In this episode of the Vicor Powering Innovation Podcast, host Steve Germino interviews JD Schwalm, founder and CEO of Revolt, a company revolutionizing clean mobile power solutions. Schwalm shares his journey from mechanical special effects work in the entertainment industry to developing battery-powered alternatives to diesel generators. Revolt's product lineup includes the WeVault (17 kWh), the Mule (200 kWh), and the Canavan (440 kWh charging van), all designed to provide clean, quiet power for film sets, construction sites, and disaster relief operations. The conversation covers the technical advantages of their systems, including superior power quality, significantly reduced noise levels (under 30dB vs 80-90dB for diesel), and zero emissions. Schwalm discusses their rental-based business model, partnerships with major studios like Netflix, Warner Brothers, and Disney, and their use of Vicor power modules for efficient voltage conversion from 800V battery systems down to control voltages. The interview highlights innovations like eliminating precharge resistors using bidirectional power modules and the company's focus on continuous improvement and reliability in mission-critical applications.

Podcast host David Krakauer, VP of Corporate Marketing and Channel Strategy

Special Guest: Richard Hatfield, founder and CEO of Lightning Motorcycles

Lightning Motorcycles, located in San Jose, California, is one of the leading electric motorcycle designers in the world. Richard Hatfield, founder and CEO of Lightning Motorcycles, vision for an electric version was to design the smoothest ride in the world— one that “gives you a feeling of limitless torque, with no vibration, no noise and no heat – there is almost a magical feeling to it.” And he succeeded.

“The biggest challenges we face are packaging and weight, and thermodynamics when competing with internal combustion engine (ICE) bikes,” said Hatfield. Sophisticated engineering has enabled Lightning to keep the weight of their EVs at about 200 lbs., the same as competing ICE bikes. And he has managed to keep charge times down. Lightning’s bikes and can recharge to 80 percent within 10 minutes and achieve more than 170 miles of range.

Most impressive is that Lightning has engineered a bike that set the land speed record at Bonneville Salt Flats, won the Pike Peaks challenge (14,115 feet in elevation) in Denver, and delivers a world-class riding experience! It’s the triples crown of the motorcycle world!

HIRO pushes Europe to the Edge with high performance microdata centers
Demystifying edge computing- what it is today and promise for tomorrow

Podcast host David Krakauer, VP of Corporate Marketing and Channel Strategy
Special Guest: Fred Buining CTO of HIRO-MicroDataCenters

A Dutch entrepreneurial technology company, HIRO-MicroDataCenters develops compact, high performance, reliable edge-to-edge infrastructures (hardware and software) and edge native services. Their edge micro data centers (EMDC) drive computing technology for Smart Cities and are behind many innovative advancements in edge computing that are changing our world.

Fred Buining CTO of HIRO explains that edge computing not only reduces latency, but mitigates security breaches and easily scales. Furthermore, there is a cost and power savings with EMDCs vs large scale data centers.

Installed in factories and smart hospitals and cities in Europe, HIRO’s EMDCs are powerful and efficient. “We have a fully passive cooling solution that is gravity driven,” said Buining. “So we don't have any spinning fans or spinning pump or anything. And it's purely gravity that drives the fluid going through the servers taking out the heat. The whole cooling solution saves you 40% or more.”

Learn more about how HIRO’s micro data centers are being used in operating rooms today