*Tacit Knowledge * Hosted by Kumar Garg Presented by Renaissance Philanthropy Subscribe to our Substack Produced by All Together Now FOLLOW ISHAN Twitter: (at)ishan_sharma3 Instagram: (at)ishan_sharma3 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ishan-kabir-sharma3/ KEY QUESTIONS AND TAKEAWAYS What is geologic hydrogen, and how is it different from manufactured hydrogen? Geologic hydrogen (Geo H₂) forms naturally underground, for example when water reacts with iron-rich rock, so it can be found and produced rather than manufactured with expensive, energy-intensive processes. Ishan argues it is zero-emission and potentially a fraction of the cost of today's hydrogen. He cites the estimate that about 2% of the hydrogen thought to be in the ground could meet civilizational needs for centuries. What is the Chimaera Fund? The Chimaera Fund is Renaissance Philanthropy's field-building fund, directed by Ishan Sharma, aimed at making geologic hydrogen a credible part of the energy mix in the 2030s. Ishan says the field has already drawn roughly $1 billion in private investment, so the fund isn't trying to compete with startups. It aims to grow the overall pie with open-source testbeds, data sharing, and policy work modeled on what worked in shale and geothermal. Why does Ishan see geologic hydrogen as essential to decarbonization? He argues that cheap solar has largely solved the "green electron" half of the emissions problem. The remainder, in food systems and heavy industry like steel and chemicals, needs a cheap green molecule, and he doesn't see manufactured green hydrogen arriving before roughly 2045–2050. Industrial plants are making capital decisions in the next 5–7 years that could lock in emissions for about 40 years. In his view, geologic hydrogen is the only option that could affect that decision window. What can shale and geothermal teach us about scaling a new energy industry? Ishan points to a pattern: both industries spent decades in slow, localized progress before inflection points driven by government-backed testbeds and companies sharing subsurface data. Geothermal went from a first well in the 1920s to a Department of Energy testbed in Utah and, now, Fervo Energy's public listing. His conclusion is that opening up solutions and data early is the fastest path to scale, measured in years rather than decades. How did Chimaera get private companies to share subsurface data? It started small: one company, a grant of roughly $250K, and an ask for the metadata version of its data rather than the proprietary data itself. Researchers could then propose studies based on what the company actually had. Once that first company signed on and Chimaera announced it at a major geologic hydrogen conference, several dozen other companies asked to do something similar. Early wins then became proof of credibility, including work with the U.S. Air Force and real operating companies. What is Chimaera working on next? Ishan previewed a $10M grand-prize challenge with the Japan Cabinet Office to drill the first hydrogen well, and a test bed in East Africa. The East Africa work is framed around reducing smallholder farmers' dependence on imported ammonia, not just emissions. Both were described as upcoming, not yet announced, at the time of recording. What is the Law of Requisite Variety, and how does Chimaera apply it? Ishan describes it as the idea that the entity with the most flexibility in a system has the greatest control over its outcome. Chimaera applies it by staying deliberately nimble instead of building headcount. One example he gives is walking away from a donation of about 1,200 acres for test beds to pivot to a faster-moving opportunity. On careers, credibility, and field-building Ishan didn't start in energy. He studied industrial labor relations and economics planning for human rights law, and a paper on surveillance technology led him to defer law school and enter science and tech policy, first at FAS, then the White House, then Renaissance Philanthropy. His filter for what to work on is a Venn diagram: a problem that is neglected, where he can see a path to making a difference, and where he has a thesis worth pressure-testing. He says the overlap is small, and once you find it, "why not go hunting?" His tacit knowledge: there is enough good work to go around. Approaching a new field with "no pride of place," and wanting to distribute good ideas rather than own them, is what lets an outsider work with deep experts. To bring skeptical experts along, he asks whether anyone else has looked at their data and reached a different conclusion, which appeals to their humility instead of forcing a debate. He says credibility comes from early wins and demonstrated taste more than from the size of the funding. Kumar's framing: science progresses at the pace of discovery plus persuasion. Good ideas need advocates willing to walk into rooms and answer skeptical questions, one person at a time, like the lone ...
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