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Are insect brains the secret to energy efficient AI?

From algorithms that mimic honeybee navigation to spiking neural nets and tiny drones running on neuromorphic chips, efforts to copy the functions of insect and animal brains have major implications for AI and robotics. Artficial intelligence (AI) has the potential to solve some of the world’s biggest challenges, from climate modelling to healthcare breakthroughs, but the associated computational power could come at a heavy environmental cost. Sophisticated deep learning and neural networks, developed by the likes of ChatGPT creator OpenAI, Google and Microsoft, run on networks of servers in data centres and require huge amounts of energy to power and water to remain cool. The International Energy Agency has estimated that total electricity consumption in data centres could double from…

E+T Magazine in Artificial Intelligence
MPs urge the Ministry of Defence to embrace AI on the battlefield

MPs have urged the Ministry of Defence (MoD) to consider using AI on the battlefield after seeing effective use of the technology in Ukraine. Kyiv has used AI to analyse intelligence and assess combat scenarios with Russian forces. Ukrainian developers are also working on drones using AI throughout their flight and at the final targeting stage. But the Commons’ Defence Committee, which includes MPs from the three major parties, said the UK risked its military capabilities “falling behind” if it did not make greater use of AI. “The use of AI in Ukraine shows that it offers serious military advantage on the battlefield, and as AI becomes more widespread and sophisticated, it will change the way defence works, from the back office to the frontline,” said Emma Lewell-Buck, chair of the sub…

E+T Magazine in Artificial Intelligence
Editor's comment: New ways of thinking (artificially)...

These are interesting times for artificial intelligence (AI). Unquestionably the technology of our day, it seems to have the weight of our expectations across the technology sector on its shoulders. AI, it seems, is the answer to everything – it can be sprinkled like fairy dust on to a problem and a solution will emerge. Last month we ran a feature suggesting that, while the hype may be continuing unabated, there are issues with the prevalent large language models (LLMs) that may mean AI’s exponential growth may be blunted. This issue we have a couple of articles that point to a rethinking, and broadening, of the AI offering. LLMs were the methodology that became the road ahead for AI, but there were other technologies that were pushed onto the hard shoulder – and these technologies may…

E+T Magazine in Artificial Intelligence
Industry insight: AI meets sustainability – the data centre challenge

Article contributed by Simon Yeoman, CEO at internet service provider company Fasthosts.AI-era-ready data centres and the integral role sustainable practices play in creating them. Underneath the bonnet of our digital lives hums an unseen engine: data centres. They collect and process the lifeblood of our online world, from the social connections we foster and financial transactions that power our economies to the music and films we stream. However, this persistently humming mechanism carries a significant price tag. As we venture deeper into the AI age, the role of data centres becomes even more vital. The rapid growth of this technology demands ever-increasing storage capabilities and computational power with generative AI potentially requiring up to 33 times more energy than conventional…

E+T Magazine in Artificial Intelligence
Tesla has received almost £200m in UK government grants since 2016, analysis finds

Recent analysis from Tussell into UK public procurement has found that Tesla has been a beneficiary of the UK government since 2016 having received almost £200m in grants. Elon Musk’s electric vehicle (EV) company has found itself in the news rather a lot recently. Last week, for instance, China’s car maker BYD reported it sold more pure electric cars than Tesla in the fourth quarter of 2024. Globally, Tesla has dominated the EV market. Its domination in the UK can in some way be attributed to the UK government grants the automaker has received. According to Tussell, which analyses data on UK government contracts and spending, it has received £191m in government grants since 2016. An article in The Guardian reports that the bulk of these funds came from the Department for Transport (DfT…

E+T Magazine in Management of Technology
Solution to UK’s e-waste tsunami lies in ‘reuse, repair and refurbishment of electronics’

With the UK recycling only 30% of the 1.652 billion kg of e-waste generated, tech products must be designed to ensure components can be recovered and reused at end of life. E-waste – which is any discarded product with a plug or battery – is a health and environmental hazard. These electronics often contain toxic additives or hazardous substances such as mercury, which can be detrimental to human health. Data from the UN’s Global e-waste monitor (GEM) report published last year found that the world’s generation of e-waste is rising five times faster than documented e-waste recycling. A record 62 billion kg of e-waste was generated globally in 2022 – up 82% from 2010, and on track to rise a further 32% (to 82 billion kg) in 2030. Of the 62 billion kg of e-waste generated, less than a quarter…

E+T Magazine in Waste Management
Mars Sample Return decision delayed to 2026 as Nasa evaluates strategies

Nasa will delay work on its Mars Sample Return (MSR) plan while it assesses two possible approaches on how to successfully fulfil the tricky mission. In recent years the agency has been focused on trying to determine the early history of Mars and how it can help us understand the formation and evolution of habitable worlds, including Earth. As part of that effort, the MSR programme has been a long-term goal for the past two decades. Nasa’s Perseverance rover has been collecting samples to return to Earth since it landed on Mars in 2021. Nasa had planned to launch its Sample Retrieval Lander in 2028 to return the samples to Earth. This would have been the first to bring along a rocket and two helicopters designed to send the samples into Mars’ orbit to meet the Earth return orbiter, which…

E+T Magazine in Space
Donald Trump partners with Emirati tycoon on $20bn US data centre expansion

President-elect Donald Trump has agreed a $20bn deal with the head of an Emirati property conglomerate to build a swathe of data centres across the US. Hussain Sajwani, who heads DAMAC Properties, said subsidiary firm EDGNEX will deliver “state-of-the-art” data centres with the initial $20bn funding round, although this could be doubled in time “on the basis of future demand, market opportunity and scalability”. The firm will initially focus on building infrastructure in sunbelt states including Texas, Arizona, Oklahoma and Louisiana, and Midwest states such as Ohio, Illinois, Michigan and Indiana. Sajwani has long been a close associate of Trump. DAMAC contributed between $1m and $5m to Trump’s first campaign. The first phase of the data centre proposal includes capacity build-up through…

E+T Magazine in Business Planning
Cash usage rises in the UK for third consecutive year amid cost-of-living pressures

Cash usage in the UK has unexpectedly risen for the third year in a row despite concerns after the pandemic that it would all but die out. According to building society Nationwide, nearly 33 million withdrawals were made from its ATMs last year – a 10% increase on 2023. A 2021 study suggested that the UK could become an entirely cashless society by 2026 if trends of declining usage continued. That same year, the number of payments made with cash plummeted by around 50% as consumers were encouraged to use contactless in the wake of the pandemic. But cash remains vital for many people, particularly vulnerable groups including the elderly and domestic abuse victims, who may not have access to other payment methods. Nationwide said the recent surge in cash usage could be due to recent surges…

E+T Magazine in Business Planning
Over half of chip-reliant organisations concerned semiconductor industry will not meet demand

A report from Capgemini Research Institute has found that due to the high demand for semiconductors, over half of all downstream organisations are concerned that the industry might not be able to meet their needs. In our increasingly digital world, the demand for semiconductors is growing exponentially. The most advanced chips are considered crucial to stay at the forefront of technological innovation – not least of all the rise of AI and GenAI adoption, which requires vast amounts of processing power. A report from the Capgemini Research Institute titled The semiconductor industry in the AI era has found that, due to the high demand for semiconductors, over half of all downstream organisations reliant on semiconductor supply are concerned that the industry might not be able to meet their…

E+T Magazine in Research and Innovation
UK EV sales reached record high in 2024 with a market share of 19.6%

The latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) confirm that 19.6% of all new UK cars registered throughout the year were electric vehicles (EVs). This is a record annual volume – however, it is still below government-mandated sales targets of 22%. The UK car market grew by 2.6% on the previous year, with 1,952,778 new cars reaching the road in 2024. The growth was dominated by fleet sales, which were up by 11.8% and accounted for 59.6% of all new car registrations. While December 2024 marked a fifth consecutive month of growth for EV registrations in the UK, with 43,656 new battery electric vehicle (BEV) registrations accounting for 31% of the market, the SMMT called it a challenging year for the sector “as manufacturers strove to create demand for electric…

E+T Magazine in Electric Vehicles
Government launches Steel Council as UK industry faces existential crisis

The government has convened a group bringing together industry leaders from major steel companies in the UK ahead of the launch of a strategy designed to reinvigorate the struggling sector. Business secretary Jonathan Reynolds will chair the first meeting of the Steel Council today alongside members of firms such as British Steel and Tata Steel and a number of trade unions. The UK’s steel industry has been in decline for decades, but the sector is now facing some particularly challenging hurdles that present an existential threat to domestic producers. It is having difficulty competing with producers in China and India, and so is facing a raft of closures and lay-offs. The Port Talbot steelworks, the largest domestic steelmaking site left standing, is getting ready to close its blast…

E+T Magazine in Manufacturing
JetZero and Siemens partner up to bring blended-wing aircraft to the skies by 2030

Aviation start-up JetZero is to leverage the Siemens Xcelerator open digital business platform to accelerate the development of its new blended-wing aircraft. The announcement was made at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) that is currently under way in Las Vegas, US. Formed by a former Airbus CEO, Los Angeles-based JetZero plans to improve fuel efficiency by 50% and cut emissions and noise with its fuel-efficient, blended-wing-body design. Under the agreement with Siemens, Xcelerator will help design, manufacture and operate the new aircraft. Siemens’ automation hardware, software and services will be integrated at JetZero’s ‘Factory of the Future’, a new greenfield site in the US. These tools will help the manufacturer achieve its ambition of electrifying, automating and digitalising…

E+T Magazine in Research and Innovation
Amazon satellite operation plans to launch UK broadband service

Amazon’s satellite operation Project Kuiper – founded by Jeff Bezos – plans to launch a broadband service in the UK, which will compete directly with Elon Musk’s Starlink. Low-Earth orbit (LEO) space is filling up with satellite constellations that aim, when complete, to give total broadband internet coverage around the world. Satellites that orbit the Earth in LEO, which ranges from as low as 550km to as high as 2,000km, reduce the latency effect associated with satellites in a much higher orbit. As such, satellites in this region of space will be able to provide internet to even the most remote areas of the globe. Currently Starlink is dominating the LEO region. However, according to a regulatory filing reported in The Sunday Telegraph yesterday, Project Kuiper (a subsidiary of Amazon…

E+T Magazine in Space
Evil Engineer: Can I trigger a new ice age?

The most feasible approach for bringing about a new period of glacial growth. Dear Evil Engineer, I previously wrote to you seeking advice on how to nudge the Earth into an orbit further from the Sun to bring down temperatures to something more comfortable. Unfortunately, you were right – the plan was beyond my powers. I’ve been left looking very silly in my efforts to make it happen. Now I’m looking for an alternative way to cool Earth down – ideally enough to bring about a new ice age. Could you provide me with more advice? Yours, A yeti Dear yeti, I am very sorry to hear about the failure of your last scheme. Keep in mind that every failure is just another step in your journey towards world domination. This is particularly true for us in the villainy sector, where being made…

E+T Magazine in Climate Change
UK canals cool cities and protect against floods but face funding challenges

The UK’s historic canals provide an increasingly valuable role in cooling the UK’s cities while providing water security and flood protection, a report has found. According to the Canal & River Trust, which is responsible for 2,000 miles of waterways, urban canals alone reduced the nearby ambient temperature by around 2°C during 2022’s summer heatwaves. Meanwhile, canal embankments and reservoirs helped to provide additional flood protection for homes and businesses. The organisation warned that UK canals are showing their age, and the network suffered an estimated £10m worth of storm damage in the 2023/24 winter. It is in the process of carrying out 150 “critical maintenance and conservation” projects that will help to future-proof canal infrastructure, but it called for more investment…

E+T Magazine in Built Environment Technologies
Climate change ‘wreaking havoc’ on planet’s water cycle, report finds

A report led by The Australian National University has found that global warming is changing the way water moves around the planet, affecting entire ecosystems and billions of people. 2024 was a year of extreme weather. Simultaneous heat waves and catastrophic flooding were a theme of the past 12 months. In November 2024, data from the European Commission’s climate monitor Copernicus Climate Change Service revealed that 2024 was “virtually certain” to be the hottest on record, with warming above 1.5°C. A report – Global Water Monitor 2024 summary report – produced by an international team of researchers from universities in countries including Australia, Saudi Arabia, China and Germany has found that these consistently rising temperatures are wreaking havoc on the water cycle. Albert…

E+T Magazine in Water Supply
National Grid abandons costly and noisy T-pylon redesign, report claims

The National Grid has abandoned plans to roll out new designs for its electricity pylons because of their high cost and noise complaints from nearby residents, The Telegraph has reported. The T-pylon design was first unveiled in 2015 as the future design for Britain’s electricity grid. But since then, the new designs have only been installed in one location in Somerset as part of the new 35-mile Hinkley Point C to Avonmouth connection. Each of the T-pylons built so far support 12 conductors for a total of 460km of new power lines across the whole route. Their design sees six conductor spans attached to each diamond earring-shaped insulator on either side of the structure, with wires installed in sections of up to a dozen T-pylons at a time. But the £17m redesign did not feature as part…

E+T Magazine in Power Equipment
Tesla sales up in Q4 2024 but Chinese EV rival BYD is closing in

While Tesla dominates the electric vehicle (EV) market, China’s BYD has reported that it sold more pure electric cars than Tesla in the fourth quarter of 2024. Texas-based Tesla produced approximately 459,000 vehicles and delivered more than 495,000 in Q4 2024, according to its sales figures. Across the whole of 2024 it delivered 1,789,226 vehicles – down about 1% from the 1.8 million delivered in 2023. Its Shenzhen-based rival BYD, which produces both pure battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and hybrids, reported selling 1.76 million EVs in 2024. In Q4 2024, it delivered 595,412 BEVs – a 13.1% increase on Q4 2023. Tesla delivered 495,000 in the same quarter. Overall, BYD sold more than 4.2 million cars in 2024, with its year-on-year sales jumping by more than 41%. The surge was powered…

E+T Magazine in Electric Vehicles
Passive radar can be used for avalanche detection with signals from Starlink, study finds

Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for High Frequency Physics and Radar Techniques (Fraunhofer FHR) in Germany have proven that passive radar using signals from satellite mega-constellations is suitable for avalanche detection. The increased snowfall in mountainous areas during winter significantly increases the risk of an avalanche. To protect people and infrastructure, avalanche monitoring is critically important. To prevent an avalanche from occurring, controlled artificial detonations are carried out in the affected area. These trigger the release of huge masses of snow, which thunder down into the valley along a predetermined path. To confirm that the avalanche was triggered as planned, monitoring equipment is employed using methods such as mechanical wires that break when the…

E+T Magazine in Research and Innovation
5 steps to effectively manage your asset lifecycle and criticality on your journey to Net Zero

In today's evolving industrial landscape, managing assets in a sustainable and efficient way has become essential for businesses striving to achieve Net Zero goals. Asset availability and sustainability are fundamental pillars of success for any manufacturing process-related business. However, the integration of these two critical aspects remains a challenge for many organisations. In this webinar, we’ll share smart strategies for effective asset lifecycle management and sustainability, shedding light on practical steps you can take to optimise your asset availability while embracing the benefits of the circular economy. This webinar promises to equip you with comprehensive knowledge and practical techniques to manage and extend the life cycle of assets while contributing to your sustainability…

E+T Magazine in Climate Change
Lidar-equipped robot creates detailed 3D models to assess dangerous areas in disaster zones

A lidar-equipped robot that can create detailed 3D models of its surroundings has been developed by researchers who believe it could be used to assess areas deemed too dangerous for humans. In disaster zones following a chemical plant incident or flooding, emergency services need ways to quickly get an overview of the situation. But in many cases, they are not permitted to enter the scene itself in order to avoid putting themselves at risk. Lidar, which stands for Light Detection and Ranging, is a remote-sensing technology that uses laser pulses to create 3D models of its surroundings. The new robot, developed by a team at German research institution Fraunhofer, uses lidar to produce geometrically accurate 3D environments that are then coloured in using camera images. The end result…

E+T Magazine in Research and Innovation
Tech predictions: Beyond 2025

Here are the technologies shaping the next five to 10 years, and the impact they will have on businesses, industry, people and climate. It is 2025, and while there are numerous tech predictions for the year ahead, what about beyond 2025 looking five to 10 years in the future? Capgemini is set to publish its TechnoVision top 5 tech trends to watch in 2025 report, focused on the technologies that are expected to reach an inflection point in the year ahead. This report will also include predictions for the technologies that will shape the next five to 10 years. Five of these include: Distributed manufacturing It is predicted that by 2035 we will see a decentralisation of manufacturing of an increasing number of products. While the most commodified products will still be manufactured…

E+T Magazine in Biotechnology
BMW and Yamaha back US firm Phoenix Tailings, which plans to decarbonise rare metals mining

BMW and Yamaha Motor have invested in rare-earth processing start-up Phoenix Tailings, which plans to open a $13m facility in the US by June 2025. In the shift away from fossil fuel reliance comes an increased demand for rare earth and metal elements. These materials have diverse applications in electrical and electronic components, and are increasingly needed for battery technologies including those in electric vehicles. However, production of these strategic metals mostly takes place in Chinese mines. The process of refining them generates a lot of harmful waste that poses significant risks to the environment. US-based Phoenix Tailings claims that each year the mining industry discards over 200 billion tons of waste (known as tailings). Its mission is to be the world’s first clean mining…

E+T Magazine in Artificial Intelligence

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