Episode Description
Globally, we burn as much fossil fuel heating homes as we do driving cars, yet home heating rarely gets climate attention, even though it drives massive energy use, grid strain, and raises household costs.
In this episode of Hardware to Save a Planet, host Dylan Garrett speaks with Dan Yates, CEO and Chairman of Dandelion Energy, about why geothermal heat pumps may be the most overlooked solution in residential decarbonization. Dan explains how tapping the stable temperatures beneath our feet can slash home energy consumption, dramatically reduce peak electricity demand, and outperform air source heat pumps during extreme weather.
He shares how Dandelion cut system costs through builder partnerships, making geothermal viable at scale, and why utilities increasingly see it as a grid-stabilizing asset. The conversation explores how hardware innovation, smart incentives, and new business models can align to make clean, electric home heating both affordable and practical.
What you will learn:
Dan is a mission-driven entrepreneur who has dedicated his career to the environment. Dan is the CEO and Chairman at Dandelion, the largest and fastest-growing residential geothermal company in the US. He is also a board member of NRDC (the leading US environmental advocacy organization), co-owner of e-commerce company The Spice House, and an active tech investor. Previously, Dan was co-founder and CEO of energy efficiency software company Opower. Dan led Opower through a $1Bn+ IPO (NYSE:OPWR) in 2014 and its sale to Oracle in 2016. Opower has helped consumers save more than 35 terawatt hours of energy, making it a top-five residential clean energy company. Dan has been recognized as an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year, one of Fortune's 40 under 40, and a Washingtonian Tech Titan.
Episode Resources:
If you are interested in sponsoring Hardware to Save a Planet, please see our sponsorship offer here.
Previous guests include: Peter Reinhardt of Charm Industrial, Carlos Araque of Quaise, Noah McQueen of Heirloom, Areeb Malik of Glacier, Jeff Satwicz of Bigbelly, Abe Schneider of Natel Energy, Insiya Jafferjee of Shellworks, Paul Gross of Remora, Erika Boeing of Accelerate Wind and Daniel Betts of Blue Frontier.
Check out our three most downloaded episodes:
In this episode of Hardware to Save a Planet, host Dylan Garrett speaks with Dan Yates, CEO and Chairman of Dandelion Energy, about why geothermal heat pumps may be the most overlooked solution in residential decarbonization. Dan explains how tapping the stable temperatures beneath our feet can slash home energy consumption, dramatically reduce peak electricity demand, and outperform air source heat pumps during extreme weather.
He shares how Dandelion cut system costs through builder partnerships, making geothermal viable at scale, and why utilities increasingly see it as a grid-stabilizing asset. The conversation explores how hardware innovation, smart incentives, and new business models can align to make clean, electric home heating both affordable and practical.
What you will learn:
- How to cut residential heating energy consumption in half with geothermal energy
- Why peak load reduction is the grid's real crisis, and geothermal can cut it by 75%
- The mobilization cost breakthrough that unlocked geothermal affordability
- How federal tax credits combined with state incentives are creating opportunities
- The hidden retrofit challenge blocking decarbonization
- Why behavioral economics from Opower predicted geothermal's current rise
Dan is a mission-driven entrepreneur who has dedicated his career to the environment. Dan is the CEO and Chairman at Dandelion, the largest and fastest-growing residential geothermal company in the US. He is also a board member of NRDC (the leading US environmental advocacy organization), co-owner of e-commerce company The Spice House, and an active tech investor. Previously, Dan was co-founder and CEO of energy efficiency software company Opower. Dan led Opower through a $1Bn+ IPO (NYSE:OPWR) in 2014 and its sale to Oracle in 2016. Opower has helped consumers save more than 35 terawatt hours of energy, making it a top-five residential clean energy company. Dan has been recognized as an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year, one of Fortune's 40 under 40, and a Washingtonian Tech Titan.
Episode Resources:
- Dan Yates on LinkedIn
- Dandelion Energy Website
- Dylan Garrett on LinkedIn
- Synapse Podcast Website
- Synapse Website
- Hardware to Save a Planet Apple Podcasts
- Hardware to Save a Planet Spotify
If you are interested in sponsoring Hardware to Save a Planet, please see our sponsorship offer here.
Previous guests include: Peter Reinhardt of Charm Industrial, Carlos Araque of Quaise, Noah McQueen of Heirloom, Areeb Malik of Glacier, Jeff Satwicz of Bigbelly, Abe Schneider of Natel Energy, Insiya Jafferjee of Shellworks, Paul Gross of Remora, Erika Boeing of Accelerate Wind and Daniel Betts of Blue Frontier.
Check out our three most downloaded episodes:
- Going Big on Clean Energy with Small Fusion Reactors with Robin Langtry, Co-Founder and CEO of Avalanche Energy
- The Role of Energy Storage Systems in Combating Climate Change with Mike Wietecki of Powin and John Thomas of ESS
- Marine Electrification to Reduce Costs and Environmental Damage: A Conversation with Marcelino Alvarez, CEO of Photon Marine