Inevitable

In this live episode of Inevitable from Climate Week NYC, Cody Simms explores the history and future of the electric grid with Ben Eidelson of Stepchange.
Eidelson traces the evolution of the grid from J.P. Morgan and Pearl Street through the AC/DC debate, the rise of utilities, and Samuel Insull’s development of a scalable utility business model. The conversation then connects that history to today’s grid challenges, including transmission constraints, rapidly growing data center loads, batteries, renewable energy, and the need to modernize the infrastructure connecting increasingly digital and DC-based resources to the grid.
Episode recorded on September 22, 2026 (Published on October 16, 2026).
In this episode, we cover:
(0:00) An overview of Stepchange
(3:23) J.P. Morgan and the origins of the U.S. electric grid
(5:55) The AC vs. DC battle and the rise of the modern transmission system
(10:46) Samuel Insull and the utility business model
(13:55) How the grid scaled through consolidation, interconnection, and wartime demand
(19:07) Why transmission is central to connecting resources and load
(20:53) Three ways to create more capacity from the existing grid
(23:14) Data centers and the return of large, concentrated loads
(25:35) The history of batteries and their role in the future grid
(30:44) Why transformers need to evolve for a more digital, DC-based grid
(33:12) Electricity markets, data centers, and new generation
(35:33) The changing economics of coal, gas, wind, solar, and batteries

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*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant

Jeff Lawson is the co-founder and CEO of Inertia, a fusion energy company working to commercialize inertial confinement fusion using advanced lasers and mass-manufactured fusion fuel targets. Lawson previously co-founded and led Twilio, scaling the company from an idea into a public company, and is now applying his product and company-building experience to one of energy’s most technically challenging problems.
In this live episode of Inevitable from Climate Week NYC, Lawson explains why he believes the breakthrough at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory demonstrated that the fundamental physics of fusion can work, while the remaining challenge is largely one of commercialization, manufacturing, and scale.
The conversation explores how Inertia is approaching the laser and fusion-target supply chains, why Lawson believes factory economics can transform the cost of fusion, and how lessons from software, semiconductors, SpaceX, and consumer technology are influencing the company’s approach to experimentation and manufacturing.
Special thanks to J.P. Morgan for hosting the live taping of this episode in their new space on Park Ave.
Episode recorded on September 22, 2026 (Published on October 14, 2026).
In this episode, we cover:
(0:00) An overview of Inertia
(2:28) Applying product thinking to fusion energy
(4:41) Building a culture of experimentation and learning
(7:05) Why “blow it up already” became an Inertia value
(9:11) How Jeff Lawson got into fusion
(11:20) What Inertia is building
(12:36) The basics of inertial confinement fusion
(14:14) Why the Lawrence Livermore laser isn't economical for commercial power
(14:47) Modernizing fusion lasers with semiconductor technology
(17:10) Scaling the laser diode supply chain
(19:41) The challenge of manufacturing fusion targets
(20:58) Applying mass manufacturing to fusion targets
(23:33) Designing a fusion power plant for utility buyers
(25:24) Fusion, AI data centers, and the timeline to new power
(26:47) Fusion as an energy source for industry and global markets
(28:09) What fusion could look like in 2050
(29:32) Why factory economics could shape the future of energy


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*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant

Charlie Nitschelm is the co-founder and CEO of Uplift, a company building affordable, rapidly deployable temporary housing. Uplift’s first product is a 90-square-foot, off-grid home designed for one to two people that can be transported fully assembled, placed with a standard forklift, and self-level without a foundation or skilled labor for deployment.
In this episode of Inevitable, Nitschelm explains how his experience at SpaceX and Starlink, followed by an intensive period of studying homelessness, poverty, and other social challenges, led him to think about housing as a problem that could benefit from a fundamentally different architecture.
The conversation explores how Uplift is designed to work immediately after deployment, including its approach to power, water, sanitation, connectivity, and remote monitoring. Nitschelm also discusses the company's manufacturing ambitions and its potential applications in workforce housing, disaster response, global shipping, ADUs, and affordable housing developments.
Episode recorded on September 15, 2026 (Published on September 29, 2026)
In this episode, we cover:
(0:00) An overview of Uplift
(1:38) Charlie’s path from SpaceX and Starlink to Uplift
(3:57) Learning about homelessness, poverty, and other social challenges
(8:22) Why housing needs a fundamentally different architecture
(12:00) Why eliminating skilled labor is central to Uplift’s design
(16:49) Forklift deployment and off-grid utilities
(23:33) Starlink, solar power, and building a connected fleet
(25:03) Applying car manufacturing principles to housing
(28:07) Workforce housing and infrastructure projects
(32:16) Why disaster housing can take months to deploy
(34:12) Global shipping, ADUs, and affordable housing applications
(37:04) “Speed to sleeping” and the economics of temporary housing
(39:58) Uplift’s manufacturing ramp and the path to HUD approval

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Cody Simms on LinkedIn
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*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant

Michael Thomas is the founder and CEO of Cleanview, a data and research platform tracking more than 10,000 clean energy projects and thousands of data center projects across the country. Back for his third appearance on Inevitable, Thomas has spent the past year investigating the explosive growth of AI infrastructure and the increasingly extreme measures companies are taking to get power online.
In this episode of Inevitable, Thomas explains how the AI boom has transformed the data center market and why companies are increasingly building their own power generation rather than waiting years for grid interconnection. He breaks down the rise of off-grid and “behind-the-meter” data centers, including xAI’s Colossus, Meta’s rapid-deployment data centers, and Amazon’s massive natural gas project in Texas.
The conversation also explores the economics driving the race to power, the environmental and political backlash against data centers, and whether building gas generation today will accelerate or undermine the transition to cleaner energy. Thomas shares what his research reveals about electricity prices, water use, local pollution, and the growing public distrust of Big Tech.
Finally, Thomas discusses the tension between AI growth, U.S. competitiveness, and climate goals—and why he sees providing objective information about these projects as one of the most important roles he can play.
Episode recorded on September 2, 2026 (Published on September 16, 2026)

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*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant

Alan Cooper is co-founder and CEO of ON.energy, a Miami-based company building battery-backed power systems for AI data centers. Its flagship product, AI UPS, sits between the grid and a data center, creating a buffer that isolates the grid from the massive volatility of AI workloads while providing uninterrupted power to the entire campus.

In this episode of Inevitable, Cooper explains how a career spanning oil and gas, geothermal, battery storage, and grid services ultimately led to ON.energy's focus on AI infrastructure. He breaks down why gigawatt-scale AI data centers create a fundamentally different challenge for the grid, and how ON.energy's series-connected battery architecture can act as an electrical "firewall" between the grid, onsite generation, and the data center.

The conversation explores ON.energy's evolution from a battery storage project developer into a technology company, its proprietary hardware and software stack, and the role of power controls in making massive data center projects more resilient and easier to interconnect. Cooper also discusses the company's path to market, extensive technical validation, business model, and largely bootstrapped approach to growth.

Finally, Cooper argues that data centers don't have to be a liability for the grid. With the right infrastructure and regulatory framework, he believes they can become active grid participants—and potentially make the energy system more robust.

Episode recorded on August 26, 2026 (Published on September 8, 2026).

In this episode, we cover:

(0:00) An overview of ON.energy

(2:24) Alan's background in oil and gas, geothermal, and battery storage

(5:57) Alan's perspective on Venezuela and enhanced oil recovery

(10:35) How the 2014 oil crash led to ON.energy

(12:25) ON.energy's evolution from battery storage developer to technology company

(15:32) Traditional BESS vs. AI UPS

(16:15) How AI UPS creates a buffer between the grid and data centers

(17:20) Why AI data centers create unique challenges for the grid

(20:16) Using AI UPS with onsite generation and off-grid power

(21:41) How ON.energy can simplify data center interconnection

(23:14) ON.command and the importance of software controls

(24:15) ON.energy's proprietary hardware architecture

(25:35) Building supply-chain certainty at massive scale

(27:25) ON.energy's path from resiliency projects to AI infrastructure

(29:03) Battery storage as the "Swiss army knife" of the electric sector

(30:01) Technical validation at the Department of Energy's Flatirons Campus

(31:56) ON.energy's business model

(34:31) Why AI's large-load problem is here to stay

(35:52) AI training vs. inference and the future of data center infrastructure

(38:12) Why AI infrastructure can create American jobs

(39:27) Building ON.energy through bootstrapping and disciplined capital allocation

(41:48) Turning data centers into grid assets

Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a review! Share feedback or suggest future topics and guests at info@ovr.vc.
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Cody Simms on LinkedIn
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*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant