Open Circuit Podcast

Is this moment for distributed energy different? DERs are finally acting like real power plants. But utilities are still treating them like side projects.

On today's Open Circuit, we dig into whether the current clean energy, regulatory, and market pressures are shaping a fundamentally different path for distributed energy (DERs)

🎧 Listen here or wherever you get your podcasts: www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

The case for a climate reset Examining the arguments for a more pragmatic approach to climate policy.

In the latest Open Circuit, we explore whether we’ve come to a pivot point in the climate narrative — where adaptation, resilience, and risk management become as central as emissions reduction.

🎧 Listen now:

www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

Electricity is the new price of eggs Electricity affordability is becoming a defining political issue in America.

This week on Open Circuit: how U.S. electric bills (up nearly 30% since 2021) are overtaking eggs as the symbol of household pain. Nearly 80 million Americans are struggling with rising costs, and everyone’s looking for someone to blame.

🎧 Listen here:

www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

Why Trump’s wind war could do lasting damage to US energy investment Trump’s actions against offshore wind are reshaping risk not just for wind, but for solar, storage, and nuclear too.

In today's Open Circuit, Stephen Lacey examines how the Trump administration’s stop-work orders, federal red tape, and controversial objections to projects like Ørsted’s nearly completed Revolution Wind are sowing uncertainty.

🎧 Listen here:

www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

JPMorgan’s climate scientist thinks differently about risk Dr. Sarah Kapnick on the trillion-dollar blind spot in corporate risk models.

🎧 Listen now: Open Circuit, Stephen Lacey features JPMorgan’s Global Head of Climate Advisory, Dr. Sarah Kapnick, whose unconventional journey reveals how climate risk is finally becoming boardroom strategy rather than an afterthought. www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

Grab bag: The affordability crisis, a VPP tipping point, and solar’s moment We tap Jigar Shah's LinkedIn, Bluesky, and X feeds to decode what's happening in clean energy right now.

This week on Open Circuit: the growing affordability crisis in clean energy, why VPPs may have hit a tipping point, + whether this is truly solar’s moment. Tune in for a sharp, timely conversation at the intersection of policy, tech, and markets.

🎧 Listen here www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

How AI is changing our digital energy footprints As AI transforms from task-based tools to always-on companions, it’s adding up to power plant level demand.

🎧 Listen now: Open Circuit, MIT’s Vijay Gadepally explains how AI’s shift from single tasks to always-on assistants is pushing energy demand to power-plant scale.

www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

Solving the AI load growth puzzle Rob Gramlich and Anuja Ratnayake on the scale, uncertainty, and urgency of planning for the data center surge.

This week on Open Circuit: Rob Gramlich and Anuja Ratnayake on the scale, uncertainty, and urgency of planning for the data center surge.

Listen now: www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

Is America giving up on clean energy manufacturing? How tariffs, sourcing rules, and permitting confusion are slowing America’s clean energy factory buildout.

This week on Open Circuit: how tariffs, sourcing rules, and permitting confusion are slowing America’s clean energy factory buildout.

Listen now: www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

The great divergence: Can the grid catch up to transportation innovation? Kraken’s Devrim Celal on how utilities can unlock the same innovations that shaped transportation systems.

🎧 Listen now: Kraken’s Devrim Celal on how utilities can unlock the same innovations that shaped transportation systems.

www.latitudemedia.com/news/the-gre...

How will the clean energy industry recalibrate in the wake of OBBB? New rules, blackout warnings, and confusing policy signals in the race to electrify.

This week on Open Circuit, we unpack the contradictions at the heart of the GOP’s energy agenda, explain why the post-IRA tax landscape is still favorable for some sectors, and explore how the politics of permitting could shape developer decisions.

🎧 Listen now www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

What we learned from the ethanol disaster Michael Grunwald on the hidden emissions of biofuels, the failure of feel-good farming, and how ag tech can learn from energy.

This week on Open Circuit: The hosts chat with journalist and author Michael Grunwald about the hidden emissions of biofuels, the failure of feel-good farming, and how ag tech can learn from energy.

Listen now: www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

No, solar didn’t cause Spain’s grid collapse A deep dive into Spain's blackout revealed systemic grid failures and a lack of response from conventional generators.

This week on Open Circuit: A deep dive into Spain's blackout revealed systemic grid failures and a lack of response from conventional generators.

Listen now: www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

AI rewrites the corporate energy playbook Tech giants built their clean energy strategies for a different world. Can they reshape a new one?

Tech giants built their clean energy strategies for a different world. Can they reshape a new one?

Today on Open Circuit, a special live episode from Transition-AI 2025 in Boston:

www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

Tesla’s fork in the road As Musk alienates his customers, he’s betting everything on an autonomous future.

As Musk alienates his customers, he’s betting everything on an autonomous future. This week on Open Circuit w/ special guest @danahull.bsky.social:

www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

Tariffs, equipment delays, rising costs: The energy transition faces some harsh realities JP Morgan's Michael Cembalest offers a data-driven reality check on renewable growth, transmission bottlenecks, and the economics of decarbonization.

We had a fascinating conversation with JP Morgan's Michael Cembalest on @open-circuit.bsky.social this week exploring the state of the energy transition. We discussed:

Supply chain impact of tariffs
Clean energy bottlenecks
AI power demand realities
Europe vs China

🧵Here are some of my takeaways:

Open Circuit Live Join hosts Jigar Shah, Katherine Hamilton, and Stephen Lacey for a live, virtual Open Circuit recording on April 16th.

Happening TOMORROW: The inaugural (virtual) Open Circuit Live. Join industry veterans @jigarshahdc.bsky.social, @cleangridview.bsky.social & @stephenlacey.bsky.social for a special live recording of the podcast — & bring your questions for live Q&A w/ the hosts:
www.latitudemedia.com/events/open-...

Tariff turmoil: ‘energy dominance’ meets economic chaos The clean energy industry and fossil fuel producers alike face a new economic reality.

The clean energy industry and fossil fuel producers alike face a new economic reality. On the latest Open Circuit, the hosts examine the contradictions at the heart of the administration’s economic agenda.

Listen here: www.latitudemedia.com/news/tariff-...

Has the net-zero era ended, and the energy security era restarted? As the era of liberal free trade ends, have we passed ‘peak trade’ for oil?

As the era of liberal free trade ends, have we passed ‘peak trade’ for oil? On the latest Open Circuit:

www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

The pandemic’s energy legacy Five years later, we revisit the biggest energy stories from the pandemic.

This week on Open Circuit, the hosts revisit their energy predictions from five years ago during the early days of COVID-19 in the U.S. and explore three major paradoxes that emerged in the years since.

Listen to the full episode: www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

The pandemic’s energy legacy Five years later, we revisit the biggest energy stories from the pandemic.

Five years ago, I huddled around mics w/ @jigarshahdc.bsky.social and @cleangridview.bsky.social, trying to make sense of the pandemic. This week on @open-circuit.bsky.social, we revisit our predictions—some hilariously wrong—and identify the pandemic's surprising energy winners and losers.

Does residential solar have a bad product? With rooftop solar in a downturn, where the industry needs to improve to ensure sustainable growth.

Does residential solar have a bad product? This week on Open Circuit, @cleangridview.bsky.social, @stephenlacey.bsky.social, and @jigarshahdc.bsky.social dig into where the industry needs to improve to ensure sustainable growth:

www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

Transition-AI 2025 Transition-AI is back in Boston on June 12, 2025, with a focus on energy infrastructure in the era of AI-driven load growth.

Join Latitude Media in Boston on June 12 for Transition-AI 2025! The one-day conference will focus on energy infrastructure in the era of AI-driven load growth, and includes a live recording of Open Circuit.

Early bird registration is open: www.latitudemedia.com/events/trans...

Is Wall Street in climate retreat? Banks exit climate alliances while Bidenomics faces economic scrutiny.

Major US financial institutions are backing away from climate commitments. Is this merely rebranding for the Trump era, or a fundamental shift?

On Open Circuit, @jigarshahdc.bsky.social, @cleangridview.bsky.social, & @stephenlacey.bsky.social examine the trend: www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

Open Circuit Live Join hosts Jigar Shah, Katherine Hamilton, and Stephen Lacey for a live, virtual Open Circuit recording on April 16th.

Announcing: The inaugural Open Circuit Live!

Join @jigarshahdc.bsky.social, @cleangridview.bsky.social, and @stephenlacey.bsky.social for a special live, virtual recording of the Open Circuit podcast.

Submit your questions ahead of time by commenting here.

www.latitudemedia.com/events/open-...

Taking a chainsaw to 'energy dominance' Trump and Musk are gutting the very agencies they need, while Texas shows clean energy is winning on economics alone.

Elon Musk built Tesla with help from government loans and carbon credits. Today, he’s swinging a chainsaw at the very agencies that launched his empire — while directly undermining President Trump’s “energy dominance” agenda.

This week on Open Circuit: www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci...

The data center boom: ‘All the cheap power is gone’ The grid wasn't built for AI — and gas plants won't solve the problem.

Follow Open Circuit on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Listen to today's episode here: www.latitudemedia.com/news/open-ci... (6/6)

📊"Trump's $500 billion Stargate Project promises to accelerate AI infrastructure just as a breakthrough in China raises questions about how much computing power we actually need." - @stephenlacey.bsky.social (5/6)

⚖️"Unless we have some regulatory reform... we're going to be in a world of trouble" - @cleangridview.bsky.social

Hamilton's point: we have the technical solutions, but our regulatory framework is holding us back. Without reform, we can't efficiently modernize the grid. (4/6)

Even in Shah's "bearish" scenario, he sees massive battery deployment as inevitable. Why? At $1,700-2,000/kW for new gas plants, batteries are simply more economical — even if initially charged by existing fossil fuel plants. (3/6)