Episode 1: The Battery Belt Explained with Mike Oatridge
On the very first episode of The Battery Belt, we welcome Mike Oatridge, Executive Director of the Alabama Mobility & Power (AMP) Center at the University of Alabama.
In this episode, Mike shares firsthand insights from decades of experience across automotive and advanced manufacturing, offering a grounded look at how the region is evolving—fast. We discuss the rapid rise of EV and battery manufacturing in the Southeast, the $78 billion in investments transforming local economies, and how states like Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi are positioning themselves at the center of the nation’s mobility future.
Episode 2: The New Frontier with Alex Poirot
Welcome to Episode 2 of The Battery Belt. We’re joined by Alex Poirot, Head of External Affairs at Beep Inc., a proud UGA graduate, and former senior policy leader in the U.S. Congress and the U.S. Department of Transportation.
As electrification converges with AI and autonomous systems, the mobility industry’s center of gravity is shifting—beyond batteries and drivetrains and toward software, autonomy, and integrated AI platforms. That shift is accelerating across the Southeast, where the Battery Belt is rapidly becoming a national hub for next-generation mobility innovation.
In this episode, Alex shares how Beep is leading the deployment of autonomous electric shuttles and what real-world operations tell us about safety, public trust, workforce evolution, and the future of public transit. We also explore how AI-enabled mobility is reshaping infrastructure and regulation—and what that means for Georgia’s growing electric mobility ecosystem.
Episode 3: All About Batteries with Jill Pestana (Part 1)
In Part 1 of this two-part conversation, host Gabrielle Pierre sits down with Jill Pestana—Founder & CEO of Pestana Solutions, battery scientist, educator, and creator of Across the Nanoverse. With 15+ years of experience and over a dozen patents in battery science, Jill is one of the most trusted voices demystifying how batteries actually work.
This episode goes straight to the foundation of the Battery Belt story: the chemistry powering the Southeast’s transformation into an electric mobility and manufacturing powerhouse. Jill breaks down what’s happening inside a battery, why lithium-ion became the dominant platform, and what determines charging speed, lifespan, and performance in everything from EVs to smartphones.
We also dig into the rapidly evolving world of next-generation chemistries—solid-state, LFP, sodium-ion, and more—and explore what’s real, what’s hype, and what’s most likely to define the next decade of innovation.
Episode 4: All About Batteries with Jill Pestana (Part 2)
This episode continues our deep dive with battery expert Jill Pestana, Founder & CEO of Pestana Solutions.
In Part 1, Jill broke down the fundamentals of battery chemistry, why lithium-ion dominates today’s technology landscape, and what emerging chemistries—from solid-state to sodium-ion—mean for the future of mobility and energy storage. In Part 2, we move from the science to the systems shaping how these technologies scale across the Battery Belt and beyond.
This episode explores the path from lab breakthroughs to full-scale U.S. manufacturing, the policy and infrastructure challenges ahead, and how batteries are transforming far more than vehicles. From grid-scale storage to AI and data center demand, we look at the massive opportunities emerging across the Southeast’s rapidly expanding energy ecosystem.
