Create clean technology: that’s Manoj Bargahva’s mantra. He’s the mind behind the small 5-Hour Energy drink bottle you see sold in stores on almost every corner. Worth around $4 billion dollars, Bargahva has pledged to use 90% of that money to serve others around the globe. He feels a certain responsibility to invent and invest in products and technology which will help poorer people (particularly those still living in unindustrialized communities) achieve a decent quality of life. Manoj sees this starting with having power and water.
“If you’re given more — more is expected of you.”
Free Electric Bike
According to the World Bank, around 1.1 billion people around the globe still do not have access to electricity. About 2.9 billion use solid fuels — wood, charcoal, coal, and dung — for cooking and heating. One of Manoj’s stipulations in creating new technologies is that they must not have a negative impact on the planet. He says “that’s the ideal invention,” explaining that “simple stuff is the greatest, because it impacts everything and doesn’t have unintended consequences.”
