The Energy Switch

The energy industry is changing, and it’s far more than just solar panels. Electric vehicles look to overtake gasoline-powered cars within our lifetimes, wind farms are popping up in unlikely places, traders are transforming energy into a commodity, and supercomputers are crunching vast amounts of data in nanoseconds while helping to keep our energy grids secure from hackers.

The way humans produce, distribute and consume power will be cleaner, cheaper, and infinitely more complex within the next decade. In The Energy Switch, leading energy industry expert Peter Kelly-Detwiler looks at all aspects of the transformation: how we got here, where we are going, and the implications for all of us in our daily lives.

Kelly-Detwiler takes readers to the frontlines of the energy revolution. Meet Rob Threlkeld, a General Motors executive who convinced the auto giant to sign multiple 20-year renewable energy contracts worth hundreds of millions; Brian Janous, the Microsoft executive responsible for greening up the cloud; and Kathy Loftus, who helps Whole Foods save power. CEO John Carrington introduces readers to his battery storage company that uses artificial intelligence to tell his batteries what to do and when to do it. Join a technician who climbs 300-foot wind towers in the Texas panhandle to make sure their blades keep spinning, and get in the car for a 400-mile road trip with Cathy Zoi and Julie Blunden as they lay the groundwork for their electric vehicle charging company.

Energy creation and distribution has driven society’s progress for centuries. Now, people are increasingly aware that it is imperative that humans move towards a cleaner, digitized, and democratized energy economy. The Energy Switch is about that transformation, told from the perspective of those leading us to that bright future.