Electric aviation fulfills two futuristic promises – flying cars and emissions-free air travel. This week, meet the professor who is working to make it happen. Venkat Viswanathan, a professor at Carnegie Mellon University, is working to create a battery that can power an aircraft on a trip over 200 miles. Venkat talks to Akshat about the network of people involved in electric aviation, how long it will take to develop such a light and powerful battery, and why aviation is the most important problem for batteries to solve. 

Read a transcript of this episode, here.

Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. Our producer is Oscar Boyd and our senior producer is Christine Driscoll. Special thanks to Blake Maples, Stacey Wong, Sharon Chen, and Kira Bindrim. 

Thoughts or suggestions? Email us at zeropod@bloomberg.net. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit https://www.bloomberg.com/green

Electric aviation fulfills two futuristic promises – flying cars and emissions-free air travel. This week, meet the professor who is working to make it happen. Venkat Viswanathan, a professor at Carnegie Mellon University, is working to create a battery that can power an aircraft on a trip over 200 miles. Venkat talks to Akshat about the network of people involved in electric aviation, how long it will take to develop such a light and powerful battery, and why aviation is the most important problem for batteries to solve. 
Read a transcript of this episode, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-04-13/transcript-zero-episode-35-the-climate-case-for-flying-cars">here</a>.
Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. Our producer is Oscar Boyd and our senior producer is Christine Driscoll. Special thanks to Blake Maples, Stacey Wong, Sharon Chen, and Kira Bindrim. Thoughts or suggestions? Email us at zeropod@bloomberg.net. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/green">https://www.bloomberg.com/green</a>

Zero is about the tactics and technologies taking us to a world of zero emissions. Each week Bloomberg’s award-winning reporter Akshat Rathi talks to the people tackling climate change – a venture capitalist hunting for the best cleantech investment, scientists starting companies, politicians who have successfully created climate laws, and CEOs who have completely transformed their businesses. The road to zero emissions has many paths and everyone’s got an opinion about the best route. Listen in.

Zero: The Climate Race

Zero

The climate case for flying cars

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/be042ea6-4d91-4f16-8376-afe200a12ba4/transcript

Reform UK is currently the most popular party in Britain. If voted into government, it wants to end all subsidies for renewable energy, ban battery energy storage, end net-zero targets, drill for more oil and gas in the North Sea and encourage fracking on British soil.

This week on Zero, Akshat Rathi asks Reform’s deputy leader Richard Tice about the party’s climate and energy plans, and why he calls it “net stupid zero.” 

Explore further:
Read the full annotated transcript of this conversation
Worst Start to Wildfire Season Raises Alarm as El Niño Threatens
Scientists Ditch Worst-Case Climate Scenario For Good Reasons

Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. Our producer is Oscar Boyd. Special thanks to Sommer Saadi, Mohsis Andam, Sharon Chen and Laura Millan. Thoughts or suggestions? Email us at zeropod@bloomberg.net. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit https://www.bloomberg.com/green.

Reform UK is currently the most popular party in Britain. If voted into government, it wants to end all subsidies for renewable energy, ban battery energy storage, end net-zero targets, drill for more oil and gas in the North Sea and encourage fracking on British soil.
This week on Zero, Akshat Rathi asks Reform&rsquo;s deputy leader Richard Tice about the party&rsquo;s climate and energy plans, and why he calls it &ldquo;net stupid zero.&rdquo;&nbsp;
Explore further:
<ul>
<li>Read the full annotated transcript of <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-05-20/reform-s-richard-tice-on-climate-science-renewables-subsidies-and-fracking">this conversation</a></li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-05-12/worst-start-to-wildfire-season-raises-alarm-as-el-nino-threatens">Worst Start to Wildfire Season Raises Alarm as El Ni&ntilde;o Threatens</a></li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-05-19/scientists-ditch-worst-case-climate-scenario-with-ridicule-from-trump?srnd=undefined&amp;sref=jjXJRDFv">Scientists Ditch Worst-Case Climate Scenario For Good Reasons</a></li>
</ul>
Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. Our producer is Oscar Boyd. Special thanks to Sommer Saadi, Mohsis Andam, Sharon Chen and Laura Millan. Thoughts or suggestions? Email us at zeropod@bloomberg.net. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/green">https://www.bloomberg.com/green</a>.

Reform’s Richard Tice wants to end decades of UK climate action

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/8e443975-0246-45c4-9e7f-b44f00d098c7/transcript

With wars raging and supply chains blocked, we’re in an era of geopolitical chaos. This week on Zero, Akshat Rathi talks with Gerald Butts, chairman of the political risk consultancy Eurasia Group and former chief of staff to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. They discuss how investors and companies are responding to the energy shock, where the green transition might falter and who will emerge winners a decade from now. 

Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. Our producer is Oscar Boyd. Special thanks to Sommer Saadi, Mohsis Andam, Sharon Chen and Laura Millan. Thoughts or suggestions? Email us at zeropod@bloomberg.net. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit https://www.bloomberg.com/green.

With wars raging and supply chains blocked, we&rsquo;re in an era of geopolitical chaos. This week on Zero, Akshat Rathi talks with Gerald Butts, chairman of the political risk consultancy Eurasia Group and former chief of staff to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. They discuss how investors and companies are responding to the energy shock, where the green transition might falter and who will emerge winners a decade from now.&nbsp;
Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. Our producer is Oscar Boyd. Special thanks to Sommer Saadi, Mohsis Andam, Sharon Chen and Laura Millan. Thoughts or suggestions? Email us at zeropod@bloomberg.net. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/green">https://www.bloomberg.com/green</a>.

Electrons will be central to the next era of geopolitical stability

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/3ef4ec5f-487b-4a63-98b4-b44900b5187a/transcript

Everywhere you look, you see two types of technology existing side-by-side. One that runs on fossil fuels and one that runs on clean electricity. There’s an ongoing struggle between the two, a tug of war between two very different futures. Some call it the mid-transition, and it comes with costs that make it politically fraught. This week on Zero, Emily Grubert, professor of sustainable energy policy at the University of Notre Dame, tells Akshat Rathi how to navigate the mid-transition, and the better energy system that exists on the other side.

Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. Our producer is Oscar Boyd. Special thanks to Sommer Saadi, Mohsis Andam, Sharon Chen and Laura Millan. Thoughts or suggestions? Email us at zeropod@bloomberg.net. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit https://www.bloomberg.com/green.

Everywhere you look, you see two types of technology existing side-by-side. One that runs on fossil fuels and one that runs on clean electricity. There&rsquo;s an ongoing struggle between the two, a tug of war between two very different futures. Some call it the mid-transition, and it comes with costs that make it politically fraught. This week on Zero, Emily Grubert, professor of sustainable energy policy at the University of Notre Dame, tells Akshat Rathi how to navigate the mid-transition, and the better energy system that exists on the other side. Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. Our producer is Oscar Boyd. Special thanks to Sommer Saadi, Mohsis Andam, Sharon Chen and Laura Millan. Thoughts or suggestions? Email us at <a href="mailto:zeropod@bloomberg.net" aria-haspopup="menu">zeropod@bloomberg.net</a>. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/green">https://www.bloomberg.com/green</a>.

The Iran war shows why clean energy is the more secure choice

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/7c0cb77e-bdf3-439a-8148-b442012604a6/transcript

The climate case for flying cars

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