Energy
We Mapped Every Large Solar Plant On The Planet Using Satellites And Machine Learning
An astonishing 82% decrease in the cost of solar photovoltaic (PV) energy since 2010 has given the world a fighting chance to build a zero-emissions energy system which might be less costly than the fossil-fuelled system it replaces. The International Energy Agency projects that PV solar generating capacity must grow ten-fold by 2040 if we …
This Is How AI Will Accelerate The Energy Transition
Digital technologies – AI in particular – can become an essential enabler for the energy transition. A new report, Harnessing AI to Accelerate the Energy Transition, defines the actions needed to unlock AI’s potential in this domain. The new IPCC report is unequivocal: more action is urgently needed to avert catastrophic long-term climate impacts. With fossil fuels still supplying more …
How To Get More Electric Cars On The Road
A new study from researchers at MIT uncovers the kinds of infrastructure improvements that would make the biggest difference in increasing the number of electric cars on the road, a key step toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions from transportation. The researchers found that installing charging stations on residential streets, rather than just in central …
It Takes A Lot Of Energy For Machines To Learn – Here’s Why AI Is So Power-Hungry
This month, Google forced out a prominent AI ethics researcher after she voiced frustration with the company for making her withdraw a research paper. The paper pointed out the risks of language-processing artificial intelligence, the type used in Google Search and other text analysis products. Among the risks is the large carbon footprint of developing …
Uber Wants To Go All-Electric By 2030. It Won’t Be Easy
The coronavirus pandemic has been an all-around nightmare, but there are a few silver linings. One of these is a renewed focus on the environment. Emissions plummeted worldwide when countries went into lockdown in the spring, and cities have since been implementing new measures to keep pollution down and get people to be more active …
How A New Solar And Lighting Technology Could Propel A Renewable Energy Transformation
The demand for cheaper, greener electricity means that the energy landscape is changing faster than at any other point in history. This is particularly true of solar-powered electricity and battery storage. The cost of both has dropped at unprecedented rates over the past decade and energy efficient technologies such as LED lighting have also expanded. …
Solar Energy Farms Could Offer Second Life For Electric Vehicle Batteries
As electric vehicles rapidly grow in popularity worldwide, there will soon be a wave of used batteries whose performance is no longer sufficient for vehicles that need reliable acceleration and range. But a new study shows that these batteries could still have a useful and profitable second life as backup storage for grid-scale solar photovoltaic …
Artificial Intelligence Can Help Us Fight Climate Change. But It Has An Energy Problem, Too
AI is changing the way we work, live and solve challenges. It can improve healthcare, protect elephants from poachers, and work out how broadband should be distributed. But it could be most valuable as a range of applications helping humanity fight our biggest threat – climate change. AI can strengthen climate predictions, enable smarter decision-making …