Residential water heating accounts for 3% of all US greenhouse gas emissions and 19% of home energy use, which means it uses a large chunk of a home's energy while adding emissions to our environment. An intelligent heat pump-based water heater is a step in the right direction on both fronts. 


In this episode of Hardware to Save a Planet, Dylan talks with Michael Rigney, CEO and co-founder of Cala Systems, about their innovative heat pump water heater. They delve into the environmental impact of residential water heating and the need for sustainable solutions. They also discuss the challenges of finding a job at the intersection of hard tech and climate and how the current climate tech wave has opened up more opportunities in this field. 

Michael is the CEO and co-founder of Cala Systems; a company focused on developing intelligent heat pump water heaters that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and optimize energy use in residential settings. With over 20 years of leadership experience in climate and energy startups, Rigney has a strong background in building products and thermal sciences.

Episode Resource

• Michael Rigney on LinkedIn
• Cala Systems Website
• 1,500,000 Kettles YouTube
• Feel Good Warmth with Cala - The World’s First Intelligent Heat Pump Water Heater 
• Dylan Garrett on LinkedIn
• Synapse Website
• Hardware to Save a Planet Apple Podcasts
• Hardware to Save a Planet Spotify

Hardware to Save a Planet is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so

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
  
  

If you have an interesting hardware solution to the climate crisis and would like the opportunity to share this with our audience, please complete this Guest Application form: https://fame.so/syn