Sign In or Create an Account.
By continuing, you agree to the Terms of Service and acknowledge our Privacy Policy
Somewhat relatedly, the International Energy Agency is hosting a conference on energy and AI today and tomorrow. Experts from the tech and energy industries (including Google’s chief sustainability officer Kate Brandt and Kairos’ head of power commercial team Jeffrey Olson) will discuss “how artificial intelligence could transform global energy systems, exploring the key opportunities and challenges ahead.”
China is banning exports of some critical minerals to the U.S. in retaliation for the Biden administration’s latest decision to curb China’s access to American-made memory chips. The tit-for-tat move bans exports of gallium, germanium, antimony. These materials are key components in semiconductors, and have many varied applications in clean tech. Gallium, for example, is used in solar panels, and antimony is used to make EV battery alloys. A recent report from the U.S. Geological Survey concluded that a total Chinese export ban on gallium and germanium could cut U.S. GDP by $3.4 billion.
Get Heatmap AM directly in your inbox every morning:
Speaking of China, General Motors is shaking up its operations in the country, sustaining more than $5 billion in losses. The company’s Chinese joint venture, known as SAIC-GM, has gone from being a success to a liability in recent years, losing ground to Chinese competitors that poured money into producing EVs and hybrids. Electric vehicles make up more than half of all car sales in China. “Almost all foreign automakers there, including European, Japanese, and South Korean companies, are struggling as increasingly ambitious Chinese car companies like BYD and Geely introduce new models and slash prices,” reportedThe New York Times, noting that BYD is likely to overtake Ford this year in global sales.
The Biden administration this week is celebrating the milestone of awarding more than $100 billion in grants as part of the Inflation Reduction Act. “Crossing the milestone of $100 billion awarded shows just how quickly we’re getting these funds out the door and into communities so they can make a real difference for the American people,” climate envoy John Podesta toldReuters. And another official said the administration will exceed its goal of obligating more than 80% of the available IRA grant money by the end of Biden’s term, explaining that this would mean the funds are protected: “They are subject to the terms of the contract, so when those contracts are signed and executed, this becomes a matter of contract law more than a matter of politics.”
The Arctic could experience its first ice-free summer day before 2030, perhaps even by 2027, according to a new study published in the journal Nature Communications. The international research team behind the study used multiple computer models and simulations to make the projection, which is “unlikely” but becoming more plausible as greenhouse gas emissions rise. Extreme weather events – like a series of exceptionally warm years – could trigger rapid melting leading to an ice-free day or days. Such an event could “have cascading effects on the rest of the climate system,” the authors wrote. “It would notably enhance the warming of the upper ocean, accelerating sea ice loss year round and therefore further accelerating climate change, and could also induce more extreme events at mid-latitudes.”
Recent research suggests rare wolves in Ethiopia feed on the sweet nectar of plants known as red hot poker flowers, becoming covered in pollen in the process. This unusual behavior would make the wolves perhaps the first known large carnivores to be plant pollinators.
Ecology journal
