Torus’ Post

For Tech Tuesday, UtilityDive has a great article on how AI deployments are at the intersection of the tech world's fast approach and the utility world of slow, regulated approach. Hopefully the industry can find ways to tap into the power of AI to optimize and lower costs, etc. "As NVIDIA, IBM and others apply AI to boost utilities, regulatory and data privacy obstacles abound The “move fast and break things” business model of the technology sector is meeting the regulated spending and reliability imperatives of the utility sector. ... One obstacle may slow this technology transition. Tech companies have seen how innovations in advanced computing from other sectors can maximize AI capabilities. But utilities still must verify that potential and convince regulators that investments in implementing advanced computing capabilities are justified. Advanced computing is starting to serve utilities." Read more at https://conta.cc/4b53nx2 #solar #energy #solarenergy #renewables #renewableenergy #electricity #energystorage #ESS #distributedenergy #solarpower #batteries #EVCharging #EV

Compared to a typical search engine request, an AI-supported request requires more than 10x the power. And to process just one request, energy is converted four times from the grid to the processor, resulting in 12% of energy lost. Saving a mere 1% with more efficient power semiconductors, could save enough energy to fully power nearly one million homes per year! Today, onsemi launched a power solution that could significantly reduce energy consumption in AI data centers. #artifiicalintelligence #datacenters #semiconductors #technology #iamonsemi #energy

Electricity consumption is expected to triple by 2030 which means that it will actually surpass this estimation as every AI related forecast in the past few years .. Addressing such demand and its side effects should be long thought topics as any new fundamental solutions are long pole projects. For us it had been close to 4 years before we got to NR1 performant energy efficient Inference solution.

For Tech Tuesday, UtilityDive has a great article on how AI deployments are at the intersection of the tech world's fast approach and the utility world of slow, regulated approach. Hopefully the industry can find ways to tap into the power of AI to optimize and lower costs, etc. "As NVIDIA, IBM and others apply AI to boost utilities, regulatory and data privacy obstacles abound The “move fast and break things” business model of the technology sector is meeting the regulated spending and reliability imperatives of the utility sector. ... One obstacle may slow this technology transition. Tech companies have seen how innovations in advanced computing from other sectors can maximize AI capabilities. But utilities still must verify that potential and convince regulators that investments in implementing advanced computing capabilities are justified. Advanced computing is starting to serve utilities." Read more at https://conta.cc/4b53nx2 #solar #energy #solarenergy #renewables #renewableenergy #electricity #energystorage #ESS #distributedenergy #solarpower #batteries #EVCharging #EV

Peter Buttrick was just at the Edison Electric Institute 2024 Conference, so he had a chance to see this presentation by NVIDIA CEO & President Jensen Huang on advanced computing and AI’s impact on the future of energy and how it can revolutionize the way we generate, transmit and consume energy. Al can be used to optimize energy grids, improve demand forecasting and even develop new energy sources. AI is influencing business operations practically everywhere, including HomeServe. I’m always looking for ways to improve the customer experience and make our operations more efficient. As part of that, we’re leveraging the power of AI with our own AI-powered chatbot, Charlie, which helps customers with a variety of tasks, including scheduling appointments, reporting issues and getting answers to common questions. Charlie has drastically reduced hold times, making the process faster and easier for our customers. Charlie’s capabilities are constantly improving and she will be able to offer customers even more advanced features in the future, including personalized recommendations and insights about their energy usage. AI is transforming the energy industry, and we’re riding that tech wave. I’m excited to see how our team will continue to use AI to improve customer service. For more on Jensen’s keynote speech, check out this POWER magazine article: https://lnkd.in/e_PqT589 #energy #utilities #electric #electrical #ai #artificialintelligence #customerexperience #innovation #tech

For several decades, the energy industry, integrated resource plans and our electrical grid flew stealth in terms of public awareness and knowledge. All that is about to change starting today. According to Boston Consulting Group, the data-center share of U.S. electricity consumption is expected to triple from 126 terawatt hours in 2022 to 390 terawatt hours by 2030. That’s the equivalent usage of 40 million U.S. homes. Much of the data-center growth is being driven by new applications of generative AI. My favorite aspect of AI is largely the elimination of "spin" where people promote their individual agendas. AI is essentially data and math. It is what it is. Nothing more and nothing less. One thing that "is", or perhaps "isn't" centers on our transmission grid. DigitalBridge CEO Marc Ganz says the obstacle facing the energy sector—and future AI applications—is the country’s decades-old electric transmission grid. “It isn’t so much that we have a power issue. We have a transmission infrastructure issue,” he says. “Power is abundant in the United States, but it’s not efficiently transmitted or efficiently distributed.” Siemens Energy CEO Christian Bruch told shareholders at the company’s recent annual meeting that electricity needs will soar with the growing use of AI. “That means one thing: no power, no AI. Or to put it more clearly: no electricity, no progress.” In Mad Man, Don Draper described happiness in the 1960s.  "Happiness is the smell of a new car. It's freedom from fear. It's a billboard on the side of a road that screams with reassurance that whatever you're doing is OK." How might he describe 2030? Affordable, reliable, and clean electricity delivered safely whenever and wherever we want perhaps? Here is hoping we allow our electrical engineers in our organized RTO/ISO electricity markets and our engineers serving on our public service commissions to work together to solve the problem collectively. Free of fear and political rhetoric. #artificalintelligence #electricalengineering #transmission #gridmodernization #integratedresourceplanning #pragmatism

As the world dives deeper into cloud tech and AI, we face a tough challenge: our energy needs are soaring. The shift to green energy might stumble as these technologies drive electricity demand through the roof, threatening plans for net-zero emissions. Increasing Energy Demands from Technological Advancements like electric cars, bringing manufacturing back home, and the rise of AI and virtual reality are all pushing our energy needs higher. These innovations, while exciting, guzzle electricity, complicating the move towards sustainable energy sources. Imagine if every household had an electric vehicle (EV)—the electricity demand would double in many areas. Repatriating manufacturing, especially in energy-hungry sectors like semiconductors, could boost industrial electricity demand by 50%, straining our aging power grid. AI and cloud computing are huge energy hogs. For example, NVIDIA’s high-power AI chips use as much electricity annually as three EVs each. As demand for these chips grows, so does the power needed for data centers. This rise in energy use is reshaping future electricity forecasts and sparking urgent policy discussions. Our current energy grid isn’t ready for this surge in demand. Shutting down conventional power plants and relying on less stable renewable sources makes the situation worse. Political and regulatory obstacles further slow the expansion and modernization of our energy infrastructure, making it tough to meet the demand for reliable, cheap electricity. To keep up with AI and other tech demands, we need a mix of energy sources. This means not just more renewables but also investing in natural gas and other reliable power plants. Policymakers must adopt a broad approach to ensure energy isn’t a bottleneck for progress. The dream of a green energy transition is clashing with the reality of soaring electricity demands from AI and digital technologies. While we work on making AI and data centers more efficient, it’s clear we need a balanced energy strategy to support technological and economic growth, special now, that we are preparing for the robot boom, demand will growth exponentially. How do we balance the energy demands of new tech with sustainability goals? What can policymakers do to ensure we have enough reliable energy and how will they support the energy sector companies so they can provide it? #EnergyTransition #AI #CloudComputing #Sustainability #EnergyPolicy #Innovation #EconomicGrowth #InfrastructureDevelopment

"By 2026, AI could contribute to a doubling of global electricity use by data centres to 1,000 terawatt-hours, according to the International Energy Agency, which is equivalent to all of Japan. A study published in the journal Joule estimated that by 2027, AI server units built by Nvidia Corp. alone could consume between 85.4 and 134 terawatt-hours of electricity. At the high end, that’s just shy of Ontario’s annual electricity demand." https://lnkd.in/g5XxRMYT

As our energy sources grow more and more digital, distributed and variable in capacity, source, and ownership, our grid operators face a mounting challenge. Managing a multitude of heterogeneous devices, systems, protocols and communication channels presents a formidable task, complicating the coordination and integration of energy resources. Ecosuite’s platform leverages open infrastructure that enables our customers to collaborate with their local utilities to securely and remotely monitor and control their resources to improve the reliability and efficiency of our grid. Step into the future of our grid here: ecosuite.io #DER #gridmodernization #AI #ML #cleanenergytransition

Battery Breakthrough 🔋💚🌍 In an exciting development, Microsoft and PNNL have collaborated to create a groundbreaking battery technology, reducing lithium use by up to 70%. This innovation represents a significant step towards sustainable energy solutions, addressing the environmental and safety concerns associated with lithium batteries. The breakthrough comes from utilizing advanced AI algorithms to explore alternative materials, leading to the discovery of a solid electrolyte that promises improved safety and environmental friendliness. This new technology has the potential to transform a variety of industries, from mobile devices to electric vehicles, paving the way for more efficient and eco-friendly energy storage solutions. #SustainableEnergy #BatteryTech #MicrosoftInnovation #EcoFriendly #TechAdvancement