Everyone loves to talk about the “broken grid.” But if you look inside a utility’s planning and operations functions, a different picture emerges: infrastructure that is remarkably reliable, built and run by engineers solving impossibly complex problems with often outdated tools.
In this episode, Shayle Kann sits down with Josh Wong, CEO and founder of ThinkLabs AI, a company building physics-informed AI for utility planning and operations. They break down how utility studies get built today, the data cleanup headaches, the silos between teams, and the “worst case” mentality that drives an overbuild of infrastructure.
Shayle and Josh discuss:
Why utility planning is split into silos across transmission, distribution, and DER planning.
The gap between studies that identify grid problems and the work of actually solving them.
What “physics-informed AI” actually means.
The shift from AI that identifies problems to AI that actually solves them.
The disconnect between utility planning and real-time operations.
Should data center microgrids be treated as micro utilities?
Resources:
Latitude Media: GE spinout ThinkLabs has a new copilot offering for the grid
Latitude Media: Do microgrids make sense for data centers?
Latitude Media: The case against relying on behind-the-meter power for data centers
Latitude Media: Unpacking DOE's proposal to transform data center interconnection
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.
This episode of Catalyst is brought to you by ENGIE, the smarter energy supplier. ENGIE doesn't just provide the power to run your business — they supply the energy to move it forward, with reliable, flexible solutions built for what's next. Learn more at engieresources.com.
Catalyst is brought to you by EnergyHub. Peak season puts every grid to the test — and the utilities that pass are the ones that built flexible capacity before they needed it. EnergyHub works with more than 170 utilities to coordinate 2.5 million devices and 3.4 gigawatts of dispatchable flexibility through a single platform designed to perform when it counts most. See what that looks like at EnergyHub.com.
Catalyst is brought to you by Bloom Energy. Bloom Energy fuel cells deliver affordable, ultra-reliable onsite power for hospitals, utilities, and data centers – at speed and at scale. Learn more by visiting BloomEnergy.com.
