Guest: Manu Rawat

In this episode of Energy OS, We're joined by Manu Rawat, a technology leader with nearly three decades of experience across telecoms, IT, smart metering and critical digital infrastructure.

Together, they explore a part of the energy transition that is often overlooked: the physical and digital connectivity layer that allows the modern energy system to function.

Smart meters are too often described as devices in homes. But in reality, they are becoming something much more important: a national sensor network, a digital backbone, and a critical infrastructure layer for the future grid.

We discuss the evolution of smart metering from individual metering devices to an integrated infrastructure platform capable of supporting demand flexibility, renewable generation, consumer participation, data sharing and real-time system orchestration.

Drawing on our shared experience addressing transformation challenges across the UK smart metering network between 2020 and 2025, the conversation also looks outward to Europe. Manu shares insights from the European smart metering landscape, where interoperability, security, data access and market design are becoming central to the next phase of energy system digitisation.

The episode examines the tension at the heart of the future energy system: how to open up data, enable innovation and create fair competition while still protecting critical national infrastructure. This is not a simple technology problem. It is a systems problem, requiring collaboration between governments, regulators, networks, suppliers, technology providers and consumers.

At its core, this conversation is about reliability, resilience and leadership. Connectivity often disappears from view because it works most of the time. But as the energy system becomes more real-time, more distributed and more dependent on digital coordination, the connectivity layer becomes mission-critical.

The future grid will not be built on meters alone. It will be built on secure, resilient, interoperable infrastructure that allows millions of assets, homes, communities and markets to operate as part of a connected system.

Key themes covered in this episode include:

• Why smart meters should be understood as infrastructure, not just devices
• The role of connectivity as the digital spine of the energy transition
• How smart meters are evolving into a national sensor network
• Lessons from the UK smart metering programme
• What Europe can learn from UK deployment experience
• The balance between open data, innovation and security
• Why interoperability matters for future energy markets
• The leadership challenge of delivering technology at national scale

This episode is for anyone interested in the future of smart metering, digital energy infrastructure, critical national infrastructure, AI-enabled grids, flexibility markets and the practical reality of building the energy system we now depend on.

Because the energy transition is no longer just about generation.

It is about coordination.

And coordination depends on the digital spine being strong enough to carry the system.

Most of us are sitting on a goldmine of personal and organizational data, yet just as this data begins to work for us, too many organizations still treat it as an asset to be hoarded or exploited.

Liz Brandt, CEO and co-founder of Control Shift, exposes how the future of data isn’t about control or restriction but about empowering individuals and society through “smart data.” She reveals how the UK is finally lining up policies and infrastructures to make this a reality, transforming how data flows, trust is built, and value is created across sectors.

In this episode, Liz shares the evolution of smart data from its early ideas to becoming a pivotal strategic driver, enabled by recent legislation like the Data Use and Access Act.

You'll discover why data portability, governed value exchanges, and secure data sharing are the keys to unlocking both economic growth and societal progress. We break down specific examples—like energy data's potential to detect early signs of illness or domestic violence—and explore how trusted infrastructure and transparency are essential for widespread adoption. Liz also discusses the technical architecture needed to balance security with innovation, from verification services to AI-driven governance models, ensuring data is used ethically and effectively.You'll learn about the critical moment the UK is facing, how political delays, Brexit, and global data growth mean now’s the time to accelerate.

Trust is the linchpin, and Liz emphasizes that organizations must embed transparency and shared responsibility into their systems. With AI models evolving rapidly and regulation struggling to keep pace, this episode equips leaders, innovators, and policy makers with the clarity needed to navigate this complex landscape.

How can we make data work in our favor, not against us? The answer lies in smarter, safer, and more trusted data that benefits every citizen.Perfect for business leaders, policymakers, and anyone passionate about data-driven societal change, this episode reveals the transformative power of smart data. As Liz says, "The future belongs to those who harness data’s potential responsibly." Don’t miss the opportunity to see the bigger picture and position yourself at the forefront of this data revolution.

A systems-level conversation on the future of energy, exploring consumer agency, real-time data, and control at the grid edge. Challenging assumptions around flexibility and markets, it examines how households become active participants, why local constraints matter, and how open, interoperable systems can deliver fairer, more resilient outcomes for consumers.

In the thesis, Shaun shows how an Automatic Market Maker (AMM) can provide real-time and forward electricity pricing within a holarchic market architecture. Rather than trying to recover every system cost through a single volumetric energy price, the design separates functions more cleanly: energy is priced dynamically through scarcity-aware AMM signals, while non-fuel OpEx and CapEx are recovered through retail subscription structures linked to the quality of service consumers choose. That ties cost recovery more directly to flexibility, service level, and cost causation, which are central to fairness in the design.