# Frontier Forum: How VPPs earn grid-scale trust [partner content]

- Show: [Catalyst](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst)
- Published: 2026-03-10
- Length: 35m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2026-03-10-frontier-forum-how-vpps-earn-grid-scale-trust-partner-content

## Summary

Stacy Phillips, Managing Director of Customer Load Management at Duke Energy, and Seth Frader-Thompson, President and Co-founder of EnergyHub, discuss how virtual power plants (VPPs) have evolved from traditional demand response into trusted grid-scale resources. They detail Duke Energy's deployment of tens of thousands of connected devices—including smart thermostats, batteries, and water heaters—to manage record-breaking winter peaks, highlighting the importance of repeatability and statistical forecasting. The conversation centers on EnergyHub's 'Huels Test' framework and VPP maturity model, which aims to prove that distributed fleets can perform with the reliability and predictability of traditional power plants, thereby earning the trust of utility operators and planners.

## Chapters

- [0:02](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2026-03-10-frontier-forum-how-vpps-earn-grid-scale-trust-partner-content#t=2) Introduction: Duke Energy's Winter Response and VPP Deployment
- [1:38](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2026-03-10-frontier-forum-how-vpps-earn-grid-scale-trust-partner-content#t=98) EnergyHub's 180 MW Capacity and Stacking Resources
- [2:31](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2026-03-10-frontier-forum-how-vpps-earn-grid-scale-trust-partner-content#t=151) The Shift from One-Way Switches to Interactive IoT Devices
- [3:58](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2026-03-10-frontier-forum-how-vpps-earn-grid-scale-trust-partner-content#t=238) Reducing Customer Friction and Improving Program Retention
- [5:42](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2026-03-10-frontier-forum-how-vpps-earn-grid-scale-trust-partner-content#t=342) Statistical Reliability and Scale in Large-Scale VPPs
- [8:29](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2026-03-10-frontier-forum-how-vpps-earn-grid-scale-trust-partner-content#t=509) From Demand Response to Operational Grid Resource
- [10:21](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2026-03-10-frontier-forum-how-vpps-earn-grid-scale-trust-partner-content#t=621) Duke Energy's Integrated Resource Planning and 'Shrinking the Challenge'
- [13:12](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2026-03-10-frontier-forum-how-vpps-earn-grid-scale-trust-partner-content#t=792) Distinguishing Traditional DR from Modern VPPs via Data and Scale
- [14:02](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2026-03-10-frontier-forum-how-vpps-earn-grid-scale-trust-partner-content#t=842) Duke's Pragmatic Approach: Using Existing Metering Infrastructure
- [16:27](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2026-03-10-frontier-forum-how-vpps-earn-grid-scale-trust-partner-content#t=987) The Huels Test: Can Operators Tell the Difference?
- [18:28](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2026-03-10-frontier-forum-how-vpps-earn-grid-scale-trust-partner-content#t=1108) Naming the Resource: 'Customer Power Plant' vs. VPP
- [20:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2026-03-10-frontier-forum-how-vpps-earn-grid-scale-trust-partner-content#t=1200) Regulatory Recognition and the VPP Maturity Model (Levels 0-4)
- [24:30](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2026-03-10-frontier-forum-how-vpps-earn-grid-scale-trust-partner-content#t=1470) Detailed Breakdown of VPP Maturity Levels 0 through 4
- [27:05](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2026-03-10-frontier-forum-how-vpps-earn-grid-scale-trust-partner-content#t=1625) Current Status: Duke at Level 2, Batteries at Level 3
- [29:30](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2026-03-10-frontier-forum-how-vpps-earn-grid-scale-trust-partner-content#t=1770) Integrating VPPs into Control Centers: The 'Single Pane of Glass'
- [32:50](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2026-03-10-frontier-forum-how-vpps-earn-grid-scale-trust-partner-content#t=1970) Future Outlook: VPPs as Core Infrastructure for Affordability and Reliability

## Topics

- [Connected products & IoT](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/connected-products-and-iot)
- [Energy & climate tech](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/energy-and-climate-tech)
- [Policy, trade & tariffs](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/policy-trade-and-tariffs)
- [Scaling production](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/scaling-production)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Duke Energy (company)
- EnergyHub (company)
- Huels Test (other)
- VPP Maturity Model (other)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Managing Energy At The Edge: Navigating The Modern Grid With Itron](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air/2024-09-05-managing-energy-at-the-edge-navigating-the-modern-grid-with-itron) (Over the Air)
- [Decentralizing the Energy Grid | Evergen's Nick McGrath | Internet of Things Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/iot-for-all-podcast/2022-11-15-decentralizing-the-energy-grid-evergens-nick-mcgrath-internet-of-things-podcast) (IoT For All Podcast)
- [Smart Grid](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ee-times-current/2018-09-21-smart-grid) (EE Times Current)
- [Aligning Passion With Purpose: A Journey to Electrification and Sustainability](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/moores-lobby/2025-06-17-aligning-passion-with-purpose-a-journey-to-electrification-and-sustainability) (Moore's Lobby)
- [Solving a Renewables Problem with Electric Vehicles](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ee-times-current/2021-05-28-solving-a-renewables-problem-with-electric-vehicles) (EE Times Current)

## Citing this page

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