Common element combinations could replace rare Earth metals in electronics
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Rare Earth metals are expensive, rare, and increasingly being used as a political pawn, so what if we didn’t need them any longer? Interested in the Exponential Future? Join our XPotential Community, connect, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. In the recent China-US trade war so called Rare Earth...
US military starts testing solar cells in orbit that beam electricity back to Earth
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Being able to capture solar energy in space and beam it back down to Earth is much more efficient than capturing it on Earth, now the tech is being tested. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. Recently I...
Next generation solar cells harvest indoor lighting to power all your gadgets
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF We’re all trying to help save the planet, but all our gadgets and children’s toys are addicted to batteries, these new solar cells are here to change that. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. We hear a lot...
Researchers obliterate world record for solar cell efficiency, almost reach 50 percent
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Solar energy and renewable energy give the world a pathway to green, sustainable energy production, and the solar efficiency record just got obliterated. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. I’ve been pointing out for a couple of years...
Researchers just created the first solar panels that work at night
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Now when the Sun goes down now your solar panels can keep on generating electricity 24/7/365 no matter what. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. So far companies have installed over 1 trillion watts of renewables around the...
NASA revives plans to build huge solar power plants in space
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Alot of the Sun’s energy is lost as the sun’s rays travel through the Earth’s atmosphere, so countries are now advancing plans to build solar power plants in orbit. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. Fifty years ago...
Scientists created a new type of solar panel that produces electricity and clean water
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Water purification systems traditionally use huge amounts of energy, but now researchers have managed to re-purpose waste heat from solar panels instead to do the same job. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. A new device created by...
Promising solar energy breakthrough could replace steel making blast furnaces
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Dirty industrial processes use huge amounts of energy and heat to create cement, glass, and steel, and now we have a way to replace them with green energy. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. Creating cement, glass, and...
Dutch startup unveils the world’s first long range commercial solar car
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF In the future cars won’t run on batteries, now we have a pathway to create solar panels with up to 80% efficiency the future is battery-less. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. I’ve been saying for a long...
Scientists find a way to boost solar efficiency to 80 percent
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Solar is already one of the cheapest forms on the planet, and this makes it a slam dunk. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. I’m just going to say it right here right now – solar will win...
JAXA and Toyota team up to create a Moon buggy with a 10,000km range
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF It’s a question of when, not if, we go back to and live on the Moon, and we’ll need transportation… Interested in the future and want to experience even more?! eXplore More. As more nation states, space agencies and billionaires, like China and NASA, Elon...
First of a kind material lets solar panels generate electricity from snow
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As our knowledge of materials and how they behave improves we can generate electricity from almost anything. Scientists have announced that they’ve developed a first of its kind material that generates electricity from nothing other than, wait for it… snow. Based upon the principles...
Scientists create a liquid fuel that can store the Sun’s energy for 18 years
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As the number of solar energy installations increase storing the energy they produce, so it can be released to the grid when the Sun goes in, is still holding the industry back from world domination. Recently renewable energy became the cheapest form of energy...
China reveals plans to build a space based solar power plant by 2025
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Being able to collect solar energy in space and beam it back down to base stations on Earth is a very efficient way to harvest it, and we have the technology. Let’s face it humanity uses a lot of energy, and while solar power here on...
Shooting lasers at drones helps DARPA keep them airborne forever
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As more companies field drones one of their biggest hurdles is keeping them airborne for long periods of time, DARPA’s latest program hopes to solve that. DARPA, the bleeding edge research arm of the US Military that’s bought and bringing you everything from conscious robots and autonomous...
Google X spins off its molten salt grid scale storage business
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Renewable energy sources only generate electricity when the sun shines or the wind blows, so companies have to find a way to store it so it can be used in times of scarcity. One of the biggest problems with renewable energy is that when...
Hyundai unveils the worlds first car with a solar power panoramic roof
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF In the future electric cars won’t solely be reliant on Lithium Ion batteries, as battery technology and new materials evolve we’ll see the emergence of battery-less electric vehicles. If you ever watch one of my keynotes on the Future of Transportation, like the one...
Record breaking solar powered aircraft stays aloft for 26 days straight
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The aviation industry is one of the world’s biggest polluters so companies around the world are trying to find new ways to power aircraft. Recently I talked about SolarStratos, a company that’s looking to produce “the world’s first commercial solar aircraft,” and a couple...
Featured Futurist, TV Interview: The Future of Aviation 2020 to 2070, APEX Insider
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The pace of change is accelerating, and new technologies are re-writing the narrative for many industries, including aviation. In the coming decades the aviation industry will, arguably, see more change than it has in the past century, whether it’s because of the introduction of...
Second hand electric vehicle batteries help Engie accelerate renewable energy uptake
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Renewable energy is clean and green, but when the sun goes down and the wind drops energy output falls, which means sustainable renewable energy needs grid scale battery storage to support it. Multinational energy utility Engie has launched a new grid connected storage project...
