The ZENERGY Podcast: Climate Leadership, Finance and Technology Karan Takhar

Because buildings run on guesswork, and energy analysis is hard, there is so much waste. While buildings themselves and the complexity of their electrical load have significantly changed over the past two decades, the tools and processes to manage them haven't evolved to keep up.

Verdigris has developed advanced sensor technology that can be quickly and easily installed into any building’s electrical panels to get granular data down to the circuit level. Their proprietary AI algorithms enrich the data streams, and analytics reveal clear actions to take to increase the efficiency and reliability of the electrically-run equipment in the building. Adaptive automation takes those insights one step further, saving money effortlessly.

In today’s episode, I’m joined by Mark Chung, Co-Founder and CEO of Verdigris. Mark is a seasoned engineer with more than 25 years of experience. In his career, Mark has served as principal engineer at a number of famed Silicon Valley startups including NexGen, Pasemi, RMI, and NetLogic. Mark has also co-developed some of the world’s most successful chips such as Opteron, XLP, and A7, among others. Mark is an advisor to several startups and was recognized as one of the “40 under 40” in 2017 by Silicon Valley Business Journal. Mark holds BS and MS degrees in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University.



Show Notes:

[1:13] - Mark shares the inspiration for founding Verdigris and the mission behind his work.

[2:48] - Verdigris is a leader in AI based energy management. Mark explains what that means and what sets the company apart.

[4:19] - Verdigris has the most sophisticated enterprise quality tools.

[5:41] - Algorithms improve as you provide more and more data. This led Verdigris, in the early days, to race to this network effect more quickly.

[8:22] - One of the biggest challenges a business faces is managing the reliability of their electrical data and making sure it is reliable, accessible, and accurate.

[10:32] - Mark explains the trend around data centers and cryptocurrency driving demand.

[12:42] - There’s a growing awareness around two particular things that make huge differences on carbon impact.

[14:30] - We’re starting to see the benefit of scaled data and transforming an environment.

[15:51] - We need to grow the capability of business processes and electricity footprint in a way that becomes carbon-neutral.

[17:40] - Mark discusses some of the valuable lessons he learned from his time as an engineer that he was able to take with him as an entrepreneur in this space.



Links and Resources:


Verdigris Website

The science is clear: to avoid the worst impact of climate change, it won’t be enough to just reduce emissions. We’ll also need to permanently remove gigatons of carbon dioxide already in the atmosphere and ocean. A wide range of technologies could deliver permanent and measurable carbon removal, from enhanced weathering to biomass carbon removal and storage to direct air capture. And today’s guest joins us today to talk about the promise of the carbon removal industry.

Giana Amador is one of the foremost thinkers on carbon removal and co-founded the first dedicated carbon removal organization, Carbon180, in 2015. At Carbon180, Giana wore many hats — from guiding the team’s strategy and communications to ultimately leading its policy program. During her time as policy director, Giana advocated for landmark carbon removal policies, including the $3.5 billion for direct air capture hubs in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the first-ever dedicated carbon removal research program in the Energy Act of 2020. Giana has provided testimony before the House Natural Resources Committee and advised presidential campaigns on carbon removal priorities. Her past research focused on the political economy of renewable energy, with an emphasis on green industrial policy and coalition building.

Giana’s vision is to develop a carbon removal industry that is good for the climate, economy, and community. Carbon removal has the potential to become a massive industry and we can develop that in ways that can help communities, create economic opportunities, and help make our air and water cleaner. How do we ensure that the carbon removal industry scales rapidly with the urgency of the climate crisis, but also in a really high quality way? 



Show Notes:

[1:31] - Giana got into the carbon removal space in 2015 and she explains why.

[2:42] - The United States federal government has a lot of great tools to develop technologies that Giana was able to use after founding Carbon 180.

[4:03] - Giana shares the policies and incentives that have kickstarted the carbon removal field.

[5:55] - One thing that makes carbon removal unique is that there is no pre-existing market or customer for this solution.

[6:50] - Policy is a powerful tool to help with the market barrier.

[9:07] - There is a learning curve involved, especially when it comes to cost.

[11:39] - A lot of companies are starting to see, in addition to climate benefits, the non-carbon economic and community benefits.

[12:54] - The first generation of carbon removal policies were not written for scale.

[14:56] - Giana shares some goals in carbon removal and some of the challenges the Carbon Removal Alliance has in reaching them.

[16:32] - The Carbon Removal Alliances has a set of standards to ensure high quality while the industry scales rapidly.



Links and Resources:


Carbon Removal Alliance Website

Julia Souder, the CEO of LDES (Long Duration Energy Storage) Council, joins the Zenergy Podcast today for a really interesting conversation about what LDES is and its impacts.

Julia has over 22 years of strategic experience in the energy and environmental sectors. She has been a longtime advocate of clean energy technology, working extensively to support environmentally friendly technologies and equitable policies. Previously she held executive positions at the LDES Association of California, National Resources Defense Council (NRDC), Clean Line Energy Partners, the North American Electric Reliability Corporation, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and as a Founder at JAS Energies LLC.

The LDES Council’s mission is to replace the use of fossil fuels to meet peak demand by accelerating the market for long duration energy storage. This will cut global emissions and ensure flexibility in electricity supply, while providing flexible, affordable, reliable, and resilient clean energy solutions. The LDES Council’s industry experts provide fact-based guidance to governments and grid operators in the deployment of long duration energy storage to help achieve net zero for electric grids by 2040. The LDES Council provides education and advocacy services to help advance the adoption of long duration energy storage and accelerate carbon neutrality. The LDES Council covers a wide range of LDES technologies and its members span a wide spectrum of innovation, including mechanical, thermal, electrochemical and chemical solutions.



Show Notes:

[1:33] - Julia shares her background and the key highlights of her career that led her to where she is as CEO of LDES Council.

[5:02] - Storage is so critical to hold these renewables.

[6:17] - Be curious about the things that affect the process. This increases your skillset and gives you a big-picture perspective.

[9:07] - Julia explains that a lot of these technologies have existed for a long time, but storage needs to be scalable.

[10:45] - Julia breaks down the cost with LDES and how they are addressing scale.

[11:59] - What are the savings benefits and how does long duration energy storage work?

[14:04] - There has been an increase in support for LDES to address resiliency.

[15:19] - This is a global initiative with regional and local impacts.

[17:08] - LDES Council is working with partners to show countries how to make this more effective and efficient.

[18:47] - When it comes to working with policymakers and stakeholders, there are a variety of challenges.

[21:38] - Julia shares the goals for LDES by 2040.

[22:44] - There are a lot of growth opportunities in LDES and you can learn more about them on the LDES Council website.



Links and Resources:


LDES Council Website

Welcome to an eye-opening episode where we explore the cutting-edge world of manufacturing carbon-negative materials and products using biochar. Our guest today is Allison Dring, the CEO and co-founder of Made of Air, a company dedicated to revolutionizing the building materials industry with sustainable solutions.

Allison, a trained architect with a passion for environmental sustainability, shares the journey behind Made of Air's inception and its mission to address the carbon footprint associated with traditional building materials. Through innovative processes like biochar production, Made of Air is leading the charge in the carbon removal industry, striving to achieve negative emissions and combat climate change.

In this conversation, we delve into the biochar process, Made of Air's business model that prioritizes the planet as a stakeholder, and their pioneering efforts in creating facade panels and integrating biochar into production. Allison also sheds light on the reception of biochar among industries, the practicality of transitioning to sustainable materials, and the entrepreneurial challenges and triumphs in this space.



Show Notes:

[1:42] - Allison is a trained architect but never entered the profession. Most of her career has been focused on considering environmental problems in building products.

[4:01] - The inspiration for Made of Air came from paying attention to manufacturers and the carbon footprint attached to materials.

[6:09] - The carbon removal industry is about creating negative emissions.

[7:24] - Allison explains the biochar process.

[11:22] - The system was great, but they realized that they were missing the disruption of the existing system.

[13:12] - Made of Air produces a ton of biochar. Allison shares the business model as using the planet as a stakeholder.

[15:18] - Allison describes the next step in creating facade panels and using biochar in production.

[18:37] - Are companies receptive and open to materials like biochar? Made of Air has great partners in varying types of industries.

[20:46] - Most companies don’t know about biochar and Made of Air can speak to them practically about the materials they’re currently using and the possibilities of biochar.

[22:26] - Allison explains the product economics.

[25:12] - Allison describes what it has been like as an entrepreneur in this space.



Links and Resources:


Made of Air Website

Douglas J. Arent is the Executive Director of Strategic Public-Private Partnerships at the National Renewable Energy Labratory. Doug Arent focuses on strategic public and private partnerships with NREL to transform energy economies at speed and scale across the globe. Dr. Arent has worked in research on energy and sustainability for more than 30 years, publishing extensively on topics including clean energy, renewable energy, power systems, natural gas, and the intersection of science and public policy.



The Zenergy Podcast interviews global climate leaders with prior guests including the founders of some of the world's largest renewable energy and electric vehicle companies including founders of SoftBank Energy, Azure Power, Ola Electric, and SunEdison. These conversations share industry developments, highlight clean tech investment opportunities, and shed light on how young professionals can increase their chances of employment in this fastly growing sector. We also discuss the energy transition across key emerging markets like India, and explore partnership opportunities for US companies.

Insurtech Gateway invests early, to help mission driven founders from around the globe. They believe that insurance and technology can transform society. But, the insurance sector has yet to realize its emerging role as both the enabler and protector of high growth sectors.

Joining the podcast today is Director and Co-Founder of Insurtech Gateway, Stephen Brittain. Stephen is an experienced innovation consultant with a deep understanding of startups, design, strategic innovation and translating this to investors. As Hambro Perks first Creative Director, he supported their growing portfolio (including Sipsmiths, Laundrapp, Takumi, TheDots) through early stage development and testing. Stephen is now focused on supporting Insurtech Gateway’s founders tackling complex climate and social challenges.

Our conversation today is all about the intersection of insurance and climate. Stephen helps us understand the insurance side of things and what risks consumers and entrepreneurs alike must consider.



Show Notes:

[1:28] - Stephen shares his background and how he wound up at the intersection of insurance and climate.

[2:30] - He didn’t want to make the story about himself. He wanted to make a difference.

[5:01] - After founding, what is Insurtech doing now?

[6:12] - Stephen explains the reasons there aren’t solar panels on every single home. It all comes down to risk.

[9:13] - Insurance companies are not risk averse. They are risk-aware.

[11:56] - There are many problems and risks that consumers experience.

[15:40] - Stephen shares some examples from Insurtech’s portfolio of clients.

[19:04] - Stephen explains some causes and effects and the trickiness of some choices that consumers have to make.

[22:51] - How has Stephen helped navigate the insurance landscape?

[24:32] - Insurtech stands out by their reputation and technical practicality.

[26:50] - Stephen gives the example of creating protective layers for farmers in India experiencing heat waves.

[30:20] - Stephen compares this to the mortgage process.

[32:06] - Get in touch with Insurtech to discuss ideas and risks to consider.




Links and Resources:


Insurtech Gateway Website


Stephen Brittain on LinkedIn