{"podcast":{"title":"Catalyst with Shayle Kann","slug":"catalyst-with-shayle-kann-4458041","podcast_index_feed_id":4458041,"rss_url":"https://feeds.megaphone.fm/catalyst","website_url":"https://www.latitudemedia.com/podcasts/catalyst","image_url":"https://megaphone.imgix.net/podcasts/d2f3b172-3bc3-11ec-a455-6f999fef6a5d/image/91b6eaa70e6ec9b2be5275786995350c.png?ixlib=rails-4.3.1&max-w=3000&max-h=3000&fit=crop&auto=format,compress","author":"Latitude Media","episode_count":257,"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.","last_synced_at":null,"page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/catalyst-with-shayle-kann-4458041"},"episode":{"title":"The rise of grid power electronics with Drew Baglino","slug":"the-rise-of-grid-power-electronics-with-drew-baglino","published_at":"2026-02-19T11:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/catalyst-with-shayle-kann-4458041/the-rise-of-grid-power-electronics-with-drew-baglino","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/catalyst-with-shayle-kann-4458041","url":"https://traffic.megaphone.fm/PSMI9285210276.mp3?updated=1771433158","audio_url":"https://traffic.megaphone.fm/PSMI9285210276.mp3?updated=1771433158","summary":"For decades, the physical equipment underpinning the electric grid has remained largely unchanged: passive, \"dumb\" devices installed as far back as the 1970s that lack much real-time control. But today, in the face of skyrocketing energy demand, a new class of technologies has emerged. In this episode, Drew Baglino, the founder and CEO of Heron Power, returns to the show to discuss his company’s new generation of solid-state transformers, or SSTs. After a 17-year career at Tesla — where he led energy and powertrain development — Drew is now focused on replacing the grid’s aging infrastructure with these advanced power electronics. Shayle and Drew take a deep dive into the history of the power transistor, and then explore how the SST has the potential to transform the grid into a highly optimized and intelligent machine. They cover topics like: The evolution of power electronics Why we still haven’t fixed the transformer shortage How Heron Power’s SSTs remove legacy transformers and switches to create a substantial uplift for project developers The potential to remove 70% of traditional electrical equipment at data centers by distributing power directly to the rack Why Drew thinks SSTs offer a \"pathway toward affordability\" Resources Catalyst: Drew Baglino on Tesla’s master plan Latitude Media: Inside Heron Power’s plan to transform the grid Catalyst: Understanding the electric transformer shortage Open Circuit: The grid resilience dilemma Latitude Media: These Autogrid alums want to change how data centers use power Credits: Hosted by Shayle Kann. Produced and edited by Max Savage Levenson. Original music and engineering by Sean Marquand. Stephen Lacey is our executive editor. Catalyst is brought to you by Uplight. Uplight activates energy customers and their connected…","meta_description":"For decades, the physical equipment underpinning the electric grid has remained largely unchanged: passive, \"dumb\" devices installed as far back as the 19…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3029,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/catalyst-with-shayle-kann-4458041/episodes/the-rise-of-grid-power-electronics-with-drew-baglino/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/catalyst-with-shayle-kann-4458041/the-rise-of-grid-power-electronics-with-drew-baglino.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}