# Kathy Hannun

> Kathy Hannun is the founder and CTO of Dandelion Energy, the residential geothermal company she incubated at Alphabet's X lab and spun out in 2017. A Stanford-trained civil engineer and computer scientist, she has spent her career turning an established but cumbersome technology into a repeatable home-heating product, first through retrofit installations in the Northeast and now through builder partnerships, proprietary equipment and financing designed for neighborhood-scale adoption.

- **Role:** Founder & CTO at Dandelion Energy
- **Organizations:** Dandelion Energy, Alphabet's X, Google, CalSEED, Noon Energy
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** B.S. in Civil Engineering, Stanford University, M.S. in Computer Science, Stanford University
- **Known for:** Co-founded Dandelion Energy after incubating the concept at Alphabet's X lab., Named one of MIT Technology Review's global Innovators Under 35 in 2019., Selected as a TED Fellow in 2020 and delivered the 2021 TED Talk 'How to heat your home without hurting the planet.'

## Career timeline

- **2009-2017** — Spent seven years at Google, beginning in customer support and eventually becoming a product manager and Rapid Evaluator at Alphabet's X lab.
- **2017** — Spun Dandelion out of X as an independent company and became its founding CEO.
- **2018** — Dandelion was named a Fast Company Most Innovative Company; Hannun was included among Fast Company's Most Creative People in Business.
- **2019** — Named to MIT Technology Review's global Innovators Under 35 list for work making geothermal practical and affordable.
- **2020** — Became a TED Fellow and received the U.S. C3E Entrepreneurship Award; moved from CEO to President as Dandelion added operating leadership.
- **2021** — Dandelion raised a $30 million Series B led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures; Hannun delivered a TED Talk on heating without fossil fuels.
- **2022** — Dandelion completed its 1,000th geothermal installation and raised a $70 million Series B1 round.
- **2024** — Recognized on CNBC's inaugural Changemakers list; Dandelion launched its Geo heat pump and closed a $40 million Series C.
- **2025** — Dandelion and Lennar announced plans for geothermal systems in more than 1,500 new Colorado homes.
- **2026** — Serving as Founder & CTO, Hannun emphasized neighborhood-scale new construction and geothermal leasing as routes to mass adoption.

## Achievements

- Co-founded Dandelion Energy after incubating the concept at Alphabet's X lab.
- Named one of MIT Technology Review's global Innovators Under 35 in 2019.
- Selected as a TED Fellow in 2020 and delivered the 2021 TED Talk 'How to heat your home without hurting the planet.'
- Received the U.S. Clean Energy Education & Empowerment Entrepreneurship Award in 2020.
- Named to Fast Company's Most Creative People in Business list in 2018.
- Named to CNBC's inaugural Changemakers list in 2024.
- Helped guide Dandelion from a two-person X spinout to a national geothermal equipment and deployment company.
- Serves on Dandelion Energy's board of directors.

## Latest updates

- **2026-03** — As Dandelion's Founder & CTO, Hannun described new construction, long-term incentives and geothermal leasing as the company's route from house-by-house adoption to neighborhood-scale deployment.
- **2025-10** — Dandelion launched a geothermal lease program; Hannun said the model enabled geothermal to reach cost parity with conventional HVAC for a major homebuilder.
- **2025-05** — Appeared on the Volts podcast to discuss ground-source heat-pump efficiency, grid demand and the economics of scaling installation.
- **2025-04** — Dandelion and Lennar announced a two-year plan to install geothermal systems in more than 1,500 new Colorado homes.
- **2024-09** — Dandelion launched the Dandelion Geo heat pump and closed a $40 million Series C led by GV to support national expansion.

## Links

- Website: https://dandelionenergy.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kathyhannun
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/DandelionEnergy
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/DandelionHomeEnergy/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/kathy-hannun
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-09-28