This week on Downstream, Aaron Bastani is joined by the British national treasure you haven’t heard of: green energy pioneer Dale Vince. A self-made multi-millionaire, Vince tells the story of how he went from being a scrap man, living in a van, to building the UK’s first electric wind... turbine from scratch. After founding his company Ecotricity, the world’s first clean energy company, Vince went on to develop a slew of innovations. These include the world’s first electric car, and the world’s first electric charging network - which Elon Musk and Tesla tried to steal off him, resulting in a David-versus-Goliath legal battle. In the years that followed, Vince funded Just Stop Oil, has been a major donor to the Labour Party in recent years, and he runs Forest Green Rovers, the world’s first vegan football club. His next project? Creating an edible form of high protein-grass. This is an inspiring interview with a man who saw the future, then made it happen. Watch the full episode on our YouTube now.show more

@AaronBastani @DaleVince @DaleVince is an absolute grifter

@AaronBastani @DaleVince You seem to have spelt National Disgrace wrong. This man built a business on taxpayer subsidies after spending his youth shitting in farmers fields and ruining lives/livelihoods on a hippy bus. He then laughed at us all as he quaffed champagne on private jets.

@AaronBastani @DaleVince I thought you lot were journalists. There’s virtually nothing right in this post

@AaronBastani @DaleVince Describing Dale Vince as a "British national treasure" is beyond parody.

@AaronBastani @DaleVince The guys a scam artist of the highest caliber, pioneer my arse 😂

@AaronBastani @DaleVince When did this guy see the light exactly?

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World’s first electric car? The history of the electric car spans nearly two centuries and involves several key milestones and inventors: •Early Prototypes (1828–1839): •The earliest known electric vehicles were small-scale models. In 1828, Hungarian inventor Ányos Jedlik built a tiny model car powered by his own electric motor. •Between 1832 and 1839, Scottish inventor Robert Anderson developed a crude electric carriage powered by non-rechargeable primary cells. While not practical for daily use, Anderson’s carriage is often cited as the first electric car prototype. •First Practical Electric Vehicle (1881): •In April 1881, French inventor Gustave Trouvé successfully tested what is considered the world’s first human-carrying electric vehicle—a tricycle powered by a rechargeable battery and an improved Siemens electric motor. This marked the first public demonstration of a practical, self-propelled electric vehicle. •First Production Electric Car (1884): •English inventor Thomas Parker built the first production electric car in Wolverhampton in 1884, using specially designed high-capacity rechargeable batteries. Parker is credited with electrifying the London Underground and advancing battery technology, making his vehicle a significant step toward commercial electric cars. •First “Real” Electric Car (1888): •In 1888, German engineer Andreas Flocken created the Flocken Elektrowagen, which is often regarded as the first “real” electric car due to its four-wheel design and practical usability. •First Successful U.S. Electric Car (1890): •In the United States, William Morrison of Des Moines, Iowa, built an electric carriage around 1890. This vehicle could carry six passengers at up to 14 mph and is considered the first successful electric car in America, sparking broader interest and development in electric vehicles.

@Jojosdojo @AaronBastani @DaleVince The guy who took @UKLabour money to support their candidates in targeted seats held by / winnable by the Green Party, at the last general election? Very strange choice of language to describe Vince as an unknown national treasure?!…

@AaronBastani Two comments: 1) Can Vince explain how he got the land (on Tinkley Lane)? 2) Tesla didn't try and 'steal' his (poorly performing) network. They wanted to break Vince's monopoly at motorway sites, which was strangling EV adoption. Look at CMA ruling at the time Vince sold.

@AaronBastani @DaleVince National treasure? Even for you that’s stupid, how would his business model work without the green levy?