Load Management Dialogue

Join Us For:

Nest's Solar Eclipse Rush Hour Rewards Program

with Aaron Berndt, Google, and Nicholas Corsetti, National Grid

Thursday, July 19, 2018
12:30 - 1:00 p.m. Eastern

WATCH WEBINAR RECORDING HERE

Learn why Nest's Solar Eclipse Rush Hour Rewards Program was a 15th PLMA Award Winner as a Technology Pioneer.

Nest achieved unprecedented consumer engagement in its Rush Hour Rewards program during the solar eclipse on August 21, 2017 by recruiting 750,000 Nest devices to shift 700 MW of cumulative demand. During the eclipse, many grid operators predicted that solar energy production would be reduced by as much as 9,000 MW. Nest launched a wide-reaching marketing campaign to recruit customers to reduce their cooling energy use during the eclipse by opting into a special Rush Hour Rewards event with just one click on their Nest Learning Thermostat. The number of customers who participated is unparalleled in any other demand response program to date. The success of this campaign demonstrates that consumer-friendly, multi-channel marketing campaigns coupled with a simplified one-click opt-in experience can drive consumer engagement significantly to manage energy load.

Aaron Berndt

Google

Aaron Berndt is Head of Central Region Energy Partnerships at Google, where he works with utility partners to develop customer-focused energy programs that leverage Nest products. Prior to joining Nest, Aaron was a leader in PG&E's Customer Energy Solutions team, with responsibility for the delivery of key products and programs in PG&E's portfolio. Aaron holds a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering from the University of Minnesota and an M.B.A from U.C. Berkeley Haas School of Business.

Nick Corsetti

National Grid

Nick Corsetti has held various roles at the northeast electric and gas utility National Grid, including in residential energy efficiency program strategy, the customer lead for National Grid’s Smart Energy Solutions smart grid pilot program, and most recently as a lead architect of the Company’s grid modernization strategy for Massachusetts, New York, and Rhode Island.