ambition and what actually happens on building sites. The stakes are huge: buildings lock in emissions for decades, sometimes centuries.You'll hear why builders aren't resisting sustainability, they're drowning in shifting standards, paperwork, and fragmented data. We explore how LEED has evolved, why carbon now sits at the centre of green building standards, and how decisions made at the design stage quietly determine emissions for the next 100 years. Tommy also explains why third-party verification matters, how “build to code” often means “barely legal”, and why retrofitting existing buildings may be the hardest climate challenge nobody likes talking about.We also dig into where genuine momentum is emerging - from falling renewable costs to better data and smarter software, and how climate tech, including AI, could finally make the low-carbon choice the easy choice. If net zero, emissions reduction, and the energy transition are serious goals, then construction can't stay a side quest.
As we head into 2026, electricity grids aren't just under strain; they are facing transformational change because of the shifts in the ways that we work, entertain ourselves, and get around. EVs are one of the fastest-growing new loads on the grid in many parts of the world, but are also one of the least well-understood. They can exhibit flexibility that's mostly going unused today. Millions of EVs are already connected to the grid, and they're being treated as a problem instead of a solution. So how could they be used to ease that strain on electricity grids? What would it look like if we could turn EVs into really useful distributed energy resources (DERs)? Host Ed Crooks welcomes Apoorv Bhargava to the show for the first time. Apoorv is the CEO and co-founder of WeaveGrid, a company aiming to make EVs and other DERs function like dependable infrastructure for distribution grids. It wants provide utilities with trusted, repeatable, edge-level control of assets, rather than occasional, system-level demand response. Apoorv explains how it all works.Apoorv is a former student of regular guest Amy Myers Jaffe, who now teaches at New York University. She joins the show to argue that there is still a great deal of uncertainty around claims of using flexibility to reinforce. It isn't a black-and-white question, she says: flexibility only works when it's engineered, trusted and planned for at the distribution level, not improvised through emergency demand response. Together Ed, Apoorv and Amy debate how EVs and grids might be able to work together in the future, instead of against each other. They discuss consumer behaviour, politics and concerns over rising power bills as factors that will matter just as much as the evolution of the technology. The biggest grid upgrade opportunity may not be new wires, transformers or even power plants: it could be the Tesla, VW or BYD in your driveway.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
with Brad Friedman & Desi Doyen
Green Isn't Easy|The Truth Behind ‘Sustainable' Transportation w/Kenneth ChesterToday's guest is Ken Chester, a nationally syndicated automotive journalist, tech communicator, and CEO of TechMobility Productions. With a media career spanning over three decades, Ken has been a leading voice at the intersection of mobility, technology, AI, personal privacy, and climate impact. From founding one of the first consumer-focused auto services in 1989 to producing nationally syndicated radio and podcast content, Ken brings unmatched insight into the evolving transportation landscape. He's also a founding member of the Black Automotive Media Group, championing diversity and representation in the industry. Get ready for a dynamic conversation that connects innovation with real-world impact.Links:https://thetechmobilitypodcast.buzzsprout.com/https://www.instagram.com/thetechmobilityshowTags:Adaptive Technology,,Artificial Intelligence (AI)Automation,Automotive,,Climate & SustainabilityElectric Vehicles,Mobility,Regulatory Compliance,Renewable Energy,Robotics,Live Video Podcast Interview,Podcast,Phantom Electric Ghost PodcastSupport PEG by checking out our Sponsors:Download and use Newsly for free now from www.newsly.me or from the link in the description, and use promo code “GHOST” and receive a 1-month free premium subscription.The best tool for getting podcast guests:https://podmatch.com/signup/phantomelectricghostSubscribe to our Instagram for exclusive content:https://www.instagram.com/expansive_sound_experiments/Subscribe to our YouTube https://youtube.com/@phantomelectricghost?si=rEyT56WQvDsAoRprRSShttps://anchor.fm/s/3b31908/podcast/rssSubstackhttps://substack.com/@phantomelectricghost?utm_source=edit-profile-page
Chris Spangle is joined by Harry Price and Rhinehold for the final We Are Libertarians roundtable of 2025, recorded on the Saturday between Christmas and New Year's. They trade Festivus-style grievances, talk life and workload, and debate Indianapolis development, public transit, and downtown design, including “no turn on red” frustrations and light rail. The conversation moves into NPR and PBS funding cuts, NOAA and weather data, and why abrupt cuts can create gaps before private solutions adapt. They also dig into “too big to fail,” stadium subsidies, wealth inequality, immigration and tariffs, and worries about an AI hype cycle that could pop. Along the way: John Bolton's book as a Christmas gift, local versus federal power, and why history keeps repeating. 00:00 Intro & Holiday Banter 03:00 Year-End Reflections & Schedules 08:00 Jokes, Grievances & Festivus Vibes 13:00 Life Updates & Podcasting Behind the Scenes 20:00 Indianapolis Neighborhoods & Housing Market 28:00 City Development, Gentrification, and Sports Strategy 34:00 Public Projects, Taxpayer Money & Convention Economy 43:00 Transit, Traffic, and Urban Design Debates 52:00 Public Transportation & Challenges for the Poor 01:02:00 Funding Cuts, Private Solutions & PBS/NPR 01:10:00 Speculation, Tech Giants & Too Big to Fail 01:18:00 Renewable Energy, Land Use, & NIMBYism 01:24:00 American Preferences, Libertarian Values & Wealth Gaps 01:33:00 Final Thoughts, Historical Parallels & Farewell Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices