On today’s show (recorded at my guest’s own home in Jerusalem) I’m chatting with Israel (aka “Yisrael”) Kroizer, the Co-Founder and CTO of SolarGik - a company he founded in 2021 with a team of long-time solar energy veterans, including his son.
It is hard to overstate the importance of Yisrael Kroizer in the world of solar energy. In 1980, and at the age of only 27, he was appointed Chief Engineer of the Israeli company Luz, which built the world's first solar power plant in California and proved that it was technically and economically possible. At the age of 34, he was CEO of the company, which employed 500 people in Israel.
In 1991 Luz went bankrupt, according to Kroizer, "because the solar energy market disappeared." Indeed, at that time oil prices in the world dropped and solar energy production became unprofitable. "I fired 400 people from Luz in Israel, but they all remained my friends and they were all ready to come back when we started over with BrightSource.”
After Luz, when solar technology turned from a means of producing relatively cheap electricity to a way to save the world, he led one of the main technologies that competed for its production - the solar towers. He did this through Brightsource Industries Israel - a company he founded and served as President of from 2006 to 2021.
Today, the SolarGik company he founded with his son is engaged in the development and refinement of photovoltaic technology - which tracks sunlight and converts it directly into electricity.
This episode is brought to you from Jerusalem - one of my favourite cities! Thank you for listening.
Some other key topics discussed in this episode:
- Living in Jerusalem as a businessperson
- What solar technology is and isn’t
- Firing 400 people as the CEO of a bankrupt company
- Why Israel is often dubbed the “Startup Nation”
- How to put family before career
–
Follow The Founder Tapes on Instagram, TikTok and LinkedIn
Subscribe to The Founder Tapes on YouTube! Full video episodes are coming soon.
–
Find Yisrael Kroizer on LinkedIn
–
Music License Number - QK7rZS
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.