Startup Series: Quaise Energy

Today's guest is Carlos Araque, co-founder and CEO of Quaise Energy. Quaise is seeking to unlock the power of geothermal energy by drilling into deeper and hotter parts of the earth than ever, using microwave-based technology rather than traditional mechanical drill bits. Carlos has a fascinating background; he grew up in Medellin, Colombia, during the turbulent 1980s and 1990s, matriculated to MIT, and then found himself working in oil and gas for a while before transitioning to geothermal and Quaise. In this episode, Carlos walks us through how geothermal energy is harnessed today and what has held it back from a scale perspective. He also offers a unique futurist point of view that there are only three forms of energy that have the potential to offer abundant clean energy to humanity at scale on a multi-decade or century-scale timeframe: fission, fusion, and deep geothermal. From his perspective, the energy density profiles of wind and solar relative to their land use requirements will eventually cause them to hit limitations. If you’re curious about geothermal but need a primer on how it works, this one eases into the topic by going into the state of geothermal today, then spending some time on Quaise's tech solution and business model. We conclude by getting Carlos' take on the future of energy. Enjoy the show!