The Kingdom Podcast

We’ve launched a new show! Clean Integration.(The best of The Kingdom has been remastered for Clean Integration Season 1!)This season, we’re focused on exploring the nexus of computing and clean energy.John Belizaire, CEO of Soluna Computing, had some great conversations with top experts about the grid transition, policy implications, new computing technologies, the utility’s perspective on crypto mining, and more.In the meantime, here are some of our favorite moments from Season 1.00:27 The Future of Renewable Energy with the Soluna Team, Dip Patel CTO of Soluna00:58 The Future of Renewable Energy with Sanjeev Kumar01:13 What It Will Take To Be 100% Renewable with Rob Gramlich, Phillip Ng, VP of Corporate Development at Soluna01:36 Renewable Energy in Bitcoin Mining with Jesse PeltanNow that The Kingdom Podcast has come to an end, be sure to subscribe to Clean Integration wherever you stream podcasts.Connect with us on LinkedIn, YouTube, and Twitter @SolunaHoldingsSubscribe to our newsletter to be the first to know when our next episode drops.To learn more about Soluna, please visit soluancomputing.com

In this episode, we are talking to Andy Andy Edstrom, CFA, CFP is a financial advisor and also Head of Institutional at Swan Bitcoin. He may be best known in Bitcoin for authoring the book Why Buy Bitcoin, opining that MicroStrategy might borrow in order to buy Bitcoin, and for shaming wealth managers for not owning Bitcoin for their clients. We talk about the rising interest in Bitcoin from well-known institutions, the case for Bitcoin as a form of money, and the increase of direct investment in crypto assets. Why is Bitcoin a better alternative to gold?What regulatory trends should we be aware of? What is Bitcoin’s relationship to renewable energy?All of this and more on this episode!If you enjoyed this conversation and want to read more on this subject, check out Bitcoin Is A Better Battery on our blog!: https://medium.com/clean-integration/bitcoin-is-a-better-battery-762743832a09?source=friends_link&sk=cbeab4f2e43ed34ab09e6e88a8c1e690Let’s continue the conversation on Twitter! Connect with us– The Kingdom Podcast (https://twitter.com/TheKingdomPod)– Soluna (https://twitter.com/SolunaPower)– John Belizaire (https://twitter.com/jbelizaireCEO) – Andy Edstrom (https://twitter.com/edstromandrew) To purchase Andy’s book, Why Buy Bitcoin, click here (https://www.amazon.com/Why-Buy-Bitcoin-Investing-Tomorrow/dp/1733219609/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=why+buy+bitcoin&qid=1610051424&sr=8-1) Liked what you heard? Be sure to rate us 5 stars, leave a quick review, and subscribe. To join our community, visit us at soluna.io and join our newsletter, or talk to us on LinkedIn.: https://www.linkedin.com/company/solunablockchain

In this episode, we’re looking ahead at the role of government and technological innovation in the future of renewable energy. John, CEO of Soluna talks to Jonathan (Jonny) Sultoon, the Head of Markets & Transitions, Energy Transition Practice at Wood Mackenzie. Jonathan has over 18 years’ experience leading analysis for global energy markets, including power, coal, gas, LNG, and renewables. He joined Wood Mackenzie in 2006 and leads a team of analysts designing research for the energy transition. The team extends across all segments, all markets, and all fuels and technologies.In this conversation, we discuss the renewable energy landscape after the Coronavirus pandemic. We question the impact proposed regulations (or lack thereof) will have on Climate Change. We ask about the prospects of green hydrogen, and finally, we prod at the idea that fossil fuel is dead in the light of renewable energy innovation.If you enjoyed this conversation and want to read more on this subject, check out Zero-Carbon Cloud: Solving Renewable Energy’s Biggest Challenge on our blog!: https://medium.com/clean-integration/zero-carbon-cloud-solving-renewable-energys-biggest-challenge-5d1033e2174c?source=friends_link&sk=39b5345edc22d5ef93a6a02c8e7905a3Let’s continue the conversation on Twitter! Connect with us– The Kingdom Podcast (https://twitter.com/TheKingdomPod)– Soluna (https://twitter.com/SolunaPower)– John Belizaire (https://twitter.com/jbelizaireCEO)Liked what you heard? Be sure to rate us 5 stars, leave a quick review, and subscribe.To join our community, visit us at soluna.io and join our newsletter, or talk to us on LinkedIn.: https://www.linkedin.com/company/solunablockchain

What will the future of crypto mining look like?In this episode, we’re thinking ahead about the relationship between mining and energy, and where renewables will play a role. John, CEO of Soluna, and Phillip, VP of Corporate Development, talk to Jesse Peltan, co-founder and CTO of HODL Ranch – a developer of large scale Bitcoin mining projects in Texas. Jesse dropped out of college to become a co-founder and is on a mission to bring hashrate to the US.Jesse shares his first-hand experience in the industry since 2017, where value creation in institutional scale mining has shifted. These shifts have inevitably had an impact on power generation, cost, and distribution. You can expect to learn more about the changing mining industry, especially in the competitive deregulated power market in Texas. Additionally, we discuss the future of renewable energy in bitcoin mining–where it works and where it doesn’t–and the importance of decentralized finance throughout the world. If you enjoyed this conversation and want to read more on this subject, check out The Golden Triangle: Understanding the Long-Term Profitability and Competitive Dynamics of Mining on our blog!: https://medium.com/clean-integration/the-golden-triangle-understanding-the-long-term-profitability-and-competitive-dynamics-of-mining-687e9109358a Let’s continue the conversation on Twitter! Connect with us– The Kingdom Podcast (https://twitter.com/TheKingdomPod)– Soluna (https://twitter.com/SolunaPower)– John Belizaire (https://twitter.com/jbelizaireCEO) Liked what you heard? Be sure to rate us 5 stars, leave a quick review, and subscribe. To join our community, visit us at soluna.io and join our newsletter, or talk to us on LinkedIn.: https://www.linkedin.com/company/solunablockchain

What solutions do batteries offer to a renewable-powered energy grid?In this episode, Jeff Bishop, CEO, and co-founder of KeyCapture Energy, a utility-scale battery provider, talked to John Belizaire, CEO, and Suzy Peng, Summer Associate at Soluna. Together, they took a deep dive into the world of batteries.Jeff’s extensive experience in the battery and energy industries guide our conversation in this episode as we unpack the ins and outs of grid-scale storage. We learn a lot about the business of batteries and battery technology, as well as address the benefits of batteries– such as the solutions they offer to challenges with intermittent power generation. If you enjoyed this conversation and want to read more on this subject, check out Disconnected: Our Electric Grid’s Struggle with Renewable Energy on our blog!: http://bit.ly/cleanintegration-disconnected Let’s continue the conversation on Twitter! Connect with us– The Kingdom Podcast (https://twitter.com/TheKingdomPod)– Soluna (https://twitter.com/SolunaPower)– John Belizaire (https://twitter.com/jbelizaireCEO) Liked what you heard? Be sure to rate us 5 stars, leave a quick review, and subscribe. To join our community, visit us at soluna.io and join our newsletter, or talk to us on LinkedIn.: https://www.linkedin.com/company/solunablockchain

What will the future of crypto mining look like?In this episode, we’re thinking ahead about the relationship between mining and energy, and where renewables will play a role. John, CEO of Soluna, and Phillip, VP of Corporate Development, talk to Jesse Peltan, co-founder and CTO of HODL Ranch – a developer of large scale Bitcoin mining projects in Texas. Jesse dropped out of college to become a co-founder and is on a mission to bring hashrate to the US.Jesse shares his first-hand experience in the industry since 2017, where value creation in institutional scale mining has shifted. These shifts have inevitably had an impact on power generation, cost, and distribution. You can expect to learn more about the changing mining industry, especially in the competitive deregulated power market in Texas. Additionally, we discuss the future of renewable energy in bitcoin mining–where it works and where it doesn’t–and the importance of decentralized finance throughout the world. If you enjoyed this conversation and want to read more on this subject, check out The Golden Triangle: Understanding the Long-Term Profitability and Competitive Dynamics of Mining on our blog!: https://medium.com/clean-integration/the-golden-triangle-understanding-the-long-term-profitability-and-competitive-dynamics-of-mining-687e9109358a Let’s continue the conversation on Twitter! Connect with us– The Kingdom Podcast (https://twitter.com/TheKingdomPod)– Soluna (https://twitter.com/SolunaPower)– John Belizaire (https://twitter.com/jbelizaireCEO) Liked what you heard? Be sure to rate us 5 stars, leave a quick review, and subscribe. To join our community, visit us at soluna.io and join our newsletter, or talk to us on LinkedIn.: https://www.linkedin.com/company/solunablockchain

In this episode, the team at Soluna is hosting William Eckhardt Professor of Computer Science at the University of Chicago and Senior Computer Scientist at Argonne National Labs, Andrew Chien. Our work at Soluna builds upon his research that shows adding dispatchable load not only reduces stranded power, but it also improves both grid cost and stability. Ultimately, this allows for higher penetration of renewable energy within an existing system. His work started with one crucial question: “How do we minimize the negative impacts of computing, even though it’s doing good or serving a useful purpose?” We learn more about his introduction to computer science, the course of his research in machine learning, cloud computing, and clean energy. We then talk about the practical and theoretical applications of zero-carbon cloud computing now and in the future. If you enjoyed this conversation and want to read more on this subject, check out “Zero-Carbon Cloud: Solving Renewable Energy’s Biggest Problem” on our blog: https://medium.com/clean-integration/zero-carbon-cloud-solving-renewable-energys-biggest-challenge-5d1033e2174c?source=friends_link&sk=39b5345edc22d5ef93a6a02c8e7905a3 Let’s continue the conversation on Twitter! Connect with us @TheKingdomPod, @SolunaPower, and @jbelizaireCEOLiked what you heard? Be sure to rate us 5 stars, leave a quick review, and subscribe. To join our community, visit us at soluna.io and join our newsletter, or talk to us on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/solunablockchain

In this episode, we’re asking: “What will it take to reach 100% renewable energy?” John, CEO of Soluna, and Phillip, head of Corporate Development, talk to Rob Gramlich, CEO of Grid Strategies– a company with a mission to heighten the efficiency of the development and operation of energy grids. This chat is rich with information thanks to Rob’s extensive experience in the energy sector. You can expect to learn more about the changing structure of energy grids in terms of development and operation and its direct impact on the development of renewables from Rob’s first-hand experience in the industry. Additionally, they discuss the growth (or lack thereof) of energy investment in different parts of the world and what this means for reaching total renewable energy. If you enjoyed this conversation and want to read more on this subject, check out Disconnected: Our Electric Grid’s Struggle with Renewable Energy on our blog! Let’s continue the conversation on Twitter! Connect with us @TheKingdomPod, @SolunaPower, and @jbelizaireCEOLiked what you heard? Be sure to rate us 5 stars, leave a quick review, and subscribe. To join our community, visit us at soluna.io and join our newsletter, or talk to us on LinkedIn.

We talk to Sanjeev Kumar, a strategic advisor to Soluna and Bill Hayes, former Head of Legal and External Affairs at Kosmos Energy to learn more about the oil, especially as the industry faces disruption during the Coronavirus pandemic.Tune in for an interesting educational lesson on the history of oil, its rise as an energy source, and its influence on the global economy. Then, we unpack the complexity of the oil industry from Texas to Africa in the last few decades and the technological innovations that have saved the industry through its historical challenges.We question the future of oil and the recent impact of renewables on the industry, gaining invaluable insight from Sanjeev and Bill learnings from their extensive experience in the energy industry. Could these recent challenges be the catalyst for a Renewable Future?For the article Phil Ng mentioned during the episode, read The Shale Apocolypse, and What It Can Teach Bitcoin Miners on our blog!Connect with us on Twitter!@TheKingdomPod@SolunaPower@jbelizaireCEOLiked what you heard? Be sure to rate us 5 stars, leave a quick review, and subscribe.To join our community, visit us at soluna.io and join our newsletter.Check out our blog, Clean Integration on Medium, for more or connect with us on LinkedIn.

John Belizaire, CEO, sits with Ashley Capuzzi to discuss John’s experience with diversity as a leader in the fields of technology and renewable energy.In this episode, you’ll also hear John talk about his background in tech, his drive for entrepreneurship, and for learning about people, and how he found himself in the renewable energy space.As one of Soluna’s core values, diversity is not only important to our team but truly makes up our company’s DNA.As we continue with season 2 of our podcast, which will focus on renewable energy, we’re excited to share with you some wonderful conversations with people from all different walks of life, experiences, and expertise.Connect with us on Twitter!@TheKingdomPod@SolunaPower@jbelizaireCEOFor more on what was discussed in this episode, read Diversity in Blockchain on our blog!Liked what you heard? Be sure to rate us 5 stars, leave a quick review, and subscribe.To join our community, visit us at soluna.io and join our newsletter.Check out our blog, Clean Integration on Medium, for more or connect with us on LinkedIn.

Sanjeev Kumar is a veteran in the energy industry. For most of his career, he has led and grown companies at the forefront of energy and innovation. As a strategic advisor to Soluna, he joins us in conversation to discuss a bit of energy industry history, the future of renewable energy, climate change, among other things. Here’s what you can expect to learn: What shifts have we seen in energy sources?How have energy investments and incentives changed?What are some barriers to renewable energy adoption?Connect with us on Twitter!@TheKingdomPod @SolunaPower @jbelizaireCEOFor more on what you heard today, read “Disconnected: Our Electric Grid’s Struggle with Renewable Energy” on our blog!Liked what you heard? Be sure to rate us 5 stars, leave a quick review, and subscribe. To join our community, visit us at soluna.io and join our newsletter. Check out our blog, Clean Integration on Medium, for more or connect with us on LinkedIn. Our show was mixed and mastered by Charles Malave. Our theme music is Geometric by At Last (@maxxatlast).

The Soluna team is back at it for Season 2 of The Kingdom! This season we will be focusing on all things related to renewable energy innovation, including conversations with experts in the field. To kick off the season, John Belizaire, CEO, is in conversation with Dip Patel, CTO; Phillip Ng, VP of Corporate Development; and Larbi Louyidi, Managing Director at A.M. Wind. Together, they address the need for renewable energy development, investment, and data center innovation, among many other things. Here’s some of what you can expect to hear: “There is an appeal that the cost of renewable energy makes it compelling to add to the overall energy market. It’s getting to a point where it could become cheaper than coal.” –John Belizaire, CEO, on renewable energy investment“There are about a billion people without access to reliable electricity. That’s 1 of 7 humans on Earth and about half of them live on the African continent.” –Phillip Ng, VP of Corporate Development Sources referenced in this episode: 2018 IPPC Report, Lazard 2019 Cost Report, WE Forum Investment ReportFor more on what we covered in this episode, check out How to Drive More Renewable Energy Development in Africa (and Beyond) on our blog!Connect with us on Twitter!@TheKingdomPod@SolunaPower @jbelizaireCEOLiked what you heard? Be sure to rate us 5 stars, leave a quick review, and subscribe. Check out our blog, Clean Integration on Medium, for more or connect with us on LinkedIn. To join our community, visit us at soluna.io and join our newsletter. Our show was mixed and mastered by Charles Malave. Our theme music is Geometric by At Last (@maxxatlast).

The women of Soluna- Ashley, former VP of Marketing, and Cybele, Content Strategist- discuss their roles in the space of renewable energy, blockchain, tech, and startup-land. Each with their different backgrounds and experiences, they find common space in what it’s like to be a woman in tech and their inspiration for breaking through barriers.At Soluna, our team upholds the values of diversity and transparency. In this episode, you’ll hear how it’s played a role in the way Ashley and Cybele navigate their love for storytelling and marketing.Connect with us on Twitter!@TheKingdomPod@SolunaPower

As part of our book club at Soluna, our team read Superpower: One Man’s Quest to Transform American Energy by Russell Gold. We had the pleasure of talking to that man, Michael Skelly. Michael pioneered the move to wind energy in 2000, when renewable energy provided only 10 percent of the power in the US, according to the Energy Department.In this episode, CEO John Belizaire guides a conversation with Skelly to learn more about his experience establishing the second largest wind power company in the US and the five phases of a development project. John also asks about Michael’s emphasis on leadership, culture, and values at Clean Line, to which he says:“You have to constantly be learning, a culture of learning. In order to do that, you have to make sure people feel free to ask dumb questions.” And -- stay tuned until the end for some awesome book recommendations! Connect with us @TheKingdomPod@SolunaPower @jbelizaireCEOLiked what you heard? Be sure to rate us *5* stars, leave a quick review, and subscribe. Check out our blog, Clean Integration on Medium, for more or visit us at soluna.io

It’s been said that the amount of Google searches done in one month can power 400,00 homes. What does this mean for the future of data and energy?Kevin Kent, CEO & Founder of Critical Facilities Efficiency Solutions, sits with CTO Dip Patel to explore data centers, their energy consumption and their efficiency potential. Together, they take a deep dive into copious amounts of data the world has produced, and continues to produce, and how it can be used to fund green energy.“We don’t want to get rid of data centers or scale them back. We want our internet. We want our connectivity. We don’t want to harm the planet. And that is possible.” - Kevin Kent What should we, both as data consumers and data generators, know about the future of data centers? How can data centers be more energy efficient? The first step is understanding where you are. Liked what you heard? Be sure to rate us *5* stars, leave a quick review, and subscribe. http://pod.link/thekingdomCheck out our blog, Clean IntegrationFor more information on Soluna, visit our website

It’s been a year since we’ve sat down to talk about our core values. We addressed Soluna’s mission to be transparent, to support local economies, and to produce 100% clean, renewable energy in our 2nd episode: What Do We Value?. In that episode, our CEO John Belizaire explained: “Core values are immutable things…. when you first shape them, they are foundational elements and over time they might change, some are aspirational, that sort of thing- but in my view we had to first define how are we going to be different than every other company that's in the blockchain ecosystem today.” In this “rearview mirror” episode, VP of Corporate Development, Phillip Ng, interviews John to revisit the values that have centered our growth at Soluna. Together, they discuss how we’ve remained true to our values, how they’ve been challenged, and how they continue to differentiate us from others. “This market can have dark corners,” as John says, so it’s important that we don’t lose sight of who we are at our core, both as a company, and those we work with. What should other CEO’s know about setting core values?How do core values magnetize a team as a company scales? Learn this and more in this episode of The Kingdom. Connect with us@TheKingdomPod@SolunaPower @JBelizaire66 For more information on Soluna, visit our website. Liked what you heard? Be sure to rate us *5* stars, leave a quick review, and subscribe.

The nomadic nature of bitcoin miners leads to fluctuating research on mining’s energy usage. A recent report by CoinShares, Europe’s largest digital asset manager, found that 74-78% of mining is actually powered by renewable energy. Why is this research important? As Christopher Bendiksen, the Head of Research at CoinShares, points out: educational research for prospective investors (their focus) is necessary as investment interest in cryptocurrency and mining infrastructure grows. In this episode, John Belizaire, CEO, is joined by Christopher Bendiksen to explore what it takes to conduct the research necessary to track bitcoin mining’s energy usage, the dangers of comparing Proof-of-Work with Proof-of-Stake, and what this research highlights about Soluna’s wind farm project. Connect with us + our guests@TheKingdomPod@SolunaPower @JBelizaire66@C_Bediksen@CoinSharesCoLiked what you heard? Be sure to rate us *5* stars, leave a quick review, and subscribe. Check out our blog, Clean Integration, on Medium for more or visit us at soluna.io

Sometimes, transitioning out of more traditional business sectors into a startup can feel like a second life. Paths to entrepreneurship vary for each person, but they all share one thing: the entrepreneurial mindset. In this week's episode of The Kingdom, CTO Dip Patel sits down with Carly Chase, the Managing Director of MIT's NYC Startup Studio and co-founder of Crabwalk. They about their experiences at MIT together, taking a chance on a startup, and the skills they've acquired through entrepreneurship.They answer:What are key skills of operating in a startup?What is crab-walking? How is it beneficial for your career path?What are the common misconceptions about entrepreneurship?Connect with us + our guests@TheKingdomPod@SolunaPower @DipulP@CarlyChaseLiked what you heard? Be sure to rate us *5* stars, leave a quick review, and subscribe. Check out our blog, Clean Integration, on Medium for more or visit us at soluna.io

“You’re seeing a quilt of different [energy] solutions... In many ways, Africa is leading in this thinking…” - Andrew Smith-Maxwell, Managing Director of FieldstoneAs an independent investment bank, Fieldstone focuses on renewable energy in Africa and other parts of the world. In this episode, VP of Corporate Development, Phillip Ng, and Andrew Smith-Maxwell, the Managing Director of Fieldstone, connect from across the pond to discuss the phases of power development in Africa, and answer: What are driving investments in Africa?How is the demand for power changing as electrification comes to Africa?How is doing business in Africa different from other places in the world?Connect with us @TheKingdomPod and @SolunaPower Liked what you heard? Be sure to rate us *5* stars, leave a quick review, and subscribe. Check out our blog, Clean Integration, on Medium for more or visit us at soluna.io

The blockchain community, as CEO John Belizaire remarks, is diverse in the sense that people come from different backgrounds and apply this technology to a wide variety of use cases. Still, there is something missing. Ashley Capuzzi, VP of Marketing at Soluna, says “there’s so much diversity, but no women!” Today women make up less than 20% of US jobs in technology. But, as Karen Ottoni, the Director of Ecosystem at Hyperledger, puts it, women are more aware now that there’s an issue in their lack of representation, they want to do something different, and they’re starting the conversation. Why aren’t there more women in blockchain? What about blockchain, or technology in general, facilitates a lack of inclusivity? How are the women in blockchain ensuring that they’re being heard? In this episode, John, Ashley, and Karen discuss the barriers to entry for women in technology, how Karen became involved with Hyderledger, and the importance of companies being sustainable.Connect with us + our guests@TheKingdomPod@SolunaPower @JBelizaire66Liked what you heard? Be sure to rate us *5* stars, leave a quick review, and subscribe. Check out our blog, Clean Integration, on Medium for more or visit us at soluna.io