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Volts

Volts

By: David Roberts
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About this listen

 Volts is a podcast about leaving fossil fuels behind. I've been reporting on and explaining clean-energy topics for almost 20 years, and I love talking to politicians, analysts, innovators, and activists about the latest progress in the world's most important fight. (Volts is entirely subscriber-supported. Sign up!)

www.volts.wtfDavid Roberts Political Science Politics & Government
Episodes
  • Embedding intelligence at the edge of the grid

    Embedding intelligence at the edge of the grid
    May 16 2025

    In this episode, I’m joined by Marissa Hummon, whose team partnered with NVIDIA to tuck a credit-card-sized GPU computer with AI software into the humble electricity meter. We discuss how that edge computing digests 32,000 waveform samples per second, spots failing transformers, and orchestrates VPPs — plus the guardrails that keep it from becoming Skynet.



    This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.volts.wtf/subscribe
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    58 mins
  • Taming the hydrogen hype

    Taming the hydrogen hype
    May 14 2025

    The hype about hydrogen is back with a vengeance, and thus, so is Joe Romm, who just issued a revised and updated version of his 2003 book The Hype About Hydrogen. We discuss the persistent economic and technical hurdles that make widespread hydrogen adoption unrealistic, explain why most applications are better served by direct electrification, and scrutinize the massive investments and motivations behind the current hydrogen push.



    This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.volts.wtf/subscribe
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    1 hr and 19 mins
  • Trying to bring geothermal heat pumps to scale

    Trying to bring geothermal heat pumps to scale
    May 9 2025

    In this episode, I chat with Kathy Hannun of Dandelion Energy about ground-source heat pumps, which are twice as efficient as air-source units but still more expensive up front. Dandelion has designed its own drills and heat pumps, and with a new 1,500-home partnership with a developer in Colorado, it’s looking to scale up and bring costs down.



    This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.volts.wtf/subscribe
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    1 hr and 3 mins

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