Mascoma finally realizes going public is not a good idea
A startup hoping to make cellulosic ethanol finally pulls its IPO plans after a year and a half. The real question is why did it ever file to go public? Read more »
Solar thermal startup eSolar still out there and raising $30M
Remember eSolar, the solar thermal startup incubated by Idealab, and backed by Google.org, GE, and others? It’s still here and trying to raise a $30 million round, of which it’s close almost half. Read more »
Silver Spring targets Asia’s smart grids with Singapore deal
Silver Spring Networks has scored a deal with a Singapore utility as its first win in Asia. The company hopes other utilities in Asia will follow, given the region is supposed to have significant growth coming. Read more »
The state of cleantech venture capital: what lies ahead
Cleantech VC is receding because of poor short-term performance – no surprise in a post-bubble field with outsized time and money requirements. The category is about to go on a walk in the woods, where innovators will blaze a new trail. Read more »
Introducing new solar gear that could change the game
A new solar inverter has been developed by a quiet startup called Empower Micro Systems, which could land on the market by the end of the year. The company’s CCO says the tech could disrupt the landscape. Read more »
Kleiner Perkins backs energy comparison startup Choose Energy
A startup called Choose Energy is offering consumers a comparison shopping site for electricity in deregulated markets, and is building tools to help retail energy providers acquire customers. The company raised a series A round from Kleiner and Stephens Capital. Read more »
Will NRG Energy be the next ten ton gorilla in solar leases?
If NRG Energy starts offering solar leasing options to home owners and small businesses, it would represent the mainstreaming of solar roofs and also likely disrupt the current sector filled with a variety of smaller players. Read more »
China’s coal plants are squeezing its water supply
China’s growing number of power plants are putting pressure on the country’s water resources like never before. Read more »
The real breakthrough of Google Glass: controlling the internet of things
photo: Flickr/Thomas Hawk
Many of the first apps for Google Glass will be about consuming and sharing content on the go. But what if Google Glass could unlock control over the world of the Internet of Things both inside and outside the home? Read more »
How energy data will impact the smart grid
GigaOM Pro analyst Adam Lesser’s latest report on the opportunities for big data and the smart grid. Read more »
Apple now powering its cloud with solar panels, fuel cells (photos)
Apple’s massive solar panel and fuel cell farm are now live and providing clean power for its huge data center in Maiden, North Carolina. By the end of the year 60 percent of the power for the data center will come from these sources. Read more »
CalPERS CIO: Cleantech has been a noble way to lose money
The California Public Employees’ Retirement System, which is the country’s largest pension fund, has put close to a billion dollars into cleantech over the past five years and says it’s only returned a tenth of that capital. Yikes. Read more »
The art of the spectacular and public crash and burn
photo: Photo courtesy of amboo who?
The headline-blaring, jaw-dropping tech company crash and burn doesn’t happen all that often. But when it does, you can count on there being some similarities in leadership, transparency, and hype. Read more »
Beyond the Like button: Putting social networks to work for us
photo: Albert Chau
While using machine learning over large data sets to serve up ads inside social networks isn’t new, there’s an era emerging where social network data can be used to help people solve important problems. Read more »
A Chinese solar giant goes bankrupt, and why that’s a good thing
Beleagured Chinese solar giant, Suntech Power, was once the largest solar maker in the world. This week the company was forced into bankruptcy. But it’s not all bad news. Read more »
Westly Group raises a $160M (gasp) cleantech fund
One of the few investors to make money from backing cleantech startups, The Westly Group has finally closed on a $160 million cleantech fund. Read more »
Next-gen biofuels making slow, slow, slow progress in 2013
Companies that are still looking to produce biofuels from plant waste (and not corn) are making slow, but steady progress on milestones in 2013. Read more »
An accelerator emerges as one of the most active cleantech VCs
As cleantech investing continues to evolve, an accelerator focused on cleanweb startups is dropping its accelerator program in favor of becoming a venture capital firm with an in-house design studio. Read more »
Obama starts unveiling his plans for climate change, clean energy
President Obama starts to show his hand for how he’ll keep support going for clean energy and greener vehicles, and also fight climate change, at a time when Congress won’t likely approval major budget increases or aggressive policies. Read more »
There’s high trust in clean power despite the negative headlines
Contrary to the politics and headlines of the day, clean energy is a relatively trusted sector, and companies should be leveraging that good faith to lead. Read more »
The tech industry doubles down on design in 2013
Internet giants, investors and web and mobile startups are placing even more emphasis on design and user experience in 2013. Read more »
2012 was a record-breaking year for solar panels in the US
Solar panels are breaking through into the mainstream. Last year there were a record-breaking amount of panels installed on rooftops in the U.S. making solar the fastest growing source of energy in the U.S. Read more »
3 hurdles for Japan’s gas “discovery”
photo: Shunkoh
Dreaming and doing are far apart. Here’s three potential problems — from environmental containment to economics to infrastructure — for mining natural gas from the sea in Japan. Read more »
5 reasons why a successful Silver Spring IPO is important
Smart grid company Silver Spring Networks held a relatively successful IPO on Wednesday. Here’s 5 reasons why I think that was important for the smart grid, and for cleantech. Read more »
Fisker founder Henrik Fisker resigns over disagreements
The co-founder of electric car startup Fisker has resigned, after having stepped down as CEO a year ago. The company has stopped production of its cars as it searches for a partner, investor or acquirer in China. Read more »
Silver Spring Networks’ stock jumps up close to 30% in debut
Smart grid company Silver Spring Networks saw its shares soar almost 30 percent in morning trading on its public debut on the New York Stock Exchange. The stock is settling around $21 per share, up from a pricing of $17 per share. Read more »
Silver Spring Networks prices boosted IPO, raises $81M
Silver Spring Networks prices its IPO at the midpoint of its planned range, but ends up selling a million more shares, leading the company to raise $81 million. The smart grid company debuts on the New York Stock Exchange today under the symbol SSNI. Read more »
Silver Spring Networks IPO expected on Wednesday
Silver Spring Network’s IPO could be as early as Wednesday (yep tomorrow). It’s been a year and a half since Silver Spring first filed to go public. Read more »
A Google Glass app I want made: carbon emissions viewer
photo: Image courtesy of Google.
Google is showing off samples of the first apps made by companies for its new augmented reality device Google Glass, including apps to read headlines, email and see photos. But this is the app I really want: augmented reality to overlay carbon emissions data. Read more »
Canadian natural gas giant Encana backs Alphabet Energy
Startup Alphabet Energy, which makes materials out of silicon that convert heat into electricity, has raised a $16 million series B round led by Canadian natural gas company Encana. Read more »
Tesla delays production of Model X electric car to the end of 2014
Tesla has quietly pushed back production of its third electric car, the SUV/minivan, the Model X. The car is important for the company and signals to the world that Tesla is an automaker with a line of cars that appeals to a broader demographic. Read more »
Elon Musk on his one regret from the NYT incident, spaceship scares & Russian missiles
In a wide ranging interview at the SXSW festival in Austin on Saturday, entrepreneur Elon Musk talked about his crazy life bringing the world life on Mars, electric cars, and solar rooftops. Read more »
The internet of weird things at SXSW: smart porta potties, light books and a robot zen gardener
At the official kick-off party for SXSW, Frog Design created an installation around unusual objects embedded with technology, creating an Internet of truly weird things. Read more »
The King of 3D printing kicks off a SXSW focused on the physical world
The annual SXSW Interactive festival kicked off on Friday with a call to makers, designers, and creators to build devices and hardware. In a new twist, the physical world is outshining the virtual one. Read more »
The problems with righteous investing
One of the more subtle problems with the first wave of cleantech investing I think has to do with passion, identity and save-the-world over exuberance. It’s hard to call that a fault, but when it comes to making money in the VC model, it’s a problem. Read more »
Rethinking the humble lead acid battery with chip and disk drive machines
photo: Public Domain Photos
Using chip and hard disc drive manufacturing processes, startup Gridtential is rethinking the simple lead acid battery to be able to store more energy and be lower cost. The company just got a seed round from The Roda Group to move closer to commercialization. Read more »
Despite major growth, SolarCity shares drop on Q4 loss
Now that SolarCity is publicly-traded it’s got the quarterly numbers game to play. In its first earnings report post-IPO SolarCity’s shares drop on quarter loss. Read more »
Remember the artificial leaf? Startup turns to making a flow battery instead
Say goodbye to the much-hyped artificial leaf from MIT-spin out Sun Catalytix. According to MIT Tech Review the startup is now building a flow battery, which is a major change in strategy for the venture capital and Department of Energy-backed company. Read more »
Cree launches an LED bulb for under $10
The LED chip and component maker has launched a line of low cost LEDs that it thinks could be a game-changer for consumers buying LED bulbs. The cheapest retails for under $10. Read more »
Mahindra Reva not giving up on hopes for Indian electric car market (gulp)
The almost two decade old electric car company Reva hasn’t given up on the electric car market in India, despite super slow sales of its original car. Now backed by Mahindra, Reva plans to launch a new electric hatchback called the E20. Read more »
