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From Stranded Wind to AI Computing: How Soluna Built a New Category
Six and a half years ago, a lunch meeting sparked an idea that would transform wasted renewable energy into computing power for AI. Today, that idea has attracted $180 million in funding and is reshaping how we think about sustainable computing infrastructure.
In a recent episode of Category Visionaries, John Belizaire, CEO of Soluna, shared how a stranded wind project in Northern Africa led to building a category-defining company at the intersection of renewable energy and artificial intelligence.
The Origin Story: When Clean Energy Meets Computing
“One of my board members was sitting down with me for lunch and explained that he and his family office were working on a project in Northern Africa,” John recalls. “It was a very large renewable energy project and it was running into this problem where the power of the site was stranded.”
The challenge was clear: they had access to one of the world’s best wind resources, but the local grid wasn’t ready to handle that magnitude of power. Rather than let this clean energy go to waste, they began exploring alternative solutions.
The team discovered that computing, specifically blockchain mining, could absorb excess clean energy. This realization led them to a broader insight: stranded energy wasn’t just a Morocco problem—it was a global opportunity.
Building Trust in Conservative Markets
Launching a new category required careful navigation of risk-averse power plant owners. “The last thing a power plant wants is for you to damage that equipment,” John explains, highlighting their initial challenge of convincing potential partners to trust their solution.
Their early go-to-market strategy relied heavily on outbound calls and education. The team had to systematically address concerns about connecting computing facilities to critical power infrastructure. This missionary selling phase laid the groundwork for their later success.
Content Marketing as a Category Creation Tool
Perhaps the most fascinating aspect of Soluna’s growth story is how they transformed their pipeline from 80% outbound to 80% inbound through content marketing. They built what John describes as “a small media company” within Soluna, producing their own podcast, articles, and newsletters focused on renewable energy challenges.
“You can start by setting a block of time in your calendar,” John advises founders. “Have your marketing people just come into your office and start asking you questions on tape. What you have there is raw material that can get reproduced into a series of content pieces.”
This systematic approach to content creation allowed them to scale their education efforts efficiently. One conversation could become a blog post, podcast episode, video content, and various other marketing assets.
The AI Acceleration
While Soluna initially focused on cryptocurrency mining as their computing use case, they had always planned to expand into broader applications. “We wrote this business plan that had a three to five year strategy in it,” John explains. “What we didn’t know was that generative AI would take off so much sooner than our plan.”
This acceleration proved fortunate. Their flexible computing infrastructure, designed to handle the variable nature of renewable energy, was perfectly suited for AI workloads—just as the industry faced growing power constraints.
The Future of Renewable Computing
Looking ahead, Soluna aims to achieve complete convergence between renewable energy and computing infrastructure. Their vision includes having “the first power plant and data center being built at the same time…as one integrated project.”
This journey from a stranded wind project to building sustainable AI infrastructure demonstrates how category creation often starts with solving one specific problem well, then expanding as market opportunities align. For B2B founders, it’s a masterclass in patient education, systematic content creation, and strategic evolution of category positioning.
Actionable
Takeaways
Master the missionary sell:
John emphasized the importance of education and de-risking in the early stages of category creation. When introducing a novel solution, focus on addressing customer concerns systematically and finding early adopters willing to validate your approach. The first six months were spent convincing power plant owners that computing facilities could work effectively with their operations.
Leverage content marketing for scalable education:
Initially relying on outbound calls, Soluna transformed their pipeline by investing heavily in content marketing through podcasts, newsletters, articles, and social media. This education-first approach led to 80% of their pipeline becoming inbound leads. B2B founders should view content as a scalable way to address common customer questions and concerns before the first meeting.
Build an integrated content engine:
Rather than viewing content creation as an overwhelming task, start with recorded conversations that can be repurposed across multiple formats. One conversation can become a blog post, podcast episode, video content, and email sequences. This approach creates a content library that continuously generates marketing assets while maintaining consistent messaging.
Target the convergence of major trends:
Soluna positioned itself at the intersection of renewable energy, cryptocurrency, and AI computing. While some of this alignment was fortunate timing, the company's planned evolution from cryptocurrency to broader computing applications allowed them to capitalize on the AI boom. B2B founders should look for similar convergence opportunities in their markets.
Focus on systemic industry problems:
Soluna identified that renewable energy curtailment was a widespread issue affecting plant profitability. By understanding the "McDonald's and Burger King problem" of optimal resource locations creating grid congestion, they developed a solution that addressed a fundamental industry challenge rather than a point problem.
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