This week, Brynne Kennedy and Chris Skidmore speak with two leaders shaping the future of digital infrastructure, AI, and industrial energy systems: Tomas Lamanauskas, Deputy Secretary General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) at the United Nations, and Fredrik Isler, CFO of ETH Zurich spin-out ANYbotics.

Brynne and Chris open with a discussion on how geopolitics, energy security, and AI are increasingly intertwined. They explore the shift from carbon-centric narratives toward cost, sovereignty, and competition for electrons and molecules, the implications of AI-driven electricity demand for grids and consumers, and why hyperscalers are being pushed toward behind-the-meter and co-located power solutions.

Tomas Lamanauskas reflects on his journey from telecom regulation across multiple continents to shaping global digital policy at the ITU. He explains how AI and connectivity can reduce emissions through smarter networks, grids, and cities, while also addressing the growing footprint of digital infrastructure itself. Tomas shares insights into the ITU’s Green Digital Action agenda, including standards-based approaches to sustainable data centers, AI-enabled efficiency, early warning systems, and integrating sustainability into next-generation technologies.

Fredrik Isler discusses how ANYbotics is bringing AI into the physical world through autonomous inspection robots deployed across energy and industrial environments. He explains why robotics is becoming essential infrastructure for asset monitoring, safety, and operational efficiency, how certification unlocks adoption in regulated industries, and why Switzerland’s ETH and EPFL ecosystems are producing globally competitive deep-tech scale-ups.

This week, Brynne Kennedy and Rt Hon Chris Skidmore OBE speak with two leaders shaping global climate policy and the future of on-site power: Catherine McKenna, former Canadian Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Chair of the UN Net Zero Expert Group, and Shannon Miller, Co-Founder and CEO of Mainspring Energy.

Brynne and Chris discuss the key outcomes from COP in Brazil, the rising strain between AI-driven electricity demand and grid capacity, and the renewed focus on nuclear power as clean baseload. They examine how geopolitics, permitting, and implementation are now central to the energy transition.

Catherine McKenna reflects on her path from negotiating the Paris Agreement to defining global net-zero standards at the UN. She outlines what drives real climate action today: credible regulation, pricing climate risk, ending public fossil fuel finance, and ensuring policy certainty for investors.

Shannon Miller explains how Mainspring’s linear generator technology delivers reliable, fuel-flexible on-site power for data centers, industrial users, and logistics hubs. She highlights deployments with partners like Prologis and utilities, showing how microgrids and modular systems are accelerating clean, resilient power where it’s needed most.

In this new episode of The Smart Society Show, co-hosts Brynne Kennedy and Chris Skidmore speak with two leaders at the forefront of global infrastructure and AI-enabled clean power: Sir Danny Alexander, CEO of HSBC Infrastructure Finance & Sustainability, and John Diklev, founder & CEO of Flower.

Brynne and Chris begin with insights from COP and the rising pressure on global power systems—from AI-driven electricity demand to the growing focus on energy security, sovereignty, and the practical challenge of building reliable, affordable, clean power at scale.

In our Climate Leaders segment, Sir Danny Alexander reflects on his experience in UK government and multilateral development finance, sharing how blended finance, stable policy, and smarter regulation can unlock capital for the energy transition across global markets.

In the Chasing Unicorns segment, John Diklev explains how Flower is creating AI-optimised clean power by combining renewable assets with flexible storage and real-time trading. He introduces Green Baseload, Flower’s model for delivering reliable, affordable clean energy to data centers and industry.