Former Tesla exec and Heron Power CEO Drew Baglino has founded a heat pump startup

Former Tesla enforcement Drew Baglino has softly founded a vigor pump startup, TechCrunch has learned.

This is the 2nd institution founded by Baglino successful the 2 years since helium near Tesla. Sources confirmed the beingness of the startup, called Sadi Thermal Machines, and TechCrunch has reviewed institution filings successful Delaware and California.

Sadi was formed successful June 2025 and shares its Scotts Valley, California, office with Heron Power, a startup besides founded by Baglino, that sells solid-state transformers, according to institution filings.

The sanction of the institution is an evident notation to Nicolas Léonard Sadi Carnot, a pioneering French physicist whose enactment formed the instauration of modern thermodynamics, including the interior combustion motor and the vigor pump. Little is known astir Sadi Thermal Machines, however, it appears to employment respective Tesla alumni, according to a reappraisal of LinkedIn and a root acquainted with the startup.

TechCrunch was incapable to scope Baglino oregon the PR steadfast that represents Heron Power. This nonfiction volition beryllium updated if they respond.

Before founding Heron Power and Sadi Thermal Machines, Baglino spent astir 2 decades astatine Tesla, wherever helium worked connected everything from the archetypal Roadster to the Powerwall and Powerpack vigor retention systems. When Baglino left Tesla successful April 2024, helium had risen to elder vice president, overseeing the improvement of the company’s halfway vigor technologies, including electrical motors, batteries, and powerfulness electronics.

Along the way, Baglino worked connected Tesla’s vigor pumps. He’s cited arsenic an inventor connected a patent for a thermal absorption strategy that operates 2 coolant loops, 1 to chill the artillery and different to chill drivetrain components.

To negociate the 2 loops, Baglino and his teammates developed three-way and four-way valves that springiness an EV’s thermal absorption strategy much blase power implicit the somesthesia of assorted components. Such a strategy allows Tesla to harvest vigor from the traction motor, for example, and usage it to pre-heat the artillery to guarantee optimal show erstwhile accelerated charging successful acold weather.

The patent lays retired immoderate of the plan principles that signifier the ground of Tesla’s “octovalve” strategy that archetypal appeared successful the Model Y. The vigor pump successful that conveyance manages the somesthesia of the cabin, batteries, and motors, each successful a bundle that’s astir the size of a suitcase.

When it debuted, Tesla’s octovalve strategy was much precocious than that of its competitors, and for astatine slightest a little period, the institution considered processing a vigor pump for residential and commercialized settings. Tesla executives, including Baglino and CEO Elon Musk, mused connected specified a strategy during an earnings call successful 2022. They discussed a vigor pump that would grip some HVAC and h2o heating.

“From a ngo perspective, it’s precise aligned,” Baglino said. “We person learned a batch astir however to marque susceptible and reliable vigor pumps that enactment successful each biology conditions and are excited astir the thought of moving connected that occupation 1 day. Let maine enactment it that way, it’s decidedly aligned with our ngo to accelerate the modulation to sustainable energy.”

Making a vigor pump for the home, helium added, would beryllium easier. “Way harder successful a vehicle,” helium said. “It’s truthful constrained connected wide and measurement and energy.”

But Musk past added 1 of his celebrated qualifiers. “It is simply a happening we volition do, but we’re not committing to a clip framework astatine this point,” helium said. Tesla has yet to merchandise a residential HVAC oregon h2o heating system.

“People should bash it anyway,” Baglino said connected the call. With Sadi Thermal Machines, helium appears poised to marque bully connected that statement.