Al Gore, Conflict of Interest?
The New York Times does a great job exposing an apparent conflict of interest regarding Al Gore’s positioning as a major investor in green technologies.
Albeit not been a fan of Mr. Gore, I have to admire his business savvy.
Silver Spring Network (SSN), a small hardware and software company, presented a proposal to Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield, & Byers (KPCB), a venture capital provider, asking for capital to expand operations. Mr. Gore is a partner at KPCB.
Their basic request was for $75 million of venture capital. According to the New York Times, SSN received a $560 million grant from the Department of Energy.
Is there any hanky panky there? Who knows?
Of course, Mr. Gore denies any wrong doing.
SSN specializes in developing “intelligent IP based networking products”. Why this is important? Because as we develop green based technologies; we need a way to integrate this new energies into the Nation’s infrastructure. If you have a way to produce massive amounts of energy, but cannot deliver it to the public, your company will, most likely, fail.
By providing the “initial” grant, Al Gore has positioned himself along with his partners in an enviable position to become incredibly rich.
As a firm believer in capitalism, I say, God bless him. The more money he invest and moves, the more jobs that are created. Smart grid technologies are the way of the future.
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