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Founder / Operator·Clean Energy

Lynn Jurich

Executive Co-Chair, Co-Founder at Sunrun

San Francisco, CA

LJ
LinkedIn
Why they matter

Defined the residential solar TPO model and remains one of the most credible operator-investors in distributed clean energy.

Background

Co-founded Sunrun in 2007 with Stanford GSB classmates Edward Fenster and Nat Kreamer. Served as Sunrun's CEO from 2014 through 2021, when she transitioned to Executive Co-Chair and Mary Powell took over as CEO. Before Sunrun she was an associate at Summit Partners (private equity). Stanford BA 2002, Stanford GSB MBA 2007. Sunrun pioneered the solar-as-a-service business model that catalyzed the U.S. residential solar industry.

Notable deals

  • 2015
    Took Sunrun public on NASDAQ at a $1.6B valuation, the first pure-play residential solar IPO.
  • 2020
    Led Sunrun's $3.2B all-stock acquisition of Vivint Solar, creating the largest U.S. residential solar company.
  • 2021
    Transitioned to Executive Co-Chair as Mary Powell (former Green Mountain Power CEO) became CEO.

Call-prep brief

Background

Lynn co-founded Sunrun (NASDAQ: RUN) in 2007 and ran it for ~14 years as it became the U.S. residential solar leader. She's now Executive Co-Chair, which means she's still close to strategy but freed up bandwidth. Ideal time to engage.

What she cares about

  • Distributed energy as a system, not a product. Residential solar + storage + VPPs + grid services.
  • Capital efficiency in customer acquisition. Sunrun's deepest moat is securitized cash flow, not panels.
  • Policy stability post-IRA: she's vocal about durable tax-credit structures.

Recent moves

  • Stepped back to Co-Chair role to focus on board governance and ecosystem-level positioning.
  • Active on the Stanford GSB advisory circuit; selectively angel-invests in climate-software.

Sensitivities

  • Don't pitch residential solar 1.0 (panels-on-roof installer roll-ups); she's seen that movie.
  • Avoid utility-side framings. Sunrun's identity is built on disintermediating the IOU.

Questions to ask

  1. Where does she see the next durable franchise in distributed energy: VPP aggregation, storage as a service, or behind-the-meter financing?
  2. Which residential-solar-adjacent categories are mispriced after the post-IRA shakeout?
  3. Who are the 2-3 founders in climate she's quietly backing right now?

Outreach draft

Subject
Distributed energy thesis: would value 20 minutes
Hi Lynn, I lead clean-energy investing at [Firm]. We're developing a thesis on what comes after residential-solar 1.0; specifically, the financing layer and grid-services adjacencies you've been pointing at publicly. Your perspective from both the Sunrun seat and your Co-Chair vantage point would be enormously valuable. Would you have 20 minutes in the next two weeks for a no-agenda conversation? Happy to share our early notes ahead of time. Best regards, [Your name] [Your firm]

Linked companies

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