Tobe Energy

TOBE Energy is an Oklahoma-based developer of a next-generation green hydrogen electrolysis system. Its electrolyzer uses a pulsed waveform architecture and a membrane-free cell design intended to eliminate waste heat and simplify the water-splitting process. The company states system efficiency above 92% (based on higher heating value, 42.2 kWh/kg H2), roughly eight times less heat loss than conventional systems, operation below 30°C without active cooling, and a five times smaller footprint. The design avoids platinum, iridium and rare earth metals in favor of commodity materials, including readily available U.S. stainless steel, and is described as 95% U.S.-sourced and built in Oklahoma City. Architecture is modular, scaling by replication rather than re-engineering.

The company positions the technology for large-scale industrial hydrogen use across fertilizer, fuel, food, pharmaceutical and steel production, and for emerging applications including 24/7 renewable power without batteries, AI data center energy storage, and e-fuels. Investor materials describe a roughly 75% reduction in capital cost and 50%+ lower operating cost versus conventional electrolyzers, and a 94.7% efficiency figure. Using its hydrogen with atmospheric carbon dioxide, TOBE says it can produce synthetic natural gas alternatives projected, with federal tax credits, to be cheaper than fossil fuels by 2027.

TOBE is pre-commercial, with a prototype that has logged 1,000 hours of runtime, regulatory certification work under way, and a memorandum of understanding with Zeeco covering a first hydrogen production pilot plant at Zeeco's Advanced Research Complex in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma.

Founding story

Founder and CEO Colby DeWeese is a University of Tulsa chemical engineering graduate who began his career in oil and gas, managing more than $75 million in oil, gas and petrochemical infrastructure projects, and grew up prototyping electronics with his father, the inventor of the TiVo. After becoming disillusioned with inefficiencies in traditional energy systems he moved into renewables, working first on hydrogen combustion and then green hydrogen production, and served as principal process engineer at Hydrogen Technologies, where he led design and delivery of a first-of-its-kind zero-emission hydrogen boiler. He founded TOBE after developing a new electrolysis process, which he characterizes as an efficiency leap comparable to the shift from incandescent bulbs to LEDs. Co-founder Caleb Lareau, also a UTulsa alumnus, studied mathematics and biochemistry before earning a doctorate at Harvard and co-founding Cartography Biosciences.

Business model

TOBE designs and manufactures electrolyzer systems sold to industrial hydrogen users, offering budgetary quotes and configured system pricing through an online sizing calculator and direct engineering consultation. Manufacturing is domestic, in Oklahoma City, with a modular architecture that scales by adding units.

Sale of configured electrolyzer systems to industrial customers, quoted on production requirements.

Traction

A zero-emission hydrogen prototype has logged 1,000 hours of runtime. The company is advancing regulatory certifications and has signed a memorandum of understanding with Zeeco for a first hydrogen production pilot plant at Zeeco's Advanced Research Complex in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. It has raised a $1.8 million seed round and a subsequent investment from UTulsa's Hurricane Ventures.

Latest developments

In December 2025 the University of Tulsa and Hurricane Ventures announced an investment in the company. Trade and general press coverage continued into January 2026, including a CleanTechnica feature on the company's electrolyzer technology and Oklahoma's role in clean hydrogen.