Discover/EquityEquity

Why creators are ditching ad revenue for chocolate bars and fintech acquisitions

EquityEquityFeb 20, 202632 min

This episode reveals how former Tesla executives are capitalizing on the company's strategic pivot away from its original climate mission by spinning out energy companies that Tesla should have built. The hosts explore how Tesla's shift toward robotics and AI has created a vacuum in the energy sector, leading to a wave of Tesla alumni launching startups focused on energy storage, solid-state transformers, and data center infrastructure.

Key takeaways

  • •Former Tesla executives are building the energy companies Tesla abandoned, with some energy divisions becoming their fastest-growing business units.
  • •Century-old transformer technology has become the critical bottleneck for modern data centers, creating massive opportunities for solid-state transformer startups.
  • •Tesla's mission drift from climate solutions to robotics has opened market gaps that ex-employees are now filling with focused energy ventures.
  • •The AI infrastructure boom is driving unprecedented demand for energy storage solutions adjacent to data centers, fueling rapid growth for Tesla spinouts.
  • •JB Straubel and other Tesla co-founders are leading a new wave of battery economy startups that prioritize Tesla's original sustainability mission.

Listen to full episode

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creator-economydiversificationacquisitionsbusiness-modelsrevenue-streams

Best moment

12:10· 33smarket insight

Former Tesla executives are spinning out energy companies Tesla should have built

12:10 / 12:43

that lie adjacent to data centers. And I predict that there's gonna be even more of that to come in the in in 2026 for sure. Red Redwood is another example of a former Tesla.

This is JB Straubel's company. Right? So so it looks like there's a couple of offshoots of Tesla going into energy, which really feels like something that

Tesla would have been good at or should have focused their attention on. Yeah. I'm so glad you made that point. Remember when Tesla was, you know, a a company that was

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6 clips

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EquityEquity

market insight

Why century-old transformers are the bottleneck crushing modern data centers

Kirsten explains the basics of transformers and why data centers still rely on century-old iron core technology. She introduces Heron Power and other companies developing solid state transformers to modernize this critical infrastructure component.

8:26 - 9:0741s
data-centershardware-infrastructuresolid-state-transformers

EquityEquity

prediction

Former Tesla exec's energy storage pivot becoming fastest growing division

A discussion about how companies adjacent to data centers, particularly energy storage businesses, are experiencing rapid growth driven by AI infrastructure needs. The speaker predicts this trend will accelerate in 2026, citing a former Tesla executive's energy division as an example of this opportunity.

11:45 - 12:2338s
energy-storageai-infrastructuredata-centers

EquityEquity

market insight

Former Tesla executives are spinning out energy companies Tesla should have built

The hosts discuss how former Tesla executives like JB Straubel are creating energy companies adjacent to data centers, suggesting Tesla missed opportunities in the energy sector. They predict this trend of Tesla alumni building energy startups will accelerate through 2026.

12:10 - 12:4333s
energy-sectortesla-spinoffsdata-centers

EquityEquity

market insight

Tesla abandoned its climate mission to become a robotics company

The hosts discuss how Tesla has fundamentally shifted its identity from a sustainable energy company focused on fighting climate change to positioning itself as a robotics and AI company. They explore how this mission drift has created opportunities for other companies to fill the energy space Tesla originally occupied.

12:26 - 13:0539s
tesla-strategymission-driftenergy-transition

EquityEquity

market insight

Ex-Tesla employees are spinning out to build the next battery economy

Former Tesla employees like JB Straubel are launching startups focused on creating a circular economy around batteries and electrification. The discussion covers how these Tesla alumni are building on the original mission with companies like Heron, which plans to construct a factory capable of producing 40 gigawatts of battery capacity.

13:06 - 13:4538s
tesla-spinoutsbattery-technologycircular-economy

EquityEquity

To your question, though, about whether you're gonna start seeing training models within India, I mean, the size of the data center deals, I I think that it it's possible. Right? If they're able to...

20:06 - 20:4236s

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