Coffee with a Founder Podcast: Jack Rusk, C.Scale

09- Jun-2026

On today's episode, Beck Bamberger sits down with Jack Rusk, founder and CEO of C.Scale, a company helping the building industry navigate one of its biggest challenges: reducing carbon emissions without sacrificing cost, efficiency, or growth.

Before launching Sea Scale, Jack spent years working across policy, sustainability, and technology at organizations like Autodesk and Schneider Electric. Now, he's bringing those worlds together to help architects, manufacturers, developers, and builders make smarter decisions about the materials shaping our cities.

Their conversation explores the realities of building a venture-backed company in climate tech, why trust is still the most valuable currency in construction, and how data can help bridge the gap between sustainability goals and business outcomes. Along the way, they discuss startup ecosystems, leadership lessons, and what it takes to create change in an industry responsible for nearly 40% of global carbon emissions.

show notes:

00:00 - Meeting co-founder Brad Jacobson

03:37 - Collaborating on sustainable construction

07:50 - Addressing market inefficiencies

11:02 - Adapting to the current world

15:40 - Digital tools in construction industry

17:07 - Closing the design-supply chain gap

20:25 - Discussing relationship dynamics

Read More About The Episode:

0:12 – What is C.Scale?
Beck welcomes Jack Rusk, the founder and CEO of C.Scale, who explain the company’s mission of delivering “carbon clarity from concept to construction.” They discuss how data-driven insights help architects, builders, and manufacturers make smarter decisions that reduce the carbon footprint of buildings.

1:55 – A Diverse Career Before Founding C.Scale
The conversation explores the founder’s path through public policy and work with major corporations, leading to the decision to leave established organizations behind and build a company focused on solving one of construction’s biggest sustainability challenges.

3:19 – The Origin Story of C.Scale
The founders share how their complementary backgrounds—one rooted in data and technology, the other in architecture and design—revealed a critical industry gap. Together, they combined their expertise to create C.Scale.

5:30 – Balancing Cost Savings and Decarbonization
The discussion turns to the economics of sustainable construction, exploring why framing decarbonization through cost savings can drive greater adoption and how aligning incentives across stakeholders remains one of the industry's biggest hurdles.

9:30 – Why Trust Matters in Construction
The team explains that construction is fundamentally a relationship-driven business. Rather than replacing professionals, C.Scale empowers architects, engineers, and builders with clearer data and actionable insights to strengthen decision-making.

14:09 – Unlocking Collaboration Between Designers and Manufacturers
The conversation highlights a major breakthrough for C.Scale: bridging the disconnect between architects and manufacturers. By improving collaboration and information sharing, they aim to accelerate innovation and make low-carbon building more accessible and scalable.