Tech for good: Smart innovation

Technology is developing rapidly, changing how we live and work on an almost daily basis. In recent years, a myriad of smart technologies has shaped society and helped us simplify our lives. But it hasn’t been without cause for concern, with tech often cited as a culprit in many of the environmental and social challenges we face today. But in its defence, it also holds the key to a more sustainable future.

Already, innovative technology plays a significant role in creating solutions to mitigate the environmental damage caused by modern living. Renewable energy, smart technology and electric vehicles are some of the more widely recognised green-tech innovations from recent years.

Green tech is gaining pace

In business, traditional ways of working are being replaced with disruptive tech solutions often adopted for their significant business benefits, yet with serious sustainability credentials. However, thanks to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals making regular headlines and growing concern over the impact industry has on our environment, this balance is likely to shift, with sustainability and in particular, tech-led sustainability, rising up the corporate agenda. Google is one of the corporate giants leading by example, using Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning to reduce energy consumption, cut costs and decrease emissions. But that doesn’t mean other organisations can’t harness technology and maximise its impact across the business and our planet.

According to Tech Nation, Netzero companies – start-ups that balance the amount of greenhouse gas added and removed from the atmosphere – raised £336m in VC investment, which is 55% more than similar companies in France.

Could tech innovation be the solution in this resource-restrained world?

A few years ago, Dutch utilities provider Energie Koplopers, launched a smart grid project designed to allow a greener flow of energy to which everyone could contribute. The project saw 200 households equipped with renewable energy sources such as smart meters and smart thermostats connected to a smart grid sitting in the cloud. Renewable energy generated through the homes was sent back to the grid and distributed throughout the community. Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data, and machine learning technology allowed Energie Koplopers to redirect energy in real time to wherever it was most needed. 

There are many more similar examples, yet there’s still more to do if we’re to maximise technology to successfully tackle one of the world’s most pressing challenges to date. Tech Nation believes the future of technological innovation lies in the use of AI, Robotics, Blockchain, IoT, Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR).

According to MIT Technology Review, AI is key when it comes to tackling climate change. From improving predictions of how much electricity we need and lowering barriers to electric vehicle adoption to helping make buildings more efficient and improving deforestation tracking, it seems AI could be our star player. Research from PwC gives compelling evidence that AI levers could reduce worldwide greenhouse gas emissions by 4% in 2030 - an amount equivalent to the 2030 annual emissions of Australia, Canada and Japan combined.

Here are two examples closer to home of organisations embracing green innovation and using tech for good:

Energym: https://energym.io/

Birmingham-based Energym is on a mission to help gyms reduce their energy costs and become self-sustainable to achieve zero carbon status. How? By retrofitting existing (or providing new) equipment fitted with its patented battery and charging tech, which allows the energy generated by humans to be re-used. One spin class of 30 people, for example, could power a home for 24 hours. The company is complementing its innovative tech with a smartphone app called Gymcoin that monitors gym-goers’ individual fitness levels and provides accurate workout data, rewarding members for clean energy generation in the process.

Temporal Computing: https://temporalcomputing.com/

Following the international publication of a research paper by its founder and CEO Jonathan Edwards in 2014, Temporal Computing was founded to kickstart a radical new approach to computation for the AI era, which could accelerate computation and increase processing capacity while reducing energy consumption. The aim? To accelerate computation and increase processing capacity without being constrained by the complex energy demands currently holding back today’s most sophisticated computer processors.

You can find more inspiring examples here: https://technation.io/news/15-exciting-companies-helping-to-create-a-more-sustainable-future/

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