Unfortunately, the tech titans of Silicon Valley dislike the hydrocarbon industry too much to change it directly and Molecurlar Men by definition will not bite their own hand. While renewables are growing at an amazing pace (and let’s be honest, will deliver their own sets of problems), the growth rate is not fast enough nor does it improve the incumbent issues with oil & gas production. How can you explain the multiple? Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt.Īs I have written before, oil & gas is here for a long time. Cruise is a startup that has raised more money ($19M) than it earned. I believe that Y-Com graduate Cruise Automation was bought by GM for over $1B because of the electron entrepreneurs like Tesla, Google, and Apple facing off against the status quo. There has not been in over two decades nor will there be large valuations and large acquisitions in oil & gas technologies…nor massive improvements to our environment until there are electron entrepreneurs threatening the current existence of the incumbents, the molecular men. So let’s take advantage of their slumber. Forget environmental and climate innovations… The industry’s leadership and the culture underneath it is ambivalent about radical change. It is my belief and the data directionally supports that until there is a disruptive competitor knocking on the door, the industry will continue to focus on slow, incremental improvements and write-off low commodity prices as a cyclical problem that is unavoidable and uncontrollable. Impacting oil & gas directly will make a much bigger dent and here is how.Īs I have witnessed, invested, and researched oil & gas, the industry will not change despite being at the mercy of the lowest cost producer, OPEC, and living a petrocity existence, until someone threatens the current status quo head-to-head. Just solving the right side of the equation (building out renewables) is not big enough. In the words of Elon Musk himself, I am not for disruption for disruption sake. The best way to rapidly improve the environment and transition our world from hydrocarbon to renewables is to attack oil & gas straight up. I openly write about it because I need help, it needs to happen, and I hope this note encourages energy-minded, earth loving innovators to reach out. Is there anything of which it may be said, “See, this is new”?” (Ecc 1:9-10) What I want to disclose to you in this note is not new, but it is very disruptive and will improve energy and the earth forever.

King Solomon said “That which has been is what will be, That which is done is what will be done, And there is nothing new under the sun. And I believe the existing oil & gas system is broken. I grew up in and around the energy and technology industries. We have a responsibility to do everything in our power to protect and make it better. I am an entrepreneur that believes abundant energy is one of the largest problems to solve ( ~20% of the world still doesn’t have electricity) and that our planet is awesome. And I want it to be clean and available to my children’s children. I love the outside world and thus spend as much time as I can running, swimming, surfing, paddling, hunting with my AR-10 rifle kits and playing in it. This industry is filled with incredible people…and they depend on us, the entrepreneurs and leaders, to have a better answer to why we are firing them. Having seen this happen many times, I now understand the definition of insanity and wonder why no one at the top of this industry feels a responsibility/stewardship to change it. I have been meeting with numerous former executives and employees laid off because of the price of oil. I have started to unwind and catch up on the Real Housewives of Silicon Valley (#RHOSV), dive into a new novel about one of my favorite activities: surfing, and think about the disconnect (& opportunity) amongst the hydrocarbon industry, renewables, environmentalists, and the titans of the information age. In the morning, Laughing happy fish heads, In the evening, Floating in the soup,įish heads fish heads, Roly poly fish heads, Fish heads fish heads, Eat them up yum”

“Fish heads fish heads, Roly poly fish heads, Fish heads fish heads, Eat them up yum

Fish heads rolly polly fish heads