May 16, 2025

#122 - Grid Control in Milliseconds: Engineering Energy Systems with Barbara Wittenberg // CTO @ 1KOMMA5°

Listen Later

1 hour 1 minute

Real-time system architecture lessons from the edge of the energy transition

Technical infrastructure enables the modern energy transition. Barbara Wittenberg, CTO at 1KOMMA5°, reveals the engineering challenges behind connecting and optimizing 40,000+ household energy assets while building a unified tech platform after acquiring 80+ companies across 7 countries.

Tech leaders will find valuable parallels to their own challenges as Barbara discusses how her team modernized legacy systems, managed complex integrations, and deployed advanced optimization algorithms that must respond in milliseconds to prevent grid failures.

Key technical insights include:

🏗️ Building infrastructure-as-code and standardizing operations across acquired companies

📊 Creating data pipelines that connect real-world physical devices to cloud optimization systems

⚡ The millisecond-level responsiveness required for grid stabilization services

🔄 Managing the product transition from siloed applications to integrated platforms

🤖 Leveraging AI to automate complex technical explanations to end users

🧠 Post-merger integration strategies that preserve valuable domain knowledge

Thx 2 our partners Surfshark & SoSafe for sponsoring this Episode.

Go to surfshark.com/alphalist or use code ALPHALIST at checkout to get 4 extra months of Surfshark VPN!

Or start a free safety simulation with SoSafe

TIMESTAMPS:

[00:00:51] Introduction to Barbara Wittenberg & 1KOMMA5°

[00:02:52] Barbara's Journey from Electrical Engineering to CTO

[00:05:13] Early Virtual Power Plant Development at E.ON

[00:07:05] The Transition from Energy to Tech and Back

[00:11:02] Explaining 1KOMMA5°'s Business Model & Technology

[00:13:00] The Physics of Energy Systems and Real-Time Control

[00:16:41] Grid Operators and the Complex Energy Landscape

[00:19:47] Smart Meters and Market Differences Across Countries

[00:22:32] Battery Storage and Energy Trading Economics

[00:25:35] Building Software Systems for Installation Companies

[00:28:54] Tech Stack and Integration of Acquired Companies

[00:33:19] Managing 2,500 Employees Across 80+ Locations

[00:37:21] Data Standardization and Business Intelligence

[00:42:10] Using AI to Explain Energy Decisions to Customers

[00:49:22] Female Representation in Energy & Engineering

[00:54:28] Closing Thoughts on Consumer Energy Solutions

QUOTES:

""We send live signals in two-second intervals to 40,000 assets in the field. In Sweden, we need to respond to grid frequency changes in milliseconds - you can't send faxes, you can't even send an email. You need real-time control of your assets."" - Barbara Wittenberg [00:13:50]

""If you want to bring the best solution, you need to have all assets connected in one system."" - Barbara Wittenberg [00:12:12]

...more

View all episodes

View all episodes

Download on the App Store

Download on the App Store

Get it on Google Play

alphalist.CTO Podcast - For CTOs and Technical Leaders

By Tobias Schlottke - alphalist CTO Podcast

5

66 ratings

May 16, 2025

#122 - Grid Control in Milliseconds: Engineering Energy Systems with Barbara Wittenberg // CTO @ 1KOMMA5°

Listen Later

1 hour 1 minute

Real-time system architecture lessons from the edge of the energy transition

Technical infrastructure enables the modern energy transition. Barbara Wittenberg, CTO at 1KOMMA5°, reveals the engineering challenges behind connecting and optimizing 40,000+ household energy assets while building a unified tech platform after acquiring 80+ companies across 7 countries.

Tech leaders will find valuable parallels to their own challenges as Barbara discusses how her team modernized legacy systems, managed complex integrations, and deployed advanced optimization algorithms that must respond in milliseconds to prevent grid failures.

Key technical insights include:

🏗️ Building infrastructure-as-code and standardizing operations across acquired companies

📊 Creating data pipelines that connect real-world physical devices to cloud optimization systems

⚡ The millisecond-level responsiveness required for grid stabilization services

🔄 Managing the product transition from siloed applications to integrated platforms

🤖 Leveraging AI to automate complex technical explanations to end users

🧠 Post-merger integration strategies that preserve valuable domain knowledge

Thx 2 our partners Surfshark & SoSafe for sponsoring this Episode.

Go to surfshark.com/alphalist or use code ALPHALIST at checkout to get 4 extra months of Surfshark VPN!

Or start a free safety simulation with SoSafe

TIMESTAMPS:

[00:00:51] Introduction to Barbara Wittenberg & 1KOMMA5°

[00:02:52] Barbara's Journey from Electrical Engineering to CTO

[00:05:13] Early Virtual Power Plant Development at E.ON

[00:07:05] The Transition from Energy to Tech and Back

[00:11:02] Explaining 1KOMMA5°'s Business Model & Technology

[00:13:00] The Physics of Energy Systems and Real-Time Control

[00:16:41] Grid Operators and the Complex Energy Landscape

[00:19:47] Smart Meters and Market Differences Across Countries

[00:22:32] Battery Storage and Energy Trading Economics

[00:25:35] Building Software Systems for Installation Companies

[00:28:54] Tech Stack and Integration of Acquired Companies

[00:33:19] Managing 2,500 Employees Across 80+ Locations

[00:37:21] Data Standardization and Business Intelligence

[00:42:10] Using AI to Explain Energy Decisions to Customers

[00:49:22] Female Representation in Energy & Engineering

[00:54:28] Closing Thoughts on Consumer Energy Solutions

QUOTES:

""We send live signals in two-second intervals to 40,000 assets in the field. In Sweden, we need to respond to grid frequency changes in milliseconds - you can't send faxes, you can't even send an email. You need real-time control of your assets."" - Barbara Wittenberg [00:13:50]

""If you want to bring the best solution, you need to have all assets connected in one system."" - Barbara Wittenberg [00:12:12]

...more

More shows like alphalist.CTO Podcast - For CTOs and Technical Leaders

The Changelog: Software Development, Open Source by Changelog Media

The Changelog: Software Development, Open Source

283 Listeners

Kassenzone | CEO Interviews by Alexander Graf & Karolin Junker De Neui

Kassenzone | CEO Interviews

4 Listeners

a16z Podcast by Andreessen Horowitz

a16z Podcast

1,030 Listeners

Thoughtworks Technology Podcast by Thoughtworks

Thoughtworks Technology Podcast

41 Listeners

The Twenty Minute VC (20VC): Venture Capital | Startup Funding | The Pitch by Harry Stebbings

The Twenty Minute VC (20VC): Venture Capital | Startup Funding | The Pitch

517 Listeners

OMR Podcast by Philipp Westermeyer - OMR

OMR Podcast

40 Listeners

The OMR Podcast International – Go inside the minds of the biggest names in digital and tech by Philipp Westermeyer, founder and CEO of OMR / Scott Peterson, digital marketing editor, OMR

The OMR Podcast International – Go inside the minds of the biggest names in digital and tech

3 Listeners

REWORK by 37signals

REWORK

211 Listeners

Deffner und Zschäpitz – Der Wirtschafts-Talk von WELT by WELT

Deffner und Zschäpitz – Der Wirtschafts-Talk von WELT

31 Listeners

OMR Media by Pia Frey

OMR Media

3 Listeners

Practical AI by Practical AI LLC

Practical AI

190 Listeners

OMR Education by OMR Education / Rolf Hermann / Andre Alpar / Tarek Müller

OMR Education

3 Listeners

Handelsblatt Disrupt - Der Podcast über die Zukunft der Wirtschaft by Sebastian Matthes, Handelsblatt

Handelsblatt Disrupt - Der Podcast über die Zukunft der Wirtschaft

16 Listeners

OMR Silicon Valley Update by Christian Byza

OMR Silicon Valley Update

13 Listeners

Doppelgänger Tech Talk by Philipp Glöckler, Philipp Klöckner

Doppelgänger Tech Talk

12 Listeners

5050 by OMR by Isabelle Gardt & Kira Schubert

5050 by OMR

0 Listeners

bto – der Ökonomie-Podcast von Dr. Daniel Stelter by Dr. Daniel Stelter

bto – der Ökonomie-Podcast von Dr. Daniel Stelter

24 Listeners

OMRap by Torben Lux, Falk Schacht, Niko Hüls

OMRap

0 Listeners

Beckers Bets by Christoph Damm, Jan Beckers

Beckers Bets

1 Listeners

OMR Rabbit Hole: Die Höhle der Löwen by Florian Rinke, OMR, Podstars by OMR

OMR Rabbit Hole: Die Höhle der Löwen

0 Listeners

The Pragmatic Engineer by Gergely Orosz

The Pragmatic Engineer

52 Listeners