The world needs more and better innovation to solve climate, waste, and health problems in an increasingly tumultuous and uncertain world - not just the latest app, gadget, or software, but real deeptech innovation in energy, manufacturing, agrifood, resources, and more. In this podcast sustainable innovation experts Anthony Schiavo, Mike Holman, Karthik Subramanian, Amy Huras, and Alina Strugut from Lux Research analyze the latest news and interview world leading experts to navigate the technological, economic, political, and social trends that will determine what innovations succeed or fail.
The opinions expressed are those of the hosts and guests, and do not reflect the views of Lux Research.
Amy Huras and Karthik Subramanian discuss new right to repair laws that are proliferating across America. They promise better access to electronics repair, but will consumers really take advantage? Plus, Google's new "clean firm" tariff: more greenwashing or a genuine solution?
The ADVANCE act didn't just update regulations for conventional nuclear - it also solidified a new regulatory regime for fusion energy. Andrew Holland, the CEO of the Fusion Industry Association, returns to Innovation Matters to discuss how the ADVANCE act passed, its impacts, and what the future holds for fusion energy.
Alina, Anthony, Mike, and Karthik discuss the passage of the ADVANCE act, which sets out to create a new regulatory regime for nuclear power in America. Then, the discussion turns to nostalgia as a commercial force, and why exactly companies are selling bizarre flavor mashups of beloved products.
Lux's CPO Arij van Berkel joins Alina, Karthik, and Anthony to offer a glimpse into the European process for funding cleantech. Arij fills us in on the early stage projects that are getting funded, the missing links in the EU innovation ecosystem, and the future of the innovation sector.
Mike, Karthik, Amy, and Anthony take stock of the recent progress (or lack thereof) in the US hydrogen industry, and break down efforts to provide supply chain transparency in sustainable textiles. Features the Celtics, fit checks, EU vs US policy, blockchain, and more. Programming note: the interview portion of the podcast will now be released separately - look for that in a new weekly episode on Thursdays.
Karthik, Anthony, Mike, and new recurring co-host Alina Strugut, Director of Research at Lux, talk about why Apple Intelligence has failed to resonate with consumers. Then, ZeroAvia CEO Val Miftakhov joins Karthik and Mike to discuss how hydrogen aviation may be closer to launch than you think.
Mike, Anthony, and Karthik are joined by new recurring host Amy Huras, Director of Research at Lux, to unpack how the new class of GLP-1 drugs will impact the production of food. Will your local pizza place survive? Plus, Massachusetts' plan to become a climate tech powerhouse.
Anthony, Karthik, and Mike sound off on a recent Florida law banning offshore wind, and then are joined by Dr. George Lavidas, Professor of Marine Renewable Energies at TU Delft, to learn about the future of wave and tidal energy.
Mike, Anthony, and Karthik catch up on the chemicals industry, then are joined by the Nuclear Energy Institute's Executive Director of Strategy and Policy Development Matthew Crozat to discuss the state of nuclear power in 2024.
REUPLOADED WITH CORRECT AUDIO. Mike and Anthony are joined by Lux's Chris Robinson and Naveen Krishnamurthy to break down the new US tariffs on Chinese goods. The headline numbers are startling - a 100% tariff on EVs - but will these new duties really make a difference?
Mike and Anthony talk about the seeming slowdown of generative AI improvement and the future of US EV charging. Then, Citrine's Head of Product Florencia Paredes joins to discuss what materials informatics and AI really mean for the chemicals industry and sustainability.
Mike, Karthik, and Anthony catch up on the news - including the UN, wind energy, and the eternal Yankees vs Mets debate, and then are joined by Ourobio's co-founder Alec Brewer to dig into the opportunities for synthetic biology in the circular economy of plastics.
Mike and Karthik catch up on the news, from rain in Dubai to new nuclear power. Isabella Palmgren, co-founder of Mimbly, joins to discuss their efforts to scale up solutions to microplastic pollution.
Lux Analyst Tiffany Hua joins Karthik and Anthony to discuss the recent bankruptcy of Renewcell, a leading textile recycler - and where the textile recycling industry goes from here.
Karthik, Anthony, and Mike discuss Amazon's failed Just Walk Out technology, and then are joined by NobleAI's Sunil Sanghavi and Ethan Mirsky to unpack the impact of AI on the chemicals industry.
Lux's Mukunda Kaushik joins Anthony and Mike to dig into everything carbon economy: how will direct air capture make money? What's the best use for methanol? And how can the commercial airline industry ever become sustainable?
Cheryl Auger, Senior Director at Lux Research, joins Anthony and Mike to talk about everything from AI to Ozempic to Stanley Cups, and discuss how AI anthropology can give us a richer view into consumer trends and fads.
Mike, Anthony, and Karthik take on TikTok, Shien, and the IRS before being joined by Agilitas founder Tommy Hayes to talk about the uses of AI in food science.
Mike, Anthony, and Karthik discuss SEC regulations and nuclear power, then are joined by C-Zero's President and CEO Zach Jones to discuss where methane pyrolysis fits in the energy transition.
Karthik, Mike, and Anthony dive back into the world of the energy transition. Can energy players size on emerging technologies, or are they doomed to play catch-up?
Anthony, Mike, and Karthik try to figure out the future of plastics recycling, industrial policy, and why policy is currently, you know, like this.
Karthik, Mike, and Anthony take a deep dive on the Apple Vision Pro, and then are joined by Landmark Ventures' Isaac Brown to unpack the real opportunities for AI and technology in manufacturing.
Claire Weiller, head of Product and Partnerships at Fermata Energy, joins Anthony, Mike, and Karthik to discuss how electric vehicles can act as energy storage for the grid.
Karthik, Anthony, and Mike catch up on the news and learn about the one simple fix that will solve the issue of ESG. For more insights on innovation, check out the Lux Research Blog .
Safia Qureshi, founder and CEO of CLUBZERØ, joins Karthik, Mike, and Anthony to discuss the pitfalls and opportunities for returnable packaging.
Mike, Karthik, and Anthony discuss a growing controversy around undersea mining, and are joined by the cofounder and CEO of Unibloom Anna Sandgren to learn more about the growing world of sustainability data platforms. Corportation need good data to make sustainability decisions - but it takes a lot more than that to bring real sustainability efforts to life.
Lux's Chief Product Officer Arij Van Berkel joins Anthony, Mike, and Karthik to discuss the year ahead. With interest rates on the rise, funding for start-ups down, and governments rolling out more aggressive innovation policy, the old paradigm of open innovation is increasingly falling by the wayside. Dr. Van Berkel sees a shift to shared innovation, with serious ramifications for everyone trying to scale sustainable technology.
Ammonia is one of the hottest innovation topics in the energy sector, but there's still doubt about its long-term role in the sustainable transition. Mike, Karthik, and Anthony are joined by Jacob Grose, CEO of Copernic, to discuss the future of low carbon ammonia and how innovation can drive decarbonization in energy and industrial applications.
2023 is officially in the books, and the official Innovation Matters take is that the vibes were kinda off. Will the questionable vibes continue in 2024? Karthik, Mike, and Anthony make predictions for what's to come in 2024, touching on critical minerals, VC investing, grid reliability, and the ongoing climate crisis.
With 2024 rapidly approaching, Mike, Karthik, and Anthony reflect on the top technologies of 2023. Which technologies were the winners? What's Anthony's go-to McDonald's order? All this and more: from nuclear energy to reusable packaging, the team highlights the most important technology shifts from 2023.
