The Fourth Industrial Revolution – artificial intelligence in particular – has the potential to solve some of the current conundrums of the green transition. Over the last two centuries, the world's major energy transitions were driven primarily by technological breakthroughs. The steam engine allowed coal to fuel the Industrial Revolution and displaced traditional biomass in the world energy mix. Then the internal combustion engine opened the door for oil to dominate the transport sector and the global energy mix for decades – a position it still holds to date. Today, one major development is still unfolding; its final impact is difficult to predict or even comprehend at this stage.

The World Economic Forum has published a new study on how artificial intelligence (AI) can be used to accelerate a more equitable energy transition and build trust for the technology throughout the industry. As the impacts of climate change become more visible worldwide, governments and industry face the urgent challenge of transitioning to a low-carbon global energy system. Digital technologies – particularly AI – are key enablers for this transition and have the potential to deliver the energy sector's climate goals more rapidly and at lower cost. Written in collaboration with BloombergNEF and Deutsche Energie-Agentur (dena) – the German Energy Agency, Harnessing Artificial Intelligence to Accelerate the Energy Transition reviews the state of play of AI adoption in the energy sector, identifies high-priority applications of AI in the energy transition, and offers a road map and practical recommendations for the energy and AI industries to maximize AI's benefits. The report finds that AI has the potential to create substantial value for the global energy transition.