The title itself makes no sense, and they even admit as much during the podcast, if not in so many words. Is the future of cars electric? Yes. Is the future of transportation electric cars? No way, and they even say it at the end. A few points: The guest seems to think that air quality effects from ICE vehicles only comes from tailpipe emissions, when in fact, a very large contributor to air pollution is tire wear. This is an even worse problem with EVs because they are so much heavier than ICE cars. They also suggest that the increase in EV sales is down to customer demand, but then go on to state that policy is really moving the needle and more needs to be done. After blathering on about the ins and outs of the expanding EV market, the guest mentions at the very end that an all-of-the-above approach for future transport is what is really needed, to include the umbrella of active transport (walking, biking, etc.) and public transit. OK, that makes sense. So why does most of the transportation part of the IRA go towards electrifying passenger cars and the needed infrastructure to make that possible? They state explicitly that we are absolutely not on track for our carbon goals, yet decided to make a celebratory report of the rapidly expanding EV market. EVs will do one thing well: they will help rescue the car industry. They will NOT single-handedly help us meet climate goals. They will cause the same traffic as ICE cars, will likely cause worse wear on roads and infrastructure (which by itself is massively expensive and hugely carbon intensive), and will likely play a role in the actual safety crisis of traffic fatalities and injuries that is happening today (since they are heavier, they are generally deadlier). Also, the data cited from the Netherlands is pulled so far out of context as to be laughable. It makes sense such a large percentage of kms are traveled in car because that’s what cars are generally good for: going long distances. Most NL cities are designed in such a way that longer commutes are not necessary, so people travel less far to begin with, about 20% lower than the US, on average. And the modal share of ‘active’ transport over these shorter trips is astronomically higher than countries like the US. All that because of policy and planning. It’s not a “tricky” question like the guest suggests.

Not a fan of the format; the loud laughing is off putting

Highly informative, in depth, every episode investigates a piece of the complex puzzle with high quality informants.

I wanted to like this show. I am always craving some good climate content but this is so boring. Listen to Parched and take notes on story telling. They take a dry subject and make it very compelling. I’ll try a few more. Hope it finds its groove.

As a long term climate solutions entrepreneur and investor, I appreciate the consistent fact and evidence-based reporting illuminating understanding of the human elements that are creating and solving the climate crisis.

I especially like the episodes with Akshat Rathi

An intelligent and very necessary weekly podcast.

Relevant, credible, honest.

I especially loved the Curb Your Enthusiasm-esque music that played when Akshat, Venkat and Chamath got in the weeds.

I pressed play on “high octane capitalism meets climate change” with great skepticism. There’s so much media out there meant to pacify us. I knew Rathi was a good reporter and wanted to see what he would bring to the table, and he brought a quiet fire that held power to account. I listen to a lot of podcasts and I always pay close attention to how reporters do their job, so often they leave out important context or create a false equivalence. Akshat and his team put together a good episode with great editing pulled sound bites together with snappy flair. But more than that every time I started to give the guest “the side eye” the host would ask the right question give the right context and leave it up to the listener to pay attention. Looking forward to seeing where this pod goes.

I love this podcast. The guests are knowledgeable, articulate and engaging, the topics are timely and relevant and the host is asking all the right questions. You can tell the host comes into each interview with excellent preparation and I so appreciate that there’s no unnecessary fluff - it’s just right down to the facts. I learn something new from each episode, thanks so much!

If you would like to stay up-to-date on how the world is responding to climate change and the challenge to reduce emissions, I could not recommend this podcast enough. It brings to light critical information through interviews, and in the last episode which inspired me to share this resource, the host Akshat Rathi interviewed Gail Whiteman of Arctic Humanity at Risk Basecamp, and they discussed the trajectory of climate change becoming an increasingly important agenda topic at the World Economic Forum, where the world's business and political elite come together to discuss global issues and solutions.

How did humans get it so wrong? Among other things, our fixation on eating animals is killing us!

Note how few times the host and the guests refer to problems such as biodiversity loss, overproduction of nitrogen, plastics and other hazards, land-use change, or even other greenhouse gases besides CO2. Their framework of “net zero” asks us to believe that we can “solve” climate change with a few technological shifts, without weighing the pros and cons of impacts beyond those on the atmosphere.

The first episode was great

Akshat is an amazing host. He knows how to ask the right questions to the guest speakers. I like how he is able to get the hosts to explain the highly technical concepts down to layman’s terms. The entrepreneur he has brought on so far have been very interesting to listen to.

We need pressure on legislative bodies to enact long lasting laws to get to net zero before 2050.

Akshat is insightful and thorough and I love all that I learn from him and his guests!

Great conversations and I like the positive vibe so far. Hopefully it helps keep us all focused on being part of the solution.

I like what you’re doing with this podcast. Keep the episodes coming!

Great listen and super informative.

I came across this podcast from a different podcast, hot take on crooked media and I’m very glad I did. Science and technology are playing an integral part for saving this planet and more people need to know about and understand how this technology can help save us all. I’m looking forward to following this podcast.

Good podcast on energy and climate