Earthlings 2.0 Podcast

In this episode of Earthlings 2.0, we chat with Venk Varadan, CEO and co-founder of Nanowear, to discuss how wearable medical technology is redefining diagnostics, prevention, and clinical research. Venk explains how Nanowear’s FDA-approved textile-based nanosensors enable cardiometabolic assessments at home, capturing richer, more personalized data than traditional, episodic doctor visits. The conversation spans the limitations of today’s healthcare system, the role of AI and clean data in early diagnosis, and how decentralized monitoring could lower costs, improve equity, and reshape the future of medicine.
Key Points:
From reactive to preventative care – Continuous, at-home monitoring can surface early warning signs before chronic disease progresses, addressing a system that currently profits more from treatment than prevention.
Textile-based sensors unlock richer health data – Nanowear’s cloth nanosensors capture heart, lung, vascular, and metabolic signals simultaneously, without invasive prep or bulky equipment.
Clinical research is a near-term catalyst – Remote diagnostics can lower trial costs, reduce patient dropouts, and dramatically expand participation across more diverse populations.

Venk Varadan, CEO and co-founder of Nanowear, LinkedIn

Lisa Ann Pinkerton, Earthlings 2.0 Host, CEO of Technica Communications, and Founder of Women in Cleantech and Sustainability, LinkedIn

🚀 Calling all Earthlings…
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In this episode of Earthlings 2.0, we speak with longtime renewable energy journalist Mitchell Beer, founder and publisher of The Energy Mix, about the widening gap between political promises to supercharge fossil fuel production and the financial reality facing oil and gas companies today. We explore why fossil fuel companies, despite political pressure, can’t return to unchecked expansion, how global markets from China to Pakistan are rewriting the demand outlook for oil and gas, and why North America is falling behind countries that have embraced electrification as a strategic advantage. Mitchell also unpacks Canada’s evolving energy politics and whether he sees reason for optimism in a decade defined by climate emergencies and rapid technological change.
We also discussed several stories that his team covered this year, including:
Oil Companies, Investors Talk Down Trump’s ‘Drill, Baby, Drill’ as Prices Stay Low, Exploration Budgets Shrink
Where Are the Customers? Why the Idea of a Pipeline to Asia Is Built on a Fantasy

Key Points:
Investor pressure is reshaping the future of fossil fuels – Even with political support, oil and gas companies cannot revive large-scale drilling because investors are prioritizing clean energy, stability, and long-term value over new fossil expansion.
Clean energy now attracts roughly twice the investment of fossil fuels – According to the International Energy Agency, global capital is flowing toward renewables, storage, and efficiency technologies, reflecting their falling costs and proven ability to scale.
Momentum for clean tech is strong, but timing is critical – Mitchell emphasizes that the climate crisis is severe, yet not predetermined. Progress since the Paris Agreement shows what's possible, but the outcome depends on accelerating solutions and resisting disinformation.

Mitchell Beer, Founder and Publisher of The Energy Mix, LinkedIn

Luis de Leon, Earthlings 2.0 Guest Host, Sr. Public Relations Account Executive at Technica Communications

🚀 Calling all Earthlings…
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In this episode of Earthlings 2.0, we talk with Cole Ashman, founder and CEO of Pila Energy, about a new class of home energy storage designed for the way people actually live today. While grids around the world face increasing strain from extreme weather, aging infrastructure, and rising electricity demand, from AI data centers to air conditioning, most households still lack affordable, accessible backup power. Pila aims to change that with a plug-in, room-by-room battery system that installs in minutes, works like a mesh network, and brings resilience to renters and homeowners alike.
Key Points:
Grid outages are accelerating globally – Extreme weather, heat waves, and rising electricity demand are straining infrastructure, while renters and low-income households often lack access to traditional backup power solutions.
Pila offers plug-in, appliance-level resilience – Instead of a single, expensive whole-home battery, Pila distributes multiple 1.6 kWh LFP batteries throughout the home, each placed where power matters most—refrigerators, home offices, sump pumps, or medical devices.
A future with billions of intelligent nodes – Cole predicts that within a decade, most buildings will have multiple distributed batteries acting as local grid resources, making the power system more resilient, flexible, and affordable.
Cole Ashman, CEO and Founder of Pila Energy
LinkedIn
Pila LinkedIn
Pila Energy's Mission: Energy Independence for All
Instagram, TikTok, X: @pilaenergy

Lisa Ann Pinkerton, Earthlings 2.0 Host, CEO of Technica Communications, and Founder of Women in Cleantech and Sustainability, LinkedIn

🚀 Calling all Earthlings…
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In this episode of Earthlings 2.0, we speak with Anthony DeOrsey, head of research at Cleantech Group, to break down the biggest forces shaping clean technology heading into 2026. Anthony explains why cleantech is better understood as a broad theme spanning energy, agriculture, materials, chemicals, transportation, and waste — and why some sectors are accelerating regardless of policy while others are feeling the impact of shifting U.S. incentives. We also discuss what we can expect to come out of Cleantech Forum North America happening on January 26 - 28 in San Diego, California. The event connects investors, corporates, and innovators to fuel the cleantech sector. There’s still time to register! For more details, click here: https://cleantech.swoogo.com/CFNA-26/begin.
Key Points:
AI-driven baseload demand is reshaping the market – Technologies like small modular reactors, geothermal, and fusion are accelerating due to market pull, not policy, with rising electricity demand driving new partnerships, PPAs, and capital flows.
Renewables face a temporary slowdown from policy shifts – The early phaseout of the ITC and PTC under OBBBA has created a short-term rush to build, followed by expected cooling, blunting the pull-through for storage but not eliminating long-term momentum.
The next frontier: reducing energy use inside data centers – Innovations in liquid cooling, direct-to-chip cooling, and advanced heat-transfer materials could become one of the most impactful ways to curb electricity demand from AI infrastructure.

Anthony DeOrsey, Head of Research at Cleantech Group, LinkedIn

Luis de Leon, Earthlings 2.0 Guest Host, Sr. Public Relations Account Executive at Technica Communications

🚀 Calling all Earthlings…
Visit our website for more episodes!
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Are you new to Earthlings 2.0 and don’t know where to get started? Check out our Life at 3C episode on our website
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In this episode of Earthlings 2.0, we sit down with Mike Hejmej, CEO and co-founder of Senpilot, to explore how AI agents can help modernize one of the world’s largest and most complex machines: the electric grid. Mike explains what AI agents actually are, how they differ from simple chatbots, and why utilities are starting to use them for everything from wildfire risk detection to regulatory research. The conversation covers how Senpilot trains AI agents, how retrieval-based models and verification layers dramatically reduce hallucinations, why utilities are both cautious and eager to adopt AI, and what the next few years might look like for grid operators who embrace (or ignore) these tools.
Key Points:
AI agents behave like digital coworkers – Instead of simple prompt-and-response tools, agents can clarify tasks, run multi-step workflows, and return with full research reports, spreadsheets, or recommendations.
Wildfire and regulatory use cases deliver immediate value – Utilities are already using AI agents to scan grid data for fire risks and to digest thousands of pages of regulatory filings, cutting months of manual work into minutes.
AI boosts capacity without replacing people – In an industry where teams are overloaded, and regulators limit hiring, agents take on the “busy work” so humans can focus on analysis, planning, and decision-making.

Mike Hejmej, CEO and co-founder of Senpilot, LinkedIn
Lisa Ann Pinkerton, Earthlings 2.0 Host, CEO of Technica Communications, and Founder of Women in Cleantech and Sustainability, LinkedIn

🚀 Calling all Earthlings…
Visit our website for more episodes!
Sign up to our newsletter for the latest news on the most exciting technology and research shaping our futures!
We want to learn more about you! It’ll take just a few moments to complete our survey. Thank you for helping us make your listening experience the best it can be!
Are you new to Earthlings 2.0 and don’t know where to get started? Check out our Life at 3C episode on our website
Thanks for tuning in! If you like what we’re doing over at Earthlings 2.0, you can support us by heading over to our Patreon Page.
Let’s stay connected! Follow Earthlings 2.0 Socials for the latest updates and news:
Follow us on

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