Startup Series: Universal Hydrogen

My Climate Journey

Today's guest is Paul Eremenko, Co-Founder and CEO of Universal Hydrogen.
Before Universal Hydrogen, Paul served as Senior Vice President and CTO of United Technologies and CTO of Airbus. When he co-founded Universal Hydrogen, Paul felt hydrogen was the only solution the industry has to meet the Paris Agreement's goals and decarbonize.
Universal Hydrogen is an end-to-end fuel logistics company making hydrogen-powered commercial flight a near-term reality. The aerospace and aviation industry is decarbonizing too slowly to meet the Paris Agreement objectives. Paul and his team are tackling two of the biggest challenges in hydrogen flight: creating a distribution infrastructure and kick-starting demand for hydrogen. To distribute hydrogen, Universal Hydrogen is rethinking how we can transport it. The company specially designs lightweight aviation-certified hydrogen capsules that are compatible with the existing infrastructure and freight networks. Universal Hydrogen is retrofitting regional airplanes with conversion kits necessary to utilize hydrogen as fuel. It is building a roadmap for other aircraft companies to adopt these designs. Universal Hydrogen partners with many companies, from freight logistics to fuel cell development to aircraft makers and modifiers. Backed by Trucks, Jeff Schox, Reilly Brennan, Plug Power, and smaller investors, Universal Hydrogen is paving the way for zero-emission aviation.
Pauls walks me through how he transitioned to working in green hydrogen and the gaps that Universal Hydrogen is filling within the aviation industry. Paul explains why hydrogen is the best fuel for zero-emission flight, the barriers to hydrogen adoption, and key startups Universal Hydrogen partners with. Paul and I also discuss the stakeholders, funding to date, and the future of the company. This episode is a must-listen for anyone interested in learning more about how to decarbonize aviation.
Enjoy the show!
You can find me on twitter @jjacobs22 or @mcjpod and email at [e-mail], where I encourage you to share your feedback on episodes and suggestions for future topics or guests.
Episode recorded February 3rd, 2021
To learn more about Universal Hydrogen, visit their website: https://www.hydrogen.aero/

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