SunCast

Clean energy should be easy to finance.
The money exists.
The technology works.
The demand is real.
And yet, projects stall. Deals drag. Capital gets stuck.
And with the IRA crumbling under our feet, everyone is right to ask “how will these projects actually get funded?!”
So what’s actually broken?
In this episode of SunCast, I sit down with Alfred Johnson, CEO and co-founder of Crux, to unpack how clean-energy finance actually works once a project leaves the slide deck — how pricing gets discovered, how risk is evaluated, how trust is established between parties who’ve never worked together, and why so much of the process still depends on manual workflows and bespoke negotiation.
Alfred left a senior role at the U.S. Treasury after reading the Inflation Reduction Act and realizing it didn’t just expand incentives - it forced the creation of a brand-new market. One where buyers and sellers had to find each other without reference prices, standardized terms, or a shared operating system to move capital at scale. Crux exists to solve that coordination problem.
We talk about:
🔹The difference between money being available and money being usable
🔹Why trust — not tax credits — becomes the real bottleneck in new markets
🔹What breaks first when financing workflows don’t scale with market growth
🔹Why standardization matters more than speed in early market formation
🔹How Crux decided which parts of the capital stack to tackle first — and why order mattered
This is an episode about much more than tax credits.
It’s about why markets fail even when money is available — and how they get rebuilt.
If you care about how capital actually moves, why deals slow down, or what it really takes to scale the energy transition, this one’s worth your time.
Are there other technologies you’ve scouted on the frontlines of the Clean Energy Revolution that you think we should be covering here on SunCast?
Hit us up - [email protected] with your feedback & recommendations.
Check out OpenSolar OS 3.0 at: https://suncast.media/opensolar
If you want to connect with today's guest, you’ll find links to their contact info in the show notes on the blog at https://suncast.media/episodes/.
Our Platinum Presenting Sponsor for SunCast is CPS America!
You can learn more about all the sponsors who help make this show free for you at www.suncast.media/sponsors.
Remember, you can always find resources, learn more about today’s guest and explore recommendations, book links, and more than 875 other founder stories and startup advice at www.suncast.media.
Subscribe to Valence, our weekly LinkedIn Newsletter, and learn the elements of compelling storytelling: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/valence-content-that-connects-7145928995363049472/
You can connect with me, Nico Johnson, on:
Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/nicomeo

Data centers aren’t the problem.
They’re the stress test.
As AI-driven demand surges, the grid is being pushed in ways it was never designed for. But instead of asking how to slow data centers down, today’s conversation asks a better question: Is the grid fit enough to handle what’s coming next?
In this Tactical Tuesday episode, recorded live with the Smart Electric Power Alliance, we explore grid fitness — a new way of thinking about flexibility, planning, and speed to power.
SEPA’s Ann Collier is joined by Tyler Norris and Nelson Abramson to break down what the data actually shows, what’s already working in the field, and what has to change upstream in planning and policy.
Expect to learn:
🔹 Why data centers expose grid weaknesses rather than cause them
🔹 How 0.25% flexibility could unlock 76 GW of capacity
🔹 What “planning-grade flexibility” really means
🔹 Why batteries and design matter more than demand response
🔹 How grid fitness changes interconnection strategy
This episode offers a front-row seat to how utilities, regulators, and hyperscalers can move from cautious conversation to confident execution.
Hit play and reimagine what data centers can do.
Why are you still reading? Let’s get into it.
Are there other technologies you’ve scouted on the frontlines of the Clean Energy Revolution that you think we should be covering here on SunCast?
Hit us up - [email protected] with your feedback & recommendations.
Check out OpenSolar OS 3.0 at: https://suncast.media/opensolar
If you want to connect with today's guest, you’ll find links to their contact info in the show notes on the blog at https://suncast.media/episodes/.
Our Platinum Presenting Sponsor for SunCast is CPS America!
You can learn more about all the sponsors who help make this show free for you at www.suncast.media/sponsors.
Remember, you can always find resources, learn more about today’s guest and explore recommendations, book links, and more than 875 other founder stories and startup advice at www.suncast.media.
Subscribe to Valence, our weekly LinkedIn Newsletter, and learn the elements of compelling storytelling: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/valence-content-that-connects-7145928995363049472/
You can connect with me, Nico Johnson, on:
Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/nicomeo
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickalus

What does a modern energy company actually look like?
In this episode, Nick Chaset, CEO of Octopus Energy US, joins Nico Johnson to explore a question that sits at the center of Octopus’s strategy:
Is it a utility with great technology—or a technology company operating inside energy?
Nick’s career spans California energy policy, years running East Bay Community Energy, and now scaling Octopus in the U.S. He brings an operator’s perspective on what it really takes to build and run energy businesses inside complex regulatory systems.
The conversation also digs into Kraken—the software platform Octopus built internally and later spun out into a standalone, highly successful energy tech company. Nick explains why Kraken’s separation clarified Octopus’s identity, unlocked new utility partnerships, and changed how the company thinks about scale.
AI enters the conversation not as hype, but as one of several forces reshaping demand, operations, and expectations across the grid.
Expect to learn:
🔹Why Octopus calls itself a consumer company that sells electricity
🔹How Kraken grew from an internal tool into a global energy software business
🔹Why partnering with utilities can scale faster than competing with them
🔹Why regulatory engagement should be a profit center for energy companies
🔹What energy leaders must unlearn to build companies that last
If you care about how energy companies are actually built—and rebuilt—this episode delivers a clear-eyed look behind the curtain.
🎧 Press play.
Are there other technologies you’ve scouted on the frontlines of the Clean Energy Revolution that you think we should be covering here on SunCast?
Hit us up - [email protected] with your feedback & recommendations.
Check out OpenSolar OS 3.0 at: https://suncast.media/opensolar
If you want to connect with today's guest, you’ll find links to their contact info in the show notes on the blog at https://suncast.media/episodes/.
Our Platinum Presenting Sponsor for SunCast is CPS America!
You can learn more about all the sponsors who help make this show free for you at www.suncast.media/sponsors.
Remember, you can always find resources, learn more about today’s guest and explore recommendations, book links, and more than 875 other founder stories and startup advice at www.suncast.media.
Subscribe to Valence, our weekly LinkedIn Newsletter, and learn the elements of compelling storytelling: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/valence-content-that-connects-7145928995363049472/
You can connect with me, Nico Johnson, on:
Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/nicomeo
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickalus

Big things come in small packages. Could something smaller than a deck of cards be instrumental in our ability to meet the needs of the energy transition?
In the ever-evolving landscape of power electronics, one material has been steadily gaining prominence due to its exceptional properties and transformative potential: Silicon Carbide (SiC). This remarkable semiconductor has revolutionized various industries, from automotive to aerospace, with its ability to operate at high temperatures, voltages and frequencies.
As data centers and energy infrastructure increasingly need higher-voltage, higher-current devices to meet the demands for AI, this technology will enable the transition to a higher voltage platform while maintaining the high-efficiency requirements for continuously running, power-intensive systems.
In today’s conversation, Josh Beck chats with Infineon Technologies’ Daniel Dalpiaz and Navid Riaz to explore the breakthrough hardware enabling the next generation of renewables, energy storage, EV charging, and high-power data centers. Infineon’s silicon carbide devices pack serious voltage into incredibly compact, rugged designs, and have become the “intel-inside” of the clean energy revolution.
In this episode, you’ll hear how Infineon’s latest innovation could shrink your cooling system, boost reliability, and push clean energy forward at scale.
Expect to learn:
🔹 Why shrinking the form factor unlocks new potential for grid-connected renewables
🔹 How silicon carbide and gallium nitride are changing power electronics
🔹 The surprising sectors driving demand for Infineon’s new tech
🔹 What 20x the power cycling capability actually means for reliability
You’re about to get a front-row seat to the tiny tech making a massive impact.
Are there other technologies you’ve scouted on the frontlines of the Clean Energy Revolution that you think we should be covering here on SunCast?
Hit us up - [email protected] with your feedback & recommendations.
Check out OpenSolar OS 3.0 at: https://suncast.media/opensolar
If you want to connect with today's guest, you’ll find links to their contact info in the show notes on the blog at https://suncast.media/episodes/.
Our Platinum Presenting Sponsor for SunCast is CPS America!
You can learn more about all the sponsors who help make this show free for you at www.suncast.media/sponsors.
Remember, you can always find resources, learn more about today’s guest and explore recommendations, book links, and more than 875 other founder stories and startup advice at www.suncast.media.
Subscribe to Valence, our weekly LinkedIn Newsletter, and learn the elements of compelling storytelling: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/valence-content-that-connects-7145928995363049472/
You can connect with me, Nico Johnson, on:
Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/nicomeo

The power grid isn’t just growing (at unprecedented rates!)
It’s becoming more complex, more distributed, and harder to manage.
In this episode, Marc Spieler, who leads NVIDIA’s global Energy business, explains how AI and accelerated computing already support grid operations, solar and storage forecasting, and infrastructure planning across the energy sector.
Nico and Marc explore why electrification and data center growth are reshaping demand patterns, how software-defined infrastructure helps utilities avoid costly missteps, and where AI delivers practical value today. This conversation focuses on real workflows, real constraints, and what energy leaders need to understand as the grid evolves.
If you work in solar, storage, utilities, or grid infrastructure, this episode will sharpen how you think about the role of software in clean energy. And regardless what sector, you’ll certainly learn more about how one of the most exciting companies on the planet is enabling a cleaner and more efficient energy future! (P.S. we discuss some FREE tools you probably didn’t know exist…)
🎧 Listen now and rethink how we can us ai to shape up our aging infrastructure.
Expect to Learn
How NVIDIA supports grid operations beyond hardware
Where AI already improves solar, storage, and forecasting
Why grid challenges increasingly involve coordination, not capacity
What software-defined infrastructure means for utilities
How energy companies work with NVIDIA today

You don’t have to be a technologist to benefit from this conversation. Marc makes it clear that AI is not replacing humans in energy, it’s supercharging what’s possible. This one is for the builders who want to stay ahead of the curve.
Happy Building, #solarwarriors!
Are there other technologies you’ve scouted on the frontlines of the Clean Energy Revolution that you think we should be covering here on SunCast?
Hit us up - [email protected] with your feedback & recommendations.
Check out OpenSolar OS 3.0 at: https://suncast.media/opensolar
If you want to connect with today's guest, you’ll find links to their contact info in the show notes on the blog at https://suncast.media/episodes/.
Our Platinum Presenting Sponsor for SunCast is CPS America!
You can learn more about all the sponsors who help make this show free for you at www.suncast.media/sponsors.
Remember, you can always find resources, learn more about today’s guest and explore recommendations, book links, and more than 875 other founder stories and startup advice at www.suncast.media.
Subscribe to Valence, our weekly LinkedIn Newsletter, and learn the elements of compelling storytelling: