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What if the biggest battery breakthrough for AI isn't about storing more energy, but delivering power faster? AI data centers aren't just consuming more electricity. They're fundamentally changing how electricity needs to be delivered. As GPU clusters create sudden, high-intensity power demands, the infrastructure supporting them faces challenges traditional energy storage wasn't necessarily designed to solve. In Episode 125 of Green Giants: Titans of Renewable Energy, host Wes Ashworth, President of Lee Group Search, sits down with Tod Higinbotham, CEO of ZincFive, to explore why a century-old battery chemistry is finding new relevance in one of the world's fastest-growing industries. ZincFive specializes in nickel-zinc battery technology designed for immediate, high-power applications. Tod explains why the distinction between power and energy matters more than ever, how short-duration battery systems can help manage AI-driven demand spikes, and why the future of energy storage may involve increasingly specialized and hybrid technologies. But this conversation goes far beyond batteries. Drawing on more than three decades commercializing advanced materials across semiconductors, solar, and energy storage, Tod reveals how breakthrough technologies often find their greatest commercial value in markets their creators never anticipated. The discussion also tackles the growing tension between AI infrastructure expansion and electricity availability. From grid modernization and nuclear power to manufacturing in China, building U.S. production capacity, and the environmental lessons Tod learned growing up in Butte, Montana, this episode examines what responsible electrification actually requires. With ZincFive surpassing 2 gigawatts of power delivered or contracted, Tod also shares the realities of scaling battery manufacturing, attracting capital, developing leadership, and turning promising science into a sustainable business. In This Episode, You'll Discover: Why AI is changing the battery equation: How rapid GPU power fluctuations create opportunities for immediate-power storage rather than conventional long-duration batteries.The nickel-zinc advantage: Where nickel-zinc batteries fit alongside lithium-ion, lead-acid, and supercapacitors, and why chemistry specialization matters.The economics of smarter infrastructure: How managing power spikes closer to computing loads could reduce the need to build electrical systems around brief peak demands.Battery safety beyond the headlines: What thermal runaway means, how UL 9540A testing works, and why electrical safety remains essential.AI's impact on the energy transition: The difficult questions surrounding data-center expansion, community electricity needs, nuclear generation, and grid reliability.Scaling American battery manufacturing: ZincFive's experience expanding production, navigating global supply chains, and preparing for its next stage of growth.The commercialization playbook: Why market timing, disciplined experimentation, and exceptional people can matter as much as breakthrough technology.The power grid of 2036: Tod's vision for a more flexible, hybrid energy system that could emerge from today's AI-driven infrastructure challenges.Key Conversation Moments 01:19 | From semiconductor materials to nickel-zinc batteries06:10 | Why power and energy require different battery solutions08:23 | Understanding AI power spikes and GPU demand16:15 | Battery cycle life in the era of AI19:19 | Nickel-zinc chemistry, thermal runaway, and safety23:11 | Data centers, energy demand, and societal trade-offs33:36 | ZincFive's commercial growth and manufacturing expansion40:26 | How breakthrough science becomes a viable business43:33 | Predicting the future of AI and the electrical gridThe bigger takeaway: The future of energy storage won't necessarily belong to one winning chemistry. It may belong to the companies that understand precisely what problems their technology is built to solve. Whether you're working in renewable energy, battery storage, AI infrastructure, data centers, grid modernization, or clean technology commercialization, this conversation offers a valuable perspective on the next era of electrification. Listen to Episode 125 of Green Giants: Titans of Renewable Energy, and share it with someone helping build the infrastructure powering our future. Connect with Tod Higinbotham: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tod-higinbotham-20622542 Learn more about ZincFive: https://zincfive.com Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/ Email: [email protected]://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/https://leegroupsearch.com/

AI is creating an enormous demand for electricity. But what if the bigger challenge isn't just how much power data centers need, but how quickly that demand changes? In this episode of Green Giants: Titans of Clean Energy, host Wes Ashworth, President of Lee Group Search, sits down with Dr. Raj DasGupta, CEO of Electrovaya, to explore why AI infrastructure is creating an entirely different opportunity for advanced battery technology. Raj has spent nearly two decades in the lithium-ion battery industry, moving from materials science and R&D into manufacturing, business development, operations, and ultimately leading Electrovaya. Along the way, he's learned that building a better battery isn't simply about storing more energy or lowering costs. It's about solving the right problem. While much of the battery industry has focused on producing cheaper energy storage, Electrovaya has taken a different path, developing high-performance batteries for demanding industrial applications where safety, longevity, reliability, and power matter most. Now, with AI data centers experiencing dramatic fluctuations in electricity demand, that strategy is opening the door to an entirely new market. Wes and Raj explore how Electrovaya's ElvaPulse high-power energy storage platform is designed to help manage those fluctuations, why the economics of battery storage are changing, and what it takes to bring advanced lithium-ion manufacturing back to the United States. In this episode: Why Electrovaya deliberately stepped away from commodity battery markets and how that decision shaped its futureThe hidden electricity challenge facing AI data centers and why conventional energy storage isn't always the ideal solutionUnderstanding power versus energy, and why dollars per kilowatt can matter more than dollars per kilowatt-hourHow ElvaPulse could improve data center efficiency, reduce battery footprint, and help stabilize rapidly changing electrical loadsThe science behind Electrovaya's ceramic separator technology, long battery life, and safety performanceWhat decades of industrial battery deployment have taught Electrovaya about reliability and customer economicsThe challenges of bringing lithium-ion cell manufacturing to Jamestown, New YorkWhy skilled workers, supply chains, and manufacturing execution are critical to America's energy futureHow energy security, AI, and electrification are reshaping the battery industry's next chapterKey moments: 00:00 | Meet Raj DasGupta and Electrovaya 03:24 | Why Electrovaya chose a different path in the battery industry 10:45 | The economics of high-power energy storage 15:05 | AI data centers and unpredictable electricity demand 18:57 | Introducing ElvaPulse and its high-power advantage 24:32 | Battery longevity, performance, and ceramic separator technology 30:57 | Bringing lithium-ion manufacturing back to America 34:41 | The reality of domestic battery supply chains 37:34 | What's next for the global battery industry Whether you're working in battery storage, AI infrastructure, renewable energy, manufacturing, or grid modernization, this conversation offers a valuable look at how the next generation of energy systems is taking shape. Learn more about Electrovaya: https://electrovaya.com Raj DasGupta on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/raj-s-dasgupta-90666411/ Subscribe to Green Giants: Titans of Clean Energy for more conversations with the leaders and innovators shaping the future of energy. Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/ Email: [email protected]://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/https://leegroupsearch.com/

What if one of the biggest opportunities in clean energy is not discovering a new energy source, but making the sunlight already reaching us more useful? In this episode of Green Giants: Titans of Renewable Energy, Wes Ashworth, President of Lee Group Search, sits down with Hunter McDaniel, Founder and CEO of UbiQD, to explore how quantum dots are moving from advanced materials research into real-world applications in agriculture, solar, and large-scale manufacturing.  Hunter’s path began in physics, electrical engineering, and materials science, eventually leading to a Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering and postdoctoral research at Los Alamos National Laboratory. What started as highly specialized work in semiconductor nanocrystals became the foundation for UbiQD, a company built around a simple but powerful idea: use nanoscale materials to control how light behaves.  Wes and Hunter break down quantum dots in practical terms, including how changing particle size can change the color of light they absorb and emit. That capability creates a platform for spectrum engineering, where sunlight can be tuned before it reaches a plant or solar cell. In agriculture, UbiQD’s UbiGro technology shifts portions of sunlight toward wavelengths that can improve plant performance. Hunter discusses greenhouse trials across multiple regions, what growers actually care about, and why the future may involve different light recipes for different crops.  The conversation then moves into solar, where the scale becomes dramatically larger. Hunter explains how quantum dots can target underutilized portions of the solar spectrum, why even modest performance improvements can create meaningful economic value across millions of panels, and what has to be proven before a major solar manufacturer will trust a new material inside a product expected to operate outdoors for decades. They also explore UbiQD’s expansion through its acquisition of BlueDot Photonics technology, including the emerging concept of quantum cutting, where one high-energy photon can potentially produce nearly two lower-energy photons better suited for solar conversion.  But the heart of the episode is not just the science. It is the challenge of turning science into industry. Hunter shares what changes when a company moves from making small research batches to operating reactors, managing supply chains, qualifying materials with customers, building manufacturing capacity, and preparing for production measured in tons rather than grams. UbiQD’s recent growth, capital raises, expanded Los Alamos footprint, and long-term solar supply ambitions illustrate just how different deep-tech scale-up is from traditional software growth.  This episode covers: How quantum dots change the way light behavesWhy spectrum engineering matters in both agriculture and solarHow greenhouse light manipulation can influence crop performanceWhy small efficiency gains can matter enormously at utility scaleThe difference between standard fluorescence and quantum cuttingWhat it takes to prove durability for materials expected to last decadesHow an R&D company becomes a manufacturing companyWhere promising national-lab technology can get lost before commercializationWhy advanced materials may play a major role in the next wave of clean energy innovationFor anyone interested in solar, advanced materials, climate technology, deep-tech commercialization, or the future of domestic manufacturing, this conversation offers a rare look at what it actually takes to move a scientific breakthrough from the lab into infrastructure-scale deployment. Links: Hunter McDaniel on LinkedIn UbiQD's Website UbiGrow's Website Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/ Email: [email protected]://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/https://leegroupsearch.com/

Why Nuclear's Moment Is Now: Stefano Buono, CEO of newcleo For newcleo founder and CEO Stefano Buono, nuclear energy's next chapter has been more than 30 years in the making. Now, rising electricity demand, energy security concerns, and changing attitudes toward nuclear are creating an opening for ideas he began pursuing in the 1990s. In this episode of Green Giants: Titans of Clean Energy, host Wes Ashworth, President of Lee Group Search, sits down with Buono to explore what makes this nuclear moment different and what it will take to turn that momentum into commercial projects. A physicist and entrepreneur, Buono previously founded Advanced Accelerator Applications, the nuclear medicine company acquired by Novartis for approximately $3.9 billion. He shares how that experience prepared him to return to his original ambition: developing a different approach to nuclear energy. Today, newcleo is developing lead-cooled fast reactors designed to use recycled nuclear fuel. Buono explains the technology in accessible terms, including why useful energy remains in spent fuel, how liquid lead supports the company's approach to passive safety, and why the economics of recycling matter. The conversation also tackles the difficult questions: plutonium security, the history of costly U.S. fuel projects, regulatory approvals, and the challenge of financing and building an entire reactor and fuel supply chain. In this episode: Why decarbonization, energy independence, and AI-driven electricity demand are reshaping nuclear's opportunity.How lead-cooled fast reactors differ from conventional nuclear plants.What recycled mixed-oxide (MOX) fuel could mean for fuel supply and nuclear waste.newcleo's proposed work with Oklo and its ambitions at Savannah River.Why industrial heat and manufacturing matter alongside data centers.The milestones that will show whether newcleo is moving toward commercial deployment.Buono's advice for founders building technologies that take decades to reach the market.Release update: This conversation was recorded ahead of newcleo's Nasdaq debut. The company subsequently completed its business combination with NewHold, securing approximately $247 million in gross proceeds, and began trading under NWCL on September 22, 2026. For energy leaders, founders, and anyone curious about advanced nuclear, this episode connects the science to the practical work of bringing new energy projects to life. Subscribe to Green Giants: Titans of Clean Energy wherever you get your podcasts, and share this episode with someone following nuclear's next chapter. Links: Stefano Buono on LinkedIn newcleo's Website newcleo's Nasdaq Listing and $247 Million Funding Announcement newcleo Targets US Expansion with Nasdaq Debut, AI-Driven Power Demand Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/ Email: [email protected]://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/https://leegroupsearch.com/

The nuclear renaissance is about far more than building reactors. It is also about capital, fuel security, recycling, infrastructure, commercialization, supply chains, workforce, and whether the energy system can scale fast enough to meet a new era of electricity demand. In this episode of Green Giants: Titans of Clean Energy, Wes Ashworth, President of Lee Group Search sits down with Michelle Urben, Managing and General Partner at The Synergos Fund, to explore what it will actually take to finance and build the next generation of energy infrastructure.  Michelle brings more than three decades of experience across banking, asset management, investor relations, and venture capital. Her path from the Philippines and an oil-industry family to Wall Street and deep-tech investing gives her a unique perspective on energy affordability, energy security, and the role patient capital can play in solving foundational infrastructure challenges.   The conversation begins with a fundamental investing question: Is traditional venture capital structured for technologies that may require years of technical validation, regulation, demonstration, and infrastructure before reaching full commercialization? Michelle explains how The Synergos Fund approaches that challenge through milestone-driven investing, long-term alignment, active participation, and a focus on durable companies across energy, manufacturing, food, and health. From there, the discussion moves into one of the most overlooked pieces of nuclear energy: the fuel cycle. Michelle shares why nuclear recycling company Curio became such an important part of her transition into deep tech and why she believes spent nuclear fuel should increasingly be viewed as a strategic energy resource rather than simply as waste. The conversation explores fuel security, domestic nuclear supply chains, recycling, commercialization, and the broader ecosystem required around the reactor itself.  Wes and Michelle also examine the massive increase in electricity demand being driven by AI, data centers, reshoring, and electrification. If generation, grid infrastructure, and behind-the-meter solutions cannot keep pace, the constraint may increasingly become access to reliable power. They also discuss Gate 5, a wastewater-to-energy technology in the Synergos portfolio, as an example of a broader investment philosophy: finding valuable energy resources in places the traditional system often treats as liabilities.  But technology and capital alone will not build the next energy system. The episode closes with one of the most important constraints facing the industry: people. Engineers, welders, electricians, operators, technicians, construction professionals, regulators, and other skilled workers will all be necessary to turn ambitious energy plans into functioning infrastructure. In this episode:  Why Michelle moved from traditional finance into nuclear and deep tech  What patient capital should demand from infrastructure companies  Why timing matters in private-market investing  The nuclear fuel-cycle opportunity beyond the reactor  Why spent nuclear fuel could become a strategic resource  How AI and data centers are reshaping electricity demand  Wastewater-to-energy and the opportunity behind overlooked resources  Why commercialization requires strong operators, not just investors  The workforce challenge facing nuclear and energy infrastructure  Why the companies quietly building through difficult problems may ultimately shape the next energy era For investors, founders, energy executives, and anyone thinking seriously about the future of nuclear power and energy infrastructure, this episode offers a much broader framework for understanding what the next energy system will actually require. Links: Michelle Urben on LinkedIn The Synergos Fund Website Curio's Website Episode 89 with Ed McGinnis of Curio Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/ Email: [email protected]://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/https://leegroupsearch.com/

Breakthrough science is only the beginning. The harder challenge is turning promising technology into a system that can operate reliably, economically, and repeatedly in the real world. In this episode of Green Giants: Titans of Clean Energy, Wes Ashworth, host and President of Lee Group Search sits down with Tina Tosukhowong, Investment Director at TDK Ventures, to explore what separates deep-tech companies that scale from those that stall between the lab, pilot plant, and first commercial facility. Tina brings an unusually valuable perspective to venture investing. Before becoming an investor, she spent years as a chemical engineer and industrial operator working across process development, pilot operations, scale-up, commercialization, manufacturing, and customer qualification.   That operating experience shapes how she evaluates climate tech, advanced materials, AI infrastructure, and other capital-intensive technologies today. Tina explains why scaling is not simply a matter of building a larger version of a successful pilot. At commercial scale, entirely new risks emerge around heat transfer, fluid flow, contamination, materials handling, uptime, permitting, utilities, feedstocks, safety, supply chains, and integration with customer sites. The companies that succeed are often the ones that identify failure modes early, run the right experiments, and learn faster than their capital disappears.  The conversation also tackles one of the most important questions in deep tech: When has a company actually earned the right to scale? Wes and Tina explore why raising too much money too early can be dangerous, how founders should think about risk retirement before committing hundreds of millions of dollars to a first commercial plant, and why the strongest financing strategy aligns capital with specific learning milestones. They also discuss founder-market fit, coachability, executive hiring, productive board conflict, and why the right investor syndicate can matter as much as valuation.  The discussion then moves into the rapidly evolving physical infrastructure behind AI. Tina breaks down opportunities across data-center power delivery, energy storage, cooling, thermal materials, networking, semiconductors, and photonics. She explains why the next wave of AI infrastructure innovation may come not only from better chips, but from everything required to power, connect, and cool them efficiently.   The episode also explores fusion energy, synthetic fuels, critical minerals, and frontier technologies, including Tina’s perspective on Type One Energy, INERATEC, and the growing overlap between clean energy, computing, advanced materials, manufacturing, and national supply-chain resilience.  In this episode, you’ll learn:  Why industrial scale-up exposes risks that laboratory success cannot predict  What founders should prove before committing to a first commercial facility  How capital discipline can prevent expensive first-of-a-kind mistakes  Why learning speed and coachability matter so much in deep-tech leadership  When experienced executives help startups and when they can slow them down  Why investor syndicates and boards become critical when plans break  Where Tina sees overlooked opportunities in AI data-center infrastructure  Why cooling, rack-level power conversion, and photonics could become major bottlenecks  What industrial operating experience reveals about the future of fusion  How e-fuels, critical minerals, AI, and advanced materials are increasingly converging For founders, investors, operators, and leaders building the next generation of clean energy and deep-tech companies, this episode is a practical look at what it really takes to move from possibility to commercial reality. Links: Tina Tosukhowong on LinkedIn TDK Ventures Website Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/ Email: [email protected]://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/https://leegroupsearch.com/

What if the next major battery breakthrough does not require a new chemistry, a new factory, or an entirely new manufacturing ecosystem? In this episode of Green Giants: Titans of Renewable Energy, Wes Ashworth sits down with David Mackanic, Co-Founder and CEO of Anthro Energy, to explore why the electrolyte may be one of the most overlooked levers in battery performance.  Anthro Energy is developing Proteus, a phase-change electrolyte designed to enter a battery cell as a liquid and then solidify during formation. The goal is to improve safety, mechanical stability, swelling behavior, and compatibility with higher-energy chemistries while using existing lithium-ion manufacturing equipment.  David explains why this approach could matter for everything from silicon-rich batteries and consumer electronics to EVs, robotics, defense, autonomous systems, and physical AI. The conversation also gets into one of the biggest challenges in battery innovation: making something work not just in a laboratory, but consistently, economically, and at industrial scale. Wes and David discuss: Why the electrolyte has historically received less attention than the anode and cathodeHow Proteus transitions from liquid to solid inside the battery cellWhy "drop-in" manufacturing does not mean zero process changesHow mechanical stabilization can help address silicon expansion, cracking, swelling, and degradationWhy better batteries require progress across energy density, safety, cycle life, and manufacturability at the same timeHow Anthro thinks about reducing both the frequency and severity of battery safety eventsWhy a more expensive electrolyte can still create greater value at the full cell and application levelWhy robotics, autonomous systems, defense, and physical AI create a different battery problem than conventional EVsHow structural batteries could eventually change the architecture of products themselvesHow Anthro Atlas uses AI to explore enormous electrolyte design spaces and accelerate materials developmentWhere AI predictions still have to prove themselves against real-world chemistry and manufacturingWhat changes when a materials science company moves from discovery into productionWhy Anthro is scaling advanced electrolyte manufacturing in the United StatesWhy the future of batteries is unlikely to be defined by one winning chemistryDavid’s background spans mechanical engineering, chemistry, polymer science, and advanced battery research, including a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from Stanford focused on polymer systems for safer, longer-lasting, higher-energy lithium-ion batteries.  This episode is a deep look at the intersection of battery technology, advanced materials, AI-driven discovery, U.S. manufacturing, energy storage, robotics, and the future of electrification. Links: David Mackanic on LinkedIn Anthro Energy's Website Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/ Email: [email protected]://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/https://leegroupsearch.com/

Most of the buildings we will depend on for the next several decades are already standing. That makes the next phase of building decarbonization less about showcase new construction and more about upgrading the systems hidden behind walls, beneath floors, and underground. In this episode, Wes Ashworth sits down with Mike Richter, President of Brightcore Energy, to explore geothermal heating and cooling as a practical building-performance strategy. Mike brings a rare perspective to the conversation. After a 15-year NHL career that included a Stanley Cup championship and Olympic medal, he built a second career focused on climate, energy efficiency, and the built environment. Mike explains the critical difference between geothermal power generation and the ground-source systems used to heat and cool buildings. He breaks down the physics in accessible terms, then shows how smaller drilling rigs, directional drilling, hybrid systems, advanced controls, and real-time data are expanding what is possible in dense cities and occupied buildings. The conversation also examines why retrofits are the true test of decarbonization. Existing buildings come with aging infrastructure, limited space, complex load profiles, and owners who often wait until equipment fails before considering alternatives. Mike outlines why early evaluation matters and why every geothermal project must be designed around the building, geology, distribution system, operating needs, and financial horizon. In this episode, you will learn: Why geothermal HVAC is different from deep geothermal powerHow the ground can function as a stable heat source, heat sink, and thermal batteryWhy urban and occupied-building retrofits are becoming more feasibleHow Brightcore integrates engineering, drilling, controls, implementation, and performance monitoringWhat The Beresford project demonstrates about geothermal in a historic New York City buildingWhy one-directional cooling loads, including data centers and ice rinks, create new design challengesHow Local Law 97 is changing capital planning for New York City building ownersWhy education, perceived risk, financing, and timing remain major barriers to adoptionHow better building systems can reduce operating costs while improving comfort, air quality, and performanceMike offers a grounded view of the market. Geothermal can deliver major efficiency and emissions benefits, but it is not a universal, one-size-fits-all solution. The opportunity depends on sound engineering, realistic economics, thoughtful integration, and a willingness to evaluate options before an emergency replacement locks a building into another generation of legacy equipment. This episode is essential listening for professionals in commercial real estate, facilities, engineering, higher education, government, finance, climate policy, and renewable energy who want to understand how geothermal retrofits can move from niche technology to mainstream building infrastructure. Topics: geothermal heating and cooling, ground-source heat pumps, commercial building retrofits, building decarbonization, energy efficiency, urban geothermal, Local Law 97, thermal energy storage, HVAC electrification, Brightcore Energy Links: Mike Richter on LinkedIn Brightcore Energy's Website Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/ Email: [email protected]://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/https://leegroupsearch.com/

Nuclear energy is having another moment. But enthusiasm alone will not create a nuclear renaissance. The bigger question is whether the industry can finally learn to deliver complex projects predictably, repeatedly, on time, and at a cost investors and utilities can accept. In this episode of Green Giants: Titans of Renewable Energy, host Wes Ashworth, President of Lee Group Search, sits down with Tony Roulstone, Lecturer in Nuclear Engineering at the University of Cambridge and former Group Managing Director of Rolls-Royce Nuclear Engineering. Tony brings decades of experience spanning nuclear energy, aerospace, complex engineering programs, business transformation, and nuclear education. That perspective leads to a fascinating argument: the biggest breakthroughs nuclear needs may have less to do with reactor physics and more to do with how reactors are manufactured, financed, constructed, and repeated. The conversation begins with a Rolls-Royce aerospace failure that left Boeing 747s waiting for engines. The technology problem ultimately exposed a deeper organizational problem. Tony explains why that lesson still matters for nuclear projects today. From there, Wes and Tony examine one of nuclear energy's fundamental challenges. Building a large reactor can resemble manufacturing an aircraft in a field. Thousands of people, intricate supply chains, enormous documentation requirements, specialized inspections, and long construction timelines make repetition and productivity incredibly difficult. That is where small modular reactors, or SMRs, could change the equation. Tony explains why smaller does not automatically mean cheaper and why the real economic opportunity behind SMRs depends on three principles: Standardization: Stop redesigning the product for every customer and site.Modularization: Move significantly more construction into controlled factory environments.Production learning: Build repeatedly enough for teams, suppliers, and processes to improve from one unit to the next.The discussion also explores advanced nuclear reactors, including high-temperature gas reactors, liquid-metal systems, and molten salt concepts, along with what new reactor technologies could mean for safety and industrial applications. Tony and Wes also confront nuclear's most persistent public challenge: trust. They examine lessons from Chernobyl, the importance of organizational safety culture, and why modern nuclear safety cannot be understood solely through the industry's historical accidents. Finally, they tackle the false choice between nuclear energy and renewable energy. Deep decarbonization will require an entire energy system, including electricity, industrial heat, transportation, storage, renewables, and firm low-carbon generation. The real question is not which technology wins. It is how these resources work together. In this episode: Why technically brilliant projects can still failWhat aerospace can teach nuclear about systems engineeringWhy large nuclear construction struggles with productivityThe real economics behind small modular reactorsWhy SMRs require fleet deployment and repeatable productionStandardization, modularization, and manufacturing learningAdvanced nuclear reactor technologies and their potentialNuclear safety, Chernobyl, and public confidencePrivate capital and the growing nuclear ecosystemWhy nuclear and renewables should not be treated as opposing campsWhat nuclear must accomplish by 2035 to prove it can truly scaleThe ultimate test is simple: nuclear must become predictable. If the industry can turn extraordinary engineering projects into repeatable industrial products that arrive when promised and near the cost promised, nuclear could play a much larger role in the global energy transition. Links: Tony Roulstone on LinkedIn Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/ Email: [email protected]://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/https://leegroupsearch.com/

The energy transition is usually framed around generation, storage, transmission, permitting, and capital. But one of the biggest constraints may be hiding in plain sight: the physical materials required to build everything. In this episode of Green Giants: Titans of Renewable Energy, Wes Ashworth, President of Lee Group Search, sits down with Bryan Guido Hassin, Co-Founder and CEO of DexMat, to explore why the future of electrification, renewable energy, AI data centers, grid expansion, aerospace, and advanced manufacturing may depend on a fundamental materials transition.  Bryan brings an unusually broad perspective to the conversation. His career has spanned software entrepreneurship, energy technology, climate innovation, venture ecosystems, and deep tech. He also co-founded Third Derivative, where exposure to hundreds of climate technologies helped reveal a recurring challenge: nearly every major electrification pathway depends on rapidly scaling conductive materials such as copper, while supply, performance, and production constraints continue to intensify.   That realization ultimately helped lead Bryan to DexMat and Galvorn, an advanced carbon material made from aligned carbon nanotubes. DexMat is developing Galvorn for applications where conductivity alone is not enough and properties like low weight, strength, flexibility, heat dissipation, corrosion resistance, and durability become critical.  In this conversation, Wes and Bryan explore: Why copper could become a major bottleneck for electrification and renewable energy growthHow AI data centers add another layer of pressure to materials demandWhy mining and recycling more copper may help, but may not solve the full problemHow Galvorn is made and why carbon nanotube alignment is the key breakthroughWhere Galvorn can compete with copper today and where copper still has advantagesWhy conductivity must be evaluated alongside weight, heat, strength, frequency, and system designHow wet fiber spinning could help advanced carbon materials scale economicallyThe qualification hurdles behind aerospace, defense, medical, grid, and wire-and-cable adoptionWhy hard-tech commercialization requires manufacturers, investors, policymakers, and customers to move togetherWhat investors often misunderstand about materials startupsHow entirely new materials can unlock designs that were previously impossibleBryan also shares the personal journey behind the work, including the influence of Nobel laureate Rick Smalley at Rice University and how a career spent studying climate innovation ultimately brought him full circle into advanced materials.  The bigger idea is simple but consequential: building a cleaner, more electrified economy requires more than changing how we generate energy. It may require changing the materials civilization is built on. For anyone working in renewable energy, grid infrastructure, AI infrastructure, electrification, climate tech, advanced materials, deep tech, or industrial innovation, this episode offers a very different lens on what could determine the speed of the energy transition. Links: Bryan Hassin on LinkedIn DexMat's Website Info on Galvorn Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/ Email: [email protected]://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/https://leegroupsearch.com/

Major energy projects do not fail simply because of weak contractors, poor controls, or the wrong contract structure. They fail when owners misunderstand their role. In this episode of Green Giants: Titans of Renewable Energy, Wes Ashworth, President of Lee Group Search, sits down with Gary Fischer, Executive Director of the Project Production Institute and a longtime capital projects leader who spent more than 40 years at Chevron. Gary brings a rare perspective shaped by work across engineering, construction, operations, benchmarking, major project leadership, and enterprise project-system design. After helping architect Chevron’s project management system, he came to a difficult conclusion: even sophisticated project frameworks can produce disappointing results when they ignore how work actually flows through a production system. The conversation centers on one critical idea: capital projects are not products an owner can simply buy. They are production systems that must be actively designed, led, and integrated. Wes and Gary explore the difference between owners who behave like buyers and owners who behave like builders, along with the responsibilities that cannot be outsourced. These include defining the business outcome, setting requirements, managing stakeholders, making timely decisions, shaping the contracting strategy, and retaining accountability for the final result. They also examine why lump-sum EPC contracts do not eliminate owner risk, how traditional metrics can reward excessive work in process, and why adding more people to a delayed project can sometimes make performance worse. Gary shares lessons from major LNG, refinery, offshore, and supply chain environments, including how production control improved collaboration, reduced manpower, accelerated delivery, and helped teams complete more work with fewer resources. The discussion also applies directly to renewable energy, battery storage, hydrogen, transmission, data centers, and other rapidly scaling infrastructure sectors. As companies deploy capital into new technologies and unfamiliar project environments, owner capability may become one of the most important competitive advantages. In this episode: Why project failure is often misdiagnosedWhat separates a capable owner from a passive buyerWhy contractors cannot own the business outcomeHow contracts can obscure risk without truly transferring itWhy production science changes project decision-makingHow excessive work in process delays completionWhy supply chains should be managed as connected production systemsHow rigid stage gates can encourage the wrong behaviorWhat leaders should evaluate before approving major capitalThe first steps organizations can take to strengthen owner capabilityThis episode is essential listening for CEOs, project sponsors, investors, developers, EPC leaders, and anyone responsible for delivering complex energy and infrastructure projects. Gary Fischer is Executive Director of the Project Production Institute and previously held senior project leadership roles at Chevron, including responsibility for Chevron’s project management system and capital project capability. Links: Project Production Institute Website & Resources Gary Fischer on LinkedIn Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/ Email: [email protected]://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/https://leegroupsearch.com/

America’s energy system has entered a new phase. After years of relatively flat electricity demand, the country is now facing sustained growth driven by data centers, industrial expansion, electrification, reshoring, aging infrastructure, and rising resilience needs. The challenge is no longer just how quickly the U.S. can decarbonize. It is how quickly the country can build enough power while protecting reliability, affordability, and long-term emissions progress. In this episode of Green Giants: Titans of Renewable Energy, Wes Ashworth, President of Lee Group Search, welcomes back Lisa Jacobson, President of the Business Council for Sustainable Energy, to unpack the findings of the 2026 Sustainable Energy in America Factbook. Lisa explains why this moment is different from previous periods of load growth, how urgency could help break years of infrastructure inertia, and why no single technology can meet the challenge alone. She makes the case for a broad portfolio that includes renewable energy, storage, natural gas, nuclear, energy efficiency, demand flexibility, sustainable transportation, and smarter use of existing grid assets. The conversation also examines the growing impact of large electricity users. Data centers are an important part of the demand story, but the episode goes far beyond AI. Wes and Lisa explore what rising load means for utilities, regulators, communities, manufacturers, households, and businesses across the country. A central question runs throughout the episode: Who pays for the infrastructure required to power America’s next era? Lisa discusses the need to protect households and small businesses from unfair cost allocation, the role large customers can play in funding grid upgrades or bringing new power resources, and how regulators can evaluate projects based on local capacity, flexibility, community benefit, and long-term risk. The episode also covers the technologies being deployed now. Solar and battery storage continue to lead new capacity additions because they can often move quickly and compete economically. At the same time, firm resources, existing nuclear assets, natural gas, long-duration storage, efficiency, virtual power plants, microgrids, and demand response all have distinct roles to play. Wes and Lisa also examine: Why energy efficiency should be treated as infrastructureHow smart meters and flexible demand can reduce grid strainWhat utilities and regulators should ask before approving major new loadsWhy storage is becoming more important to grid operationsHow corporate clean energy procurement is reshaping the marketWhat policy uncertainty means for real projects and investment decisionsWhich technologies emerged stronger from recent tax and policy changesWhy speed, cost, reliability, and sustainability must be solved togetherLisa closes with a practical message for governors, regulators, and policymakers: align economic development with reliable, affordable, and clean energy, then give the private sector the market signals needed to build. This episode is a clear-eyed look at the next chapter of the U.S. power system and what it will take to meet rising demand without losing sight of consumers, communities, or climate goals. Links: 2026 Sustainable Energy in America Factbook Lisa Jacobson on LinkedIn BCSE's Website Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/ Email: [email protected]://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/https://leegroupsearch.com/

Renewable energy has scaled rapidly. Now the industry faces a more demanding question: can solar, wind, and storage operate with the discipline, security, and reliability expected of critical infrastructure? In this episode of Green Giants: Titans of Renewable Energy, Wes Ashworth, President of Lee Group Search, speaks with Kellie Macpherson, COO of Compliance + Security at Radian Generation and a board member at SEIA (Solar Energy Industries Association). Kellie brings deep experience across NERC compliance, cybersecurity, commissioning, audits, control centers, and renewable asset operations. Her perspective is shaped by a career spent bridging the gap between traditional grid operations and the fast-moving renewable energy sector. The conversation explores why compliance is not simply paperwork, how reliability affects real communities, and why the industry’s long-term credibility depends on operating assets as well as it builds them. Wes and Kellie also break down the significance of NERC Category 2 registration for inverter-based resources. They discuss which solar, wind, storage, and hybrid assets may now fall under increased oversight, why registration alone is not the same as being audit-ready, and what owner-operators should prioritize if they are behind. Cybersecurity is another central theme. Modern renewable plants rely heavily on remote access, third-party vendors, software, connected devices, and operational technology. That creates efficiency, but also expands the attack surface. Kellie explains why commissioning is one of the most vulnerable stages of a project and why access management, patching, physical security, and documented controls need to be built in before commercial operation. The episode also examines the leadership side of compliance. Mature programs require executive attention, clear accountability, employee training, operational evidence, and a company culture that understands the financial, reputational, and reliability risks of getting it wrong. In this episode: Why grid reliability became personal for Kellie early in lifeHow renewable energy became central to bulk power system reliabilityWhat NERC Category 2 means for solar, wind, storage, and hybrid assetsThe difference between registration and true audit readinessWhy cybersecurity should be treated as an operational priority nowThe most common security risks during commissioningWarning signs that a project may face future compliance problemsWhy inverter settings, access controls, patching, and evidence matterHow executives and boards should think about compliance riskWhat trusted renewable operators will do differently over the next three yearsAs electricity demand grows and renewable assets become more essential to the grid, the companies that earn long-term trust will be the ones that combine speed with discipline, growth with resilience, and innovation with operational accountability. Links: Kellie Macpherson on LinkedIn Radian Generation's Website Kellie's Power Play Newsletter Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/ Email: [email protected]://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/https://leegroupsearch.com/

Solar has world-changing technology, but the industry still struggles to explain itself clearly. In this episode of Green Giants: Titans of Renewable Energy, Wes Ashworth, President of Lee Group Search, sits down with Aaron Nichols, Marketing and Business Development Specialist at Exact Solar and host of This Week in Solar, to explore why clarity, trust, and human communication have become competitive advantages in renewable energy. Aaron’s path into solar was anything but traditional. Before entering the industry, he worked as a teacher, traveled internationally, trained as a solar installer, and built experience in copywriting and marketing. That background shaped his ability to translate complex topics into language customers, employees, and business leaders can actually understand. The conversation examines why renewable energy companies often narrow their talent pools by hiring for the same backgrounds repeatedly. Aaron explains why small businesses need adaptable problem-solvers, how nontraditional candidates can demonstrate value through consulting, and why creativity and pattern recognition are difficult to identify through a conventional hiring process. Wes and Aaron also unpack the widening gap between corporate communication and human communication. They discuss why jargon-heavy messaging weakens trust, how clear website copy can improve visibility in AI search, and why companies must explain what they do, how they do it, who they help, and why it matters. The episode also explores the right and wrong ways to use artificial intelligence. AI can help simplify internal communication, organize workflows, identify automation opportunities, and generate new creative ideas. But without clear thinking, strong processes, and thoughtful editing, it only produces more noise. Additional topics include: Why stories earn attention before facts close the deal How customer case studies build long-term credibility Why automation should begin with process mapping What solar companies misunderstand about payback periods How authentic short-form video can outperform polished advertising Why simple, consistent communication is difficult to copy How expertise and a trusted public voice can strengthen a company’s brandThis episode is packed with practical insight for solar marketers, founders, sales leaders, recruiters, job seekers, and anyone working to make clean energy easier to understand. Links: Aaron Nichols on LinkedIn This Week in Solar Exact Solar's Website Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/ Email: [email protected]://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/https://leegroupsearch.com/

Electricity demand is entering a sharp new growth cycle. After years of relatively flat demand, the economy is becoming more electric at the same time AI and data centers are exploding. New manufacturing, reshoring, EV charging, building electrification, air conditioning growth, extreme weather, and 24/7 reliability expectations are all pushing more load onto the grid.  AI is the loudest accelerant right now, and for good reason. Data centers need massive computing power, cooling systems, backup power, transformers, substations, and high-reliability grid connections. But the bigger story is broader: the energy transition is no longer just about generating cleaner electricity. It is about delivering enough reliable power, fast enough, in the places where demand is actually showing up. That is why nuclear power, SMRs, gas, storage, renewables, transmission, transformers, and interconnection are currently front-page issues. But there is a harder question behind the hype: can we actually build the infrastructure fast enough, safely enough, and predictably enough to meet the moment? In this episode of Green Giants: Titans of Renewable Energy, host Wes Ashworth, President of Lee Group Search sits down with Todd Zabelle, author of Built to Fail: Why Construction Projects Take So Long, Cost Too Much, and How to Fix It. Todd brings more than 35 years of experience in complex capital project delivery and is the Founder and CEO of Strategic Project Solutions, Founder of the Project Production Institute, Founder and CEO of Pacific Contracting, and a founding equity partner of the Lean Construction Institute. Todd’s perspective is clear: many major projects do not fail because the technology is impossible. They fail because the management system is wrong. That matters now because AI, data centers, nuclear power, and SMRs are all converging around the same challenge: the physical world does not move at software speed. Wes and Todd unpack why traditional project management tools often create false confidence, why schedules can become disconnected from actual production, and why measuring progress by money spent can hide problems until it is too late. Todd explains why critical infrastructure needs to be managed as a production system, not just an administrative exercise. The conversation then turns to nuclear power for AI. Todd shares what he heard at Datacloud Global Congress, where nuclear for AI was a major topic, and explains the cultural gap between fast-moving data center developers and the more conservative, safety-driven nuclear industry. They explore the real-world barriers standing between AI’s energy demand and nuclear deployment, including siting, permitting, grid connection, fuel supply, specialized labor, nuclear-grade quality standards, and the mismatch between data center load profiles and steady baseload nuclear generation. The episode also takes a sober look at SMRs. Todd sees real value in smaller batch deployment, especially as data centers grow over time, but warns that SMRs are not plug and play. Even smaller reactors require serious infrastructure, containment, supply chains, fuel strategy, skilled operators, and disciplined execution. This is not a conversation about whether nuclear matters. It clearly does. It is a conversation about what it will actually take to deliver nuclear-grade infrastructure in the AI era. In this episode, Wes and Todd cover: Why U.S. power demand is rising after years of relative stagnationHow AI, data centers, electrification, manufacturing, and reliability needs are reshaping the gridWhy major capital projects often fail long before the public sees the delay or cost overrunHow traditional scheduling, earned value, and percentage completion accounting can create false confidenceWhy project delivery should focus on production systems, not just administrationWhat data center developers may be underestimating about nuclear powerWhy SMRs solve some problems but leave many execution challenges intactThe fuel supply, workforce, and quality-control bottlenecks behind nuclear scalingWhy nuclear-grade welding, rebar, and construction tolerances demand a different level of skillWhat capable owners must do differently on complex infrastructure projectsWhere AI, digital twins, sensors, and automation can actually improve project deliveryWhy the energy transition depends on execution discipline as much as technology innovationIf you are working in renewable energy, nuclear power, data center development, infrastructure, construction, utilities, project delivery, or AI energy strategy, this episode is a grounded look at the gap between ambition and execution. The future of AI will require massive amounts of power. The future of clean energy will require massive amounts of infrastructure. And as Todd makes clear, the winners will be the companies and leaders who understand how to actually build. Links: Todd Zabelle on LinkedIn Project Production Institute's Website Strategic Project Solutions Website Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/ Email: [email protected]://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/https://leegroupsearch.com/