"800 Billion Little Behaviour Changes": Mick Liubinskas on Commercialising Climate Tech

<p>In this episode, Steve Grace sits down with Mick Liubinskas — founder of Climate Salad — to unpack how a simple newsletter turned into an industry body representing over 800 companies, and why Australia is world-class at inventing technology but historically terrible at commercialising it.</p><p><br /></p><p>Mick breaks down the massive difference between scaling software and industrial hardware, why the real funding gap isn't at the start but in the messy middle, and why he predicts a massive economic tipping point for climate tech in 2027 driven by policy and profit, not just goodwill.</p><p><br /></p><p>They also dive into:</p><p>- Why Australian corporations refuse to be the "first customer" for local tech</p><p>- The "Valley of Death" for funding physical infrastructure</p><p>- Real examples of deep tech: Jet engines running on sewage and infinite thermal batteries</p><p>- The generational shift from "doing less bad" to "nature first"</p><p>- How Wright’s Law is driving down the cost of batteries and solar</p><p>- Why capitalist business models are the fastest way to solve climate problems</p><p><br /></p><p>Timestamps:</p><p>0:00 From newsletter to industry body </p><p>1:20 The accidental founding of Climate Salad </p><p>5:33 Australia’s commercialization crisis </p><p>6:37 Why hardware is harder than software </p><p>12:14 Capitalism vs. Climate Change </p><p>15:53 The investment "Valley of Death"</p><p>17:54 Jet engines running on sewage </p><p>19:33 The Generational Divide: Nature First </p><p>26:19 The 2027 Tipping Point Prediction </p><p>35:43 Antarctica and the fragility of nature </p><p><br /></p><p>Links:</p><p>Climate Salad → https://www.climatesalad.com/ </p><p>Connect with Mick → https://www.linkedin.com/in/mliubinskas/</p><p>The Nudge Group → https://thenudgegroup.com/</p><p>Give It A Nudge Podcast → https://www.youtube.com/@giveitanudge/</p><p>Steve on LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevegrace/</p><p>The Trouble With People → https://thetroublewithpeople.substack.com/</p>