Drew Baglino

.@VantageDC just reserved over 1 GW of manufacturing capacity for Heron Link, bringing the adoption of 800 VDC power architecture for next-generation AI data centers a step closer. The @nvidia 800 VDC architecture calls for converting medium-voltage grid power directly to 800 VDC. Heron Link does just that, integrating power conversion, protection, and distribution into a single cabinet. Our agreement with @VantageDC creates a path to bring this architecture to hyperscale data center campuses. Read more: heronpower.com/news-stories/…

.@zachkirkhorn, former CFO of Tesla, has joined our board. We've also signed a $60M credit facility with @jpmorgan and @TriplePointCap. Zach has backed Heron since our Series A and brings 13 years of scaling operations and finance at Tesla, four as CFO. Read the full announcement: heronpower.com/news-stories/…

3 principles to make AI data centers good grid citizens Developed intentionally, AI data centers can help create a more resilient and affordable electric system, write officials from Heron Power, NVIDIA, Invenergy and Emerald AI. utilitydive.com/news/3-princ…

Why should an article directed at grid operators matter to you? Because there's a narrative circulating that renewables destabilize the grid. That's fundamentally untrue. The reality is that we have all the tools we need to make a grid that's just as reliable, if not more reliable, with renewables. Most of the current grid is built around generators that have a physical rotating mass with inertia. That inertia means that if one of the motors goes down, it doesn't immediately shut off, but rather takes some time to wind down. That gave time for back up power to kick in and keep the grid at a steady frequency. All of those generators were synced at ~60hz. As a result, the grid had a strong in-built heartbeat. Thanks to that, renewables like solar and wind could just piggy-back off that existing heartbeat by using grid-following inverters. Grid-following means they could just set their frequency based on the frequency set by the rotational generators. Grid-following inverters are cheaper and less complex. However, with a growing share of renewables on the grid, it's getting more difficult to maintain a steady frequency. That's because the rotational inertia is a smaller proportion of the grid and because, for example, solar panels can see large and rapid fluctuations in their power generation. That matters because the fluctuations in power lead to fluctuations in frequency. If that happens, everything on the grid falls out of sync, like a heart going into atrial fibrillation. And, like a heart needing shock paddles to get it firing again, the grid needs to be completely shut down and restarted to get everything in sync again (blackouts). The solution to that is grid-forming inverters that can set their own heartbeat and monitor the frequency of the grid to keep it at a steady 60hz. Grid-forming inverters can be used in anything that has an inverter. And even though they're more complex and expensive, like all electronics, they've gotten cheaper and better over the past few decades. Furthermore, when grid-forming inverters are paired with batteries they become a huge stabilizing force on the grid. That's because the batteries can provide massive amounts of power on a millisecond basis to counterbalance the power generation fluctuations of sources like solar. And of course, the batteries can not only stabilize power fluctuations through frequency regulation, but also provide a range of other services like back-up power and arbitraging electricity from cheap to expensive parts of the day to reduce overall electricity costs. What all this means is that renewables don't inherently destabilize the grid. No matter what mix of generation technologies we use, we just need to design it properly. If we do, the grid will not only be stable, but will provide us with cheaper electricity. The worst thing we can do is get ideological and pick winners. We need to be aware of the propaganda campaigns of the people that are trying to pick winners and people that have an ideological axe to grind. That propaganda is occurring with every single one of these technologies from coal to solar and everything in between.

250 years ago today, our country gave birth to a set of ideals that changed the world: that people could govern themselves, that progress comes to those who commit and persevere, and that no institution is above reinvention. America's founders didn't just define a nation. They created a system designed to evolve, to amend, to improve itself generation after generation. This drive to explore, innovate, and build unlocked everything that came after. Railroads gave way to highways. The telegraph to the internet. Each generation of Americans assessed the foundation they inherited and asked how to make it better. At Heron we believe our electric grid is ready for reinvention. It powers our homes and communities, the industries and institutions we rely on, and the technologies that will shape the next century. But much of the equipment underpinning it hasn't fundamentally changed in a hundred years, even while demand grows faster now than in decades. To meet the need, we at Heron endeavor to build a generational electric hardware company. A new foundation for abundant electricity, to benefit and improve the American way of life for the next 250 years. 🇺🇸

This week, @heronpower announced a $140M Series B led by Andreessen Horowitz. Founder/CEO Drew @baglino and @shaylekann explore how solid-state transformers can transform the grid into a highly optimized machine. Listen now: latitudemedia.com/news/catal…