Rephonic
Artwork for Volts
Renewable Energy
Climate Change
Clean Energy
Inflation Reduction Act
Electric Vehicles
Solar Energy
Data Centers
California
Energy Efficiency
Batteries
Energy Storage
Clean Energy Transition
Decarbonization
Geothermal Energy
Distributed Energy Resources
Hydrogen
Environmental Justice
Carbon Emissions
China
Heat Pumps

Volts is a podcast about leaving fossil fuels behind. I've been reporting on and explaining clean-energy topics for almost 20 years, and I love talking to politicians, analysts, innovators, and activists about the latest progress in the world's most important fight. (Volts is entirely subscriber-supported. Sign up!) www.volts.wtf

PublishesTwice weeklyEpisodes423Founded5 years ago
Number of ListenersCategories
PoliticsNewsTech News

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Artwork for Volts

Latest Episodes

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.volts.wtf/subscribe

Why is clean electrification, the most exciting, dynamic, hopeful sector of the US economy, still such a 98... more

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.volts.wtf/subscribe

Conventional punditry loves the narrative that woolly-headed progressive standards over-burdened federal cl... more

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.volts.wtf/subscribe

As affluent homeowners defect to heat pumps, the massive costs of maintaining America’s aging gas pipelines... more

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.volts.wtf/subscribe

Are data centers and electrification going to break the US power grid, or are they the secret to making it ... more

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Recent Guests

Betony Jones
Labor and jobs policy expert, former DOE official
U.S. Department of Energy
Episode: A limited defense of Biden's everything-bagel industrial policy
Kristin George Bagdanov
Executive at Building Decarbonization Coalition
Building Decarbonization Coalition
Episode: How to phase out residential gas equitably
Panama Bartholomy
Executive at Building Decarbonization Coalition
Building Decarbonization Coalition
Episode: How to phase out residential gas equitably
Pier LaFarge
Founder and CEO of Sparkfund
Sparkfund
Episode: Sooner than you think, electricity is going to be cheap, abundant, and boring
Ben Eidelson
Climate and energy investor
West Coast investment firms (mentioned)
Episode: Telling the story of the grid
Anay Shah
Climate and energy investor
West Coast investment firms (mentioned)
Episode: Telling the story of the grid
Addison Stark
Co-founder of AtmosZero
AtmosZero
Episode: Electrifying industrial steam with heat pumps
Bruce Nordman
Research scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, focused on energy systems and network technology
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Episode: The case for using prices rather than VPPs to coordinate distributed energy
Grant Gunnison
Founder and CEO of Zero Homes
Zero Homes
Episode: Streamlining the difficult work of whole-home retrofits

Host

David Roberts
Host of Volts; leads interviews and discussions

Reviews

4.9 out of 5 stars from 1.3k ratings
  • Something’s Changing

    About 5 years ago, I remember living with a conservation mindset. Don’t forget to turn the lights off. Monitor you home’s electricity usage (and read those letters from PG&E telling you your performance relative to your neighbors!) And then something changed. Maybe it was buying an EV, or installing solar on our roof. But this mindset of “don’t use the precious electricity!” is disappearing . Sure, data centers have ripped open the reality of how much electricity we need, but maybe they came abo... more

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    LauraSJ
    United States2 months ago
  • Love this podcast

    I loved your latest podcast interview with climate activist Pete Sikora. I am from NY and losing my patience with Gov Hochul regarding clean energy matters

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Sunnycreek
    United States2 months ago
  • Superb Podcast

    I always look forward to the volts podcast. It’s quite informative, entertaining and straightforward. The recent two part episode on the proposed new city in California was just excellent and quite informative. I am very happy to financially support the show great value for dollar.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    JTHSan Diego
    United States3 months ago
  • Great, in depth info!

    I found this podcast researching balcony solar. A gem of a podcast. I recommend!

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Mindfully Healing
    United States3 months ago
  • One of my favorites

    One of the best podcasts on climate and energy I’ve found. David Roberts explains complicated topics — utilities, electrification, heat pumps, grid policy — in a way that’s clear without oversimplifying. The conversations are thoughtful and genuinely educational, and I always come away understanding why things work the way they do, not just the headlines.

    It’s informative, realistic, and surprisingly reassuring about the clean-energy transition.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Love it !!$!!
    United States4 months ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

The host fosters calm, rigorous conversations with experts across sectors.
Thoughtful guests and approachable depth that educates without oversimplifying.
High-quality, deeply informed debates on energy policy and technology.
Strong emphasis on real-world impact and policy design that could move the needle on decarbonization.

Chart Rankings

How this podcast ranks in the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube charts.

Apple Podcasts
#121
United States/News/Politics
Apple Podcasts
#109
Canada/News/Politics
Apple Podcasts
#224
United Kingdom/News/Politics
Apple Podcasts
#51
Italy/News/Politics
Apple Podcasts
#195
Australia/News/Politics
Apple Podcasts
#70
India/News/Politics

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

Sooner than you think, electricity is going to be cheap, abundant, and boring
Q: What is Capacity Connect and how does it work in Minnesota?
Capacity Connect is a distributed capacity procurement where the utility owns and operates batteries located near load (e.g., on parking lots or near churches and businesses) and rents space from hosts while the grid benefits from their dispatchability and reliability. The program emphasizes competition, local contracting, and public-benefit use, with a 5-0 approval and a framework that treats batteries as distribution infrastructure.
A limited defense of Biden's everything-bagel industrial policy
Q: Why did Davis-Bacon requirements not slow DOE-led projects, according to Betony Jones?
Because DOE developed a centralized, streamlined Davis-Bacon compliance system that centralized payroll, wage determinations, and weekly reporting, reducing the internal burden and making compliance more efficient for the agencies and firms alike.
A limited defense of Biden's everything-bagel industrial policy
Q: What was fundamentally different about Biden's approach to workforce issues compared to Obama's green jobs strategy?
Biden's approach was more demand-driven and built into a broader package that tied workforce investments directly to project execution, whereas Obama relied more on training investments with the hope workers would find jobs in the industry. Biden integrated workforce standards and community benefits into the project design to attract and retain workers from the start, creating a more coherent path from funding to labor deployment.
Telling the story of the grid
Q: What is the 'regulatory compact' and why did it matter?
It was the arrangement where the government would regulate utilities to ensure reliability and universal service in exchange for a guaranteed rate of return, enabling private capital to fund large-scale infrastructure while keeping electricity affordable.
Telling the story of the grid
Q: Why did he choose to lower prices at the retail level even as he expanded his empire?
Because lowering prices broadened the customer base, increased total sales, and, crucially, allowed the company to spread capital costs over a much larger base, ultimately driving down per-unit costs for everyone.

Audience Metrics

Listeners, social reach, demographics and more for this podcast.

Listeners per Episode
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Frequently Asked Questions About Volts

What is Volts about and what kind of topics does it cover?

This show consistently covers the clean-energy transition from multiple angles—policy, technology, finance, and real-world deployments. Episodes frequently feature conversations with researchers, policymakers, startup founders, and industry leaders about grid modernization, electrification, climate finance, and the economics of decarbonization. A standout is its willingness to push beyond headline topics, exploring practical pathways, governance, and market design that could unlock broader adoption. Listeners can expect deep dives into grid utilization, price signals, industrial electrification, and the intersection of technology with policy, all grounded in concrete case studies and expert commentary.

Where can I find podcast stats for Volts?

Rephonic provides a wide range of podcast stats for Volts. We scanned the web and collated all of the information that we could find in our comprehensive podcast database. See how many people listen to Volts and access YouTube viewership numbers, download stats, audience demographics, chart rankings, ratings, reviews and more.

How many listeners does Volts get?

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What are the audience demographics for Volts?

Rephonic provides comprehensive predictive audience data for Volts, including gender skew, age, country, political leaning, income, professions, education level, and interests. You can access these listener demographics by upgrading your account.

How many subscribers and views does Volts have?

To see how many followers or subscribers Volts has on Spotify and other platforms such as Castbox and Podcast Addict, simply upgrade your account. You'll also find viewership figures for their YouTube channel if they have one.

Which podcasts are similar to Volts?

These podcasts share a similar audience with Volts:

1. Catalyst with Shayle Kann
2. Shift Key with Robinson Meyer
3. Open Circuit
4. Energy Empire
5. Energy Gang

How many episodes of Volts are there?

Volts launched 5 years ago and published 423 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

How do I contact Volts?

Our systems regularly scour the web to find email addresses and social media links for this podcast. We scanned the web and collated all of the contact information that we could find in our podcast database. But in the unlikely event that you can't find what you're looking for, our concierge service lets you request our research team to source better contacts for you.

Where can I see ratings and reviews for Volts?

Rephonic pulls ratings and reviews for Volts from multiple sources, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Castbox, and Podcast Addict.

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Rephonic provides full transcripts for episodes of Volts. Search within each transcript for your keywords, whether they be topics, brands or people, and figure out if it's worth pitching as a guest or sponsor. You can even set-up alerts to get notified when your keywords are mentioned.

What guests have appeared on Volts?

Recent guests on Volts include:

1. Betony Jones
2. Kristin George Bagdanov
3. Panama Bartholomy
4. Pier LaFarge
5. Ben Eidelson
6. Anay Shah
7. Addison Stark
8. Bruce Nordman

To view more recent guests and their details, simply upgrade your Rephonic account. You'll also get access to a typical guest profile to help you decide if the show is worth pitching.

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