Catalyst with Shayle Kann By cover art

Catalyst with Shayle Kann

By: Latitude Media
Listen for free

  • Summary

  • Investor Shayle Kann is asking big questions about how to decarbonize the planet: How cheap can clean energy get? Will artificial intelligence speed up climate solutions? Where is the smart money going into climate technologies? Every week on Catalyst, Shayle explains the world of climate tech with prominent experts, investors, researchers, and executives. Produced by Latitude Media.
    Latitude Media
    Show more Show less
activate_primeday_promo_in_buybox_DT
Episodes
  • Can chip efficiency slow AI's energy demand?

    Can chip efficiency slow AI's energy demand?
    Jul 18 2024
    In March, Nvidia announced a new microchip designed for AI that is 25 times more energy efficient than its predecessor. Two months later, Google announced one with a 67% efficiency improvement. Today, the rest of the semiconductor industry is hyper focused on efficiency gains. Will they save us from ballooning data center energy demands? In this episode, Shayle talks to Christian Belady, former Microsoft vice president now focusing on data center advanced development. They unpack concerns about this new surge of demand and whether it’s different from the energy scare two decades ago. Back in 1999, researchers predicted that data centers could end up consuming half of U.S. electricity. But instead, demand remained largely flat at about 4% as cutting-edge hyperscale cloud computing displaced inefficient, on-premises servers. And yet, driven by the AI boom, energy concerns are back. The Electric Power Research Institute predicts that data center loads could consume 9% of U.S. power generation by 2030. Demand is already rising fast, with emissions at both Google and Microsoft up significantly. Shayle and Christian examine the factors driving those trends and what we can do about it, covering topics like: Whether chip efficiency improvements will lead to energy savings or just more powerful computing The upper limits of Moore’s Law Energy, labor, and other big constraints on AI growth Changing computing architecture to find energy savings Enlisting data centers in integrated, or compulsory, demand response Using AI to improve chip design Recommended resources Fierce Electronics: Power-hungry AI chips face a reckoning, as chipmakers promise ‘efficiency’ Latitude Media: The data center of the future looks like a massive virtual power plant Latitude Media: Enchanted Rock is selling utilities on flexible data center connection Latitude Media: Energy is now the ‘primary bottleneck’ for AI Catalyst: Under the hood of data center power demand Catalyst is brought to you by Kraken, the advanced operating system for energy. Kraken is helping utilities offer excellent customer service and develop innovative products and tariffs through the connection and optimization of smart home energy assets. Already licensed by major players across the globe, including Origin Energy, E.ON, and EDF, Kraken can help you create a smarter, greener grid. Visit kraken.tech. Catalyst is brought to you by Anza Renewables, a data, technology, and services platform for solar and storage buyers. Anza’s real-time market intel equips buyers with the essential data they need to get the best deals. Download Anza’s free Q2 Module Pricing Insights Report at go.anzarenewables.com/latitude. Catalyst is brought to you by Antenna Group, the global leader in integrated marketing, public relations, creative, and public affairs for energy and climate brands. If you're a startup, investor, or enterprise that's trying to make a name for yourself, Antenna Group's team of industry insiders is ready to help tell your story and accelerate your growth engine. Learn more at antennagroup.com.
    Show more Show less
    46 mins
  • The reshoring of American solar trackers [partner content]

    The reshoring of American solar trackers [partner content]
    Jul 17 2024
    While we were all at home during Covid desperately trying to get our hands on toilet paper, exercise equipment, and home furnishings, solar executives like Dan Sugar were trying to get steel and power electronics to massive PV farms under development. As equipment and workforce disruptions spiraled due to lockdowns, the cost of installed solar started going up for the first time in nearly a decade. “Costs just skyrocketed. And so at this point in my career. I wasn't going to proceed like that,” explained Shugar, the CEO of Nextracker, the world’s top solar tracking company. It became very obvious that Nextracker had to build more US manufacturing to serve local markets, where utility-scale PV was still booming. And within a couple years, they built a large network of factories. “We've catalyzed over 20 factories across the United States with over 30 gigawatts of major components being manufactured here and shipping finished goods today. That's just a huge retooling of the supply chain,” explained Shugar. To date, Nextracker has shipped 100 gigawatts of trackers. More and more of them are being produced in key locations around the US. In this episode, produced in collaboration with Nextracker, Stephen Lacey speaks with Dan Sugar about progress in onshoring, innovations in tracker technology, and where the solar industry is headed next. Learn more about Nextracker’s efforts to bolster domestic content for solar power generation in the US.
    Show more Show less
    20 mins
  • Decarbonizing the high seas

    Decarbonizing the high seas
    Jul 12 2024
    While aviation may be converging on one main pathway to decarbonization — sustainable aviation fuel — maritime shipping may require a more diverse set of solutions: a portfolio of fuels, energy efficiency, and on-board carbon capture and storage. But each technology has operational and capital challenges. So what will it take to scale them up? In this episode, Shayle talks to Dr. Lynn Loo, CEO of the Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation. Ocean-going shipping consumes about 300 million tons of fuel per year, accounting for 3% of global emissions. But with significant regulatory pressure from bodies like the International Maritime Organization, shipping companies are exploring a range of options. Shayle and Lynn cover topics like: Conventional fuels, like heavy fuel oil and marine gas oil The inadvertent climate impact of cutting sulfur emissions The pros and cons of lower-carbon fuels, like LNG, biofuels, methanol, and ammonia The challenges for infrastructure and operations, especially involving the low volumetric energy density of new fuels On-board carbon capture and storage How energy efficiency reduces the impact of low volumetric energy density Recommended resources International Maritime Organization: Fourth Greenhouse Gas Study 2020 Catalyst: Heavy duty decarbonization Catalyst: Putting a halt to geoengineering — by accident Catalyst is brought to you by Anza Renewables, a data, technology, and services platform for solar and storage buyers. Anza’s real-time market intel equips buyers with the essential data they need to get the best deals. Download Anza’s free Q2 Module Pricing Insights Report at go.anzarenewables.com/latitude. Catalyst is brought to you by Kraken, the advanced operating system for energy. Kraken is helping utilities offer excellent customer service and develop innovative products and tariffs through the connection and optimization of smart home energy assets. Already licensed by major players across the globe, including Origin Energy, E.ON, and EDF, learn how Kraken can help you create a smarter, greener grid at kraken.tech. Catalyst is brought to you by Antenna Group, the global leader in integrated marketing, public relations, creative, and public affairs for energy and climate brands. If you're a startup, investor, or enterprise that's trying to make a name for yourself, Antenna Group's team of industry insiders is ready to help tell your story and accelerate your growth engine. Learn more at antennagroup.com.
    Show more Show less
    45 mins
Economics Personal Finance Politics & Government
Show more Show less

What listeners say about Catalyst with Shayle Kann

Average customer ratings

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Audible.com reviews

Amazon reviews
No Reviews are Available