Smart Meters, Dumb Rules, and Why AI is the New Electrification, with Felix Krause of Vireo Ventures

Another ClimateTech Podcast

Felix Krause is the Managing Partner at Vireo Ventures, a European VC fund betting that the future of energy is electric, distributed, and intelligently managed. Based in Berlin, Felix brings sector-specific clarity to the sprawling world of climate investing and makes a strong case for why electrons, not moonshots, will define the next great energy transition.

In this episode we talked about:

🔋 Why electrification isn’t just inevitable—it’s the most capital-efficient climate solution on offer
🔄 What "sector coupling" means, and how heat pumps, EVs, and industry can all talk to each other
🧠 Why AI is the new electrification, and how it makes an increasingly complex energy system legible
⚡ The distributed grid, smart meters, and how regulation is slowing everything down
🔐 Why cybersecurity for backyard solar systems might be our next national security crisis
🔌 The dark horses of climatetech: agrivoltaics and bi-directional EV charging

#climatetech #electrification #energytransition #VC

👨‍💻 Hiring developers? You need to look at Ukraine, where I've been hiring exclusively since 2018. Set up a no-stress needs assessment at wild.codes/climate. Podcast listeners get $1k off their first hire.

📈 B2B content to create and capture leads: book 30 minutes with Tom for free at grizzle.io/climate

🧑‍💼 Growing your team across Europe? Grab a free consultation and hire without hassle: parakar.eu/climate

챕터

1. Sector Coupling in an Electrified World (00:00:00)

2. AI's Crucial Role in Energy Systems (00:09:39)

3. Distributed vs. Centralized Energy Models (00:14:58)

4. Making Energy Systems Legible with AI (00:24:33)

5. Cybersecurity Risks in Distributed Systems (00:27:36)

6. Underhyped Innovations: Agrivoltaics and EVs (00:30:07)

7. Building Successful Climate Tech Startups (00:35:15)