CleanTechies Podcast

The #1 Podcast for ClimateTech Entrepreneurs
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We are CleanTechies, the #1 Podcast for ClimateTech Entrepreneurs. Whether you’re an active ClimateTech entrepreneur, an aspiring one, an investor, a service provider…anything that touches supporting early stage climate tech, this is the place for you. Each week, we publish two interviews with leading experts in the field telling their stories, insights, and advice to help ClimateTech Entrepreneurs like you be inspired by their successes and learn from their mistakes. cleantechies.substack.com

  1. 1 DAY AGO

    #282 The Real State of CleanTech Hiring & The "Digestion Phase" | Silas Mähner on Keep Cool

    00:00 – Intro & Sponsors: Lehmann's Terms, Climate Finance Solutions, and EarthSearch. 03:09 – Welcome to Keep Cool: Nick van Osdol flips the script and interviews Silas. 04:07 – The Evolution of Climate Tech: Shedding the 1.0 vibes and returning to "CleanTech." 08:52 – Silas’s Origin Story: From rural Wisconsin to renewable energy recruiting in NYC. 13:33 – Disrupting Recruitment: Why Silas founded EarthSearch to offer executive-level search for early-stage startups without the massive fees. 18:30 – The End of ZIRP: Why the hiring market has shifted to slow, intentional, and skills-based recruiting. 30:24 – Building Culture: Why early-stage startups shouldn't be afraid to hire bored, senior talent. 37:19 – The Call to Adventure: How to position your startup to attract highly motivated individuals. 43:59 – Companies to Watch: Silas shouts out Helix Earth Technologies and OptiGrid. 51:35 – Flipping the Table: Silas asks Nick what keeps him motivated to write and podcast about climate. 53:56 – The Value of Writing: Why authentic, human storytelling matters more than ever in the age of AI. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cleantechies.substack.com/subscribe

    58 min

  2. 1 APR

    #281 Simplifying Heat Pump Rebates | Samir Pendse (Coral)

    00:00 – Intro: Coral's $7.5M Seed Round and mission. 02:46 – What is Coral?: The FinTech platform for energy-efficient building upgrades. 04:46 – The Pain Point: Why HVAC experts don't want to be "rebate experts." 06:15 – The Financing Mechanism: How Coral advances funds to make the rebate instant. 08:19 – Contractor Benefits: Saving time, avoiding bad reviews, and winning more deals. 11:44 – The Economics of Rebates: Why most incentives come from local utilities trying to lower grid demand. 15:43 – The Origin Story: Quitting jobs to solve the $8,000 savings bottleneck for homeowners. 21:00 – Mission Alignment: Balancing climate goals with helping small businesses grow. 24:17 – The "Chicken and Egg" Funding: Using early VC dollars to prove the rebate float model. 31:24 – Depoliticizing Clean Tech: Leading with comfort, safety, and pure energy savings. 36:09 – Co-Founder Dating: How Samir and Nizar built trust before building a company. 42:37 – Pragmatism and Empathy: Why climate founders must be chameleons to succeed. 46:27 – Raising Capital: Why they pitched FinTech VCs instead of traditional Climate funds. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cleantechies.substack.com/subscribe

    53 min

  3. 18 MAR

    #280 Why Every Company Will Decarbonize & The Climate Investment Arbitrage | Andrew Beebe (Obvious Ventures)

    00:00 – Intro: Andrew Beebe’s background in Cleantech since 2002. 03:34 – Obvious Ventures & Fund V: Deploying a new $360M fund. 04:59 – The Next Vintage: Why the tourists are gone and the real builders remain. 08:23 – The Branding Problem: Why "Climate Tech" mirrors the 1990s Internet boom. 16:30 – Global Markets vs. US Politics: The inevitability of the energy transition. 20:46 – The AI Energy Crisis: Utilities facing 50% demand growth from data centers. 25:53 – Generative Science: How AI is accelerating materials science and geothermal exploration. 28:20 – Local Politics: Why hyperscalers must win over local communities to build. 34:01 – Texas as a Mecca: Why low-regulation red states are building the most clean energy. 38:56 – Physical AI & Autonomy: From robotic shipping vessels to electric aviation. 47:01 – The Hardware Playbook: Why you want to be a buyer (not a seller) on a plummeting cost curve. 51:50 – The Ultimate Arbitrage: Making money when you know the transition is inevitable. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cleantechies.substack.com/subscribe

    54 min

  4. 4 MAR

    #279 They Lost $189m DOE Grant, but Survived. Learn Why | Cody Finke (Brimstone)

    00:00 – Intro: Cody Finke returns to the podcast. 04:30 – The "Rock Refinery": Moving beyond cement to co-produce aluminum and critical minerals. 05:39 – The Physics of Scale: Why cost parity is impossible with small reactors. 08:12 – The History of Co-Production: From whale oil to Standard Oil's catalytic cracking. 12:39 – "Bad Geologic Luck": Why traditional limestone cement plants can't co-produce. 18:54 – De-Risking Deep Tech: How Brimstone uses off-the-shelf components to build a massive patent moat. 28:33 – Fundraising Strategy: Raising ~$90M and executing pilot plants. 33:44 – PR for Founders: When to stay in stealth and when to reveal your grand vision. 38:18 – The $189M DOE Grant: Winning the money under Biden, losing it under Trump, and why it wasn't a disaster. 45:54 – Geopolitics & Manufacturing: Why critical materials and heavy industry must return to democratic countries. 50:28 – The Ultimate Climate Strategy: Why capitalism only rewards lower costs, not moral outcomes. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cleantechies.substack.com/subscribe

    55 min

  5. 18 FEB

    #278 How to Sell $500M of Batteries Before You Build a Factory | Landon Mossburg (Peak Energy)

    00:00 – Intro: The $500M deal with Jupiter Power. 02:15 – Landon’s Background: Lessons from Tesla and Northvolt. 06:30 – The "Magnet Hire": How to attract A-Players by hiring one star first. 12:00 – Why Sodium-Ion?: The cost and supply chain advantage over Lithium. 18:45 – The Jupiter Power Deal: How they negotiated a massive off-take agreement. 24:10 – "Engineering Bankability": Selling the manufacturing roadmap, not just the cell. 32:00 – Supply Chain: Why Peak Energy avoids conflict minerals and China reliance. 41:00 – The Grid Challenge: Why batteries need to last 25 years in the desert. 48:00 – Scaling Speed: How to move faster than traditional industrial giants. 53:00 – Hiring: The specific traits Landon looks for in executives. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cleantechies.substack.com/subscribe

    57 min

  6. 11 FEB

    #277 The Battery That Lost the EV Race but Could Save the Grid | Antonio Baclig (Inlyte Energy)

    00:00 – Intro: Recording in-person at 9Zero in San Francisco. 02:45 – Antonio’s Background: From Stanford PhD to Flow Batteries. 06:00 – The History: What is the "Zebra Battery" and why did it fail in EVs? 10:15 – The Chemistry: How Sodium, Iron, and Salt work together. 12:30 – The Economics: Why $1/kWh material cost changes everything. 17:00 – Safety First: No thermal runaway and safer than Lithium-Ion. 22:00 – Manufacturing Strategy: Leveraging existing UK talent and factories. 28:00 – The "Bankability" Challenge: Proving a "new" old technology. 34:00 – Commercialization: Who buys these batteries? (Utilities vs Developers). 41:00 – The Grid Reality: Why "Non-Wires Alternatives" are the immediate market. 46:00 – Founder Advice: How to hire A-players for a hardware startup. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cleantechies.substack.com/subscribe

    1hr 4min

  7. 4 FEB

    #276 Digitizing The Paperwork Layer of the Energy Transition | Hudson Hollister (HData)

    00:00 – Intro: Why energy regulation is the "unsexy" bottleneck of the transition. 03:11 – Hudson’s Background: From SEC Attorney to rewriting federal data laws. 05:55 – What HData Does: The platform for rate cases, compliance, and wildfire plans. 06:40 – The Natural Monopoly: Explaining the "Regulator vs. Regulated" conflict. 10:13 – The Rate Case Process: How utilities get paid (and why it takes so much paper). 14:00 – The ROI of AI: Moving from "Control-F" to vertical AI agents. 22:20 – The Urgency: Why grid modernization creates a compliance explosion. 35:00 – Hyperscalers & AI: How data center demand is changing the regulatory game. 46:18 – The Future of Work: Will AI replace regulatory lawyers? 48:00 – Founder Story: The 2022 cash crisis and the "Dark Night of the Soul." 53:00 – Hiring Framework: The 3 motivations Hudson looks for in talent. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cleantechies.substack.com/subscribe

    58 min

  8. 28 JAN

    #275 Turning Idle Oil Wells into Gravity Batteries | Kemp Gregory (Renewell Energy)

    What happens when an oil well dries up? Usually, it becomes a "zombie" liability—leaking methane and waiting to become a taxpayer burden. Kemp Gregory, CEO and Co-founder of Renewell Energy, joins the show to explain how he’s turning these multi-million dollar liabilities into clean energy assets. Renewell converts idle wells into mechanical gravity batteries. By using existing deep wellbores to raise and lower heavy weights, they’ve created long-duration energy storage that is cheaper than lithium-ion and uses the infrastructure we already have. Key Takeaways: The Problem: Why the "Orphan Well Pocalypse" is a looming global crisis. The Tech: How gravity storage works and why it doesn’t degrade like chemical batteries. The Business: Convincing oil companies to hand over wells instead of plugging them. The Grid: Why "stranded assets" are actually perfectly positioned for grid stability. Building Deep-Tech: Why "agency" is the #1 trait Kemp looks for in early hires. Timestamps: 01:40 – Kemp’s journey from Oil & Gas to CleanTech. 05:00 – The Scale: 900k active wells vs. 2 million idle wells. 14:15 – Gravity storage vs. Lithium-Ion: Cost and mechanics. 18:00 – Turning abandonment costs into revenue shares. 40:15 – Hiring for "Evidence of Agency." Connect & Links: Guest: Kemp Gregory | Renewell Energy Host: Connect with Silas on LinkedIn Community: Follow CleanTechies on LinkedIn Watch: Subscribe on YouTube Our Sponsors: Climate Finance Solutions (CFS): Secure government grant funding with a 90% success rate. Learn more at ClimateFinanceSolutions.com. ErthSearch: Specialized CleanTech recruiting. Fast, accurate, and guaranteed. Get started with Silas today. Disclaimer: This podcast is NOT investment advice. Please do your own due diligence. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cleantechies.substack.com/subscribe

    49 min
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About

We are CleanTechies, the #1 Podcast for ClimateTech Entrepreneurs. Whether you’re an active ClimateTech entrepreneur, an aspiring one, an investor, a service provider…anything that touches supporting early stage climate tech, this is the place for you. Each week, we publish two interviews with leading experts in the field telling their stories, insights, and advice to help ClimateTech Entrepreneurs like you be inspired by their successes and learn from their mistakes. cleantechies.substack.com

Information

  • Creator
    The #1 Podcast for ClimateTech Entrepreneurs
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2026
  • Episodes
    283
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © CleanTechies LLC
  • Show Website
    CleanTechies Podcast
  • Provider

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