The Shifted Energy team has decades of experience in software development, distributed energy resources and markets, and scaling innovative technology companies. We also have deep roots in community engagement and development with former members of the Peace Corps, Americorps and U.S. Navy.
Leadership
Forest Frizzell
Co-Founder & CEO
Forest Frizzell has spent his entire career in the tech industry with leadership roles in government, nonprofit, and utilities. He has significant experience leading and scaling technology teams and projects. As Deputy Director of Information Technology at the City & County of Honolulu, he spearheaded several infrastructure upgrade initiatives that resulted in the City being awarded #1 Digital City by the Center for Digital Government. As Director of Information Technology at Hawaii Gas, he was tasked with the establishment of the IT strategy and its alignment with the objectives and results of the Company. He successfully implemented and scaled multiple internal infrastructure upgrades including transitioning from an on-premise to cloud-based infrastructure.
He is the Board President for Purple Maiʻa Foundation. He has presented at TEDx Honolulu and was selected as one of 13 emerging local leaders in the inaugural class of the Pierre Omidyar Fellows program. He received recognition as one of Pacific Business News’ Forty Under 40, and Hawai‘i Business’ 20 for the Next 20: People to Watch.
Olin Lagon
Co-Founder & CTO
Olin Lagon is a technology innovator and social entrepreneur with a long-time passion for sustainability. He has co-authored ten technology patents, co-founded several companies, and helped invent groundbreaking technologies in diverse fields including content localization and crowdfunding.
His startup ChipIn helped launch the crowdfunding industry and directed nearly $100 million to causes worldwide. ChipIn also launched Sprout which was acquired by inMobi and renamed inMobi Studio, a visual tool that pioneered the creation of highly interactive mobile ads without the need for coding.
Half of Olin’s life has been spent in service including the U.S. Navy, the Peace Corps and several nonprofits. His service work has been recognized by numerous local and national organizations including Entrepreneur of the Year for Social Impact (HVCA), Small Business Advocate of the Year (SBA), Torch Award (BBB), Our Geniuses (Honolulu Magazine), 25 who will shape the next 25 years (Hawaii Business), and Petra Fellow (New York).
Born and raised in Hawaii, Olin grew up in a single parent household in public housing. He lives in Kalihi Valley with his wife, two young sons, and dog.
Team
Advisors
Accelerator Partners
In 2019, we were accepted into Wells Fargo’s Innovation Incubator (IN2) which provides funding and technical assistance to smart energy and building startups that leverages the capabilities, facilities, equipment and deep expertise that exists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).
In 2020, we were accepted into EnergyLab’s Smart Energy Accelerator, an intense three-month prototyping sprint to develop, iterate and deploy IoT solutions in Tasmania. Participants take a smart energy or smart cities idea, develop fully functional prototypes, and trial it with local partners.
We completed Elemental Excelerator’s Go-To-Market and Demonstration Tracks. One of the world’s best energy accelerator, the program is funded by a diverse coalition of utility and corporate partners, the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Department of Energy, state government, and philanthropic organizations.
We were one of two startup winners of the Urban Future Prize Competition, which brings the brightest climatetech entrepreneurs together with mission-driven investors, policy leaders, and the community. New York’s forward-thinking governments, thriving tech sector, and massive scale make it one of the top startup cleantech economies in the world.
Shifted Energy was selected from hundreds of startups as part of the 2021 global cohort of the Incubatenergy® Labs program. We have partnered with Tucson Electric Power on a project to demonstrate the benefits of machine learning applied to distributed energy resource management and optimization.
In 2021, Shifted Energy was selected as one of the six startups for Joules Accelerator’s Cohort 9 out of 500 applicants. Joules Accelerator enables the growth of high-potential clean energy startups by connecting them to utilities, customers and key industry players for pilot and commercialization opportunities.
In 2022, we were selected as one of the 12 companies out of 424 applicants from 58 countries to participate in the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Clean Energy Accelerator. Centered on the needs of advanced startups, the program is designed to spur co-innovation and acceleration through energy partnerships.
Investors
Elemental Excelerator is a non-profit organization created in collaboration with Emerson Collective’s Elemental Platform, which is focused on balancing the needs of humanity and nature by supporting scalable, equitable and innovative solutions.
Ulupono Initiative is a Hawaii-focused impact investing firm working to improve the quality of life for island residents in four key areas: locally produced food; clean, renewable energy; and better management of water and waste. Part of the Omidyar Group.
Skyview Ventures was founded in 2008 to pursue investment opportunities in renewable energy. Investments fall along four themes: environmental commodities; solar project finance, development and ownership; electric vehicle infrastructure; and early-stage startups.
Based in El Paso, Texas, Hunt is a diversified, family-owned holding company that invests in operating businesses, real estate assets, and infrastructure assets. Since their founding in 1947, Hunt’s size and scope have grown substantially while gaining considerable expertise across multiple real asset sectors.
EPIC Ventures is a premier early stage software and Internet infrastructure venture firm whose mission is to back entrepreneurs and companies positioned to lead the information economy of tomorrow.