Chip designer Arm is rapidly expanding its automotive business, amid mounting competition from open-source rival RISC-V.
Revenue from the segment has doubled since 2020, the Financial Times reports. Dennis Laudick, VP of automotive go-to-market at Arm, attributed the growth to the number of chips required by high-end cars, which he described as “data [centers] on wheels.”
This trend is set to accelerate as demand for electric and autonomous vehicles grows. Semico Research predicts the automotive chip IP market will double by 2027 — which could prove crucial to Arm’s future business.
The UK-based firm produces chip designs that are used by an estimated 95% of smartphones, but the company’s star has faded in recent months. Financial problems at parent company Softbank and an expanding pool of rivals have triggered concerns about Arm’s long-term prospects.
Mark Lippett, CEO of chip specialist XMOS, told TNW that focusing on vehicles was a sensible response.
“Thinking about the human experience, rather than the drive-train and other deeply embedded electronics that go into a car, the interface with the driver increasingly leans on tech that’s originally been developed for handsets and tablets,” he said. “As such, advances into the automotive space is a logical next step for Arm.”
In February, SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son announced plans to take Arm public in the US after a $40 billion sale to Nvidia collapsed. Image credit: Danny Choo
Another risk for Arm is increasing competition from the RISC-V Foundation. Headquartered in Switzerland, the nonprofit produces an open-source chip architecture that’s attracting swelling interest.
RISC-V has proven particularly popular in China, where it could spur self-sufficiency in semiconductors and circumvent US export restrictions. But it’s also caught the eye of Silicon Valley.
The architecture recently earned a glowing endorsement from Google. In December, Lars Bergstrom, Android’s director of engineering, called for RISC-V to be considered a “tier-1 platform” in the operating system — the same level as Arm.
“RISC-V could be regarded as more risky.
Google’s backing makes it quite possible that RISC-V smartphones running Android will arrive within the next few years — which would escalate anxieties at Arm. The British firm does, however, have a big headstart in the automotive sector.
“Already, the company’s main strength lies in producing application processors for mobile phones — and this will continue for as long as it takes for RISC-V to catch up,” said Bergstrom.
“The automotive sector also has a high level of ecosystem complexity and historical conservatism. While this dynamic is slowly shifting, with disruptors like Tesla leading the charge, other automotive companies may take longer to steer the ship away from an established standard like Arm towards something newer like RISC-V, which could be regarded as more risky.”
Bergstrom advises RISC-V to target embedded segments such as IoT, which is more tolerant of risk and less dependent on an ecosystem of partners. In the automotive sector, however, the open-source challenger is still playing catch-up.
We did it! Despite humanity’s best efforts, we made it through 2022. Before we pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and brace for whatever 2023 has to offer, we should probably take some time to reflect on the year that was.
Here at Neural, that means recounting our favorite stories from the past 12 months. There was a lot of mind-blowing news in the world of tech in 2022. From Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter to former Google engineer Blake Lemoine declaring that he’d met a sentient AI, it was a year to remember.
But, rather than rehash months-old news, we wanted to take this opportunity to share our most mind-blowing and fascinating stories from the year. Some of these were big news when we published them, others have a more evergreen feel to them. But they’re all articles we’re particularly proud of.
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So, before we bid you and 2022 adieu, and without further ado, here Neural’s most mind-blowing stories of the year.
Thomas Macaulay
TNW/Neural reporter Thomas Macaulay had a fantastic year. It’d take a few volumes to reprint all the amazing stories he wrote in 2022, but we’ve managed to snag five hits for your reading pleasure.
Why have aliens never visited Earth? Scientists blame the singularity
What if the real reason why we haven’t met aliens yet is because their civilizations became too big to succeed? This is all theoretical, but you might be surprised who the first species to experience this “burnout” could be.
It’s all fun and games until your childhood pal becomes a killer robot. This is eerily similar to the plot of the 1986 cult classic “Deadly Friend.” Although the real story is about a guy who trained an AI-powered microwave to act like his imaginary friend, and the movie was about a guy who shoved a computer chip in a dead person’s head, both tales have their merits as classic horror features if you ask me.
This story is a delightful dive into what it’s like to experience culinary cuisine at the cutting edge. It’s a great story. But, if I’m being honest, my biggest takeaway is that Tom’s childhood favorite food was steak.
The Dutch are world leaders in lab-grown meat. Why can’t they eat it?
This is one of my favorites, and a perfect example of why Tom’s so good at what he does. This deep dive not only discusses the technology, but dares to ask hard questions: “It’s not vegetarian, but if it’s removed every drawback of conventional meat, why wouldn’t I eat it? And why can’t I find it in Europe?”
Elon Musk is the richest person in the world. If you ask us, that’s way less impressive than it sounds. He spent 2022 doing what he always does: making headlines and causing controversy. Rather than speculate about what he’s going to do next, we wanted to gently remind you that he has a habit of making things up as he goes along.
Tristan Greene
I’m not usually one to toot my own horn. But, since it’s the holiday season, I thought I’d share my favorite Neural stories that were written by yours truly in 2022:
This whole thing turned into a big deal on Twitter, at least as far as the AI community goes. There was a significant amount of respectful debate that has since boiled over into numerous other discussions about fancy AI models from OpenAI and Meta.
I’m not sure who needs to hear this but, your brain is way smarter than you think it is. While you’re enjoying life in a classical world, our brains are (theoretically) operating in a quantum one. If it sounds tricky, that’s because it is.
The biggest story of 2021 was Google’s time crystals. To date, I think it’s the most important story I’ve ever covered. But 2022 also had some very cool experiments in the same domain. I can’t wait for 2023!
Elon Musk and Tesla are trying to convince the world that they’re on the cusp of putting a humanoid helper robot into production. Spoiler alert: they most certainly are not. A little critical thinking goes a long way here.
I wrote this piece in early January of 2022 and having thought about it for the whole year, I stand by it. I’m pretty sure the world ended in 2012, it’s the only thing that makes any sense.
However, if it didn’t, and all of this has been real, then I’d like to wish you a wonderful 2023. On behalf of Neural, thanks for reading. Happy new year!
The European Union has an unusual IT strategy. While the US prioritizes the development of global tech giants, the EU focuses on becoming the sector’s leading regulator.
In 2022, the bloc launched two sweeping sets of stringent new rules: the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which seeks to bolster competition in online services, and the Digital Services Act (DSA), which aims to protect people from online harm. Analysts expect the regulatory drive to accelerate next year.
“The only thing we can be certain about is that there will be more regulation next year, and increased enforcement of it,” said Alan Calder, CEO of GRC International Group, a global provider of IT governance, risk management, and compliance solutions.
To gauge the details, TNW asked IT experts across the bloc what they predict from the EU’s policies in 2023. All expect significant changes in legislation, with certain technologies particularly prominent in their forecasts.
Tighter security
Our experts expect significant developments in cyber security regulation. Kostas Rossoglou, Shopify’s Head of Public Policy and Government Affairs for EMEA and International, highlighted the importance of the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA).
The recently-adopted regulation aims to harmonize the financial sector’s approach to cybersecurity. To comply with the rules, organizations will need to review legacy IT systems and potentially invest in new software potential investment in new software. This may be costly in the short term, but Rossoglou is optimistic that it will pay off. He expects levels of security to increase, thereby limiting attacks, reducing downtime, and saving cash.
“Although it will be a couple of years before mandatory compliance, it will eventually put financial organizations in a much stronger position for handling outages, leaks, unauthorized access, and data loss,” he said. “Within the highly sensitive information that the financial sector holds, this is incredibly important.”
“It’s never too soon to be aware.
Another proposal working its way through the EU is the Cyber Resilience Act. This regulation will establish cybersecurity requirements for connected devices, which will provide consumers with transparency on practices, testing, and general functions.
The legislation is currently going through a consultation process. Rossoglou recommends organizations keep a close eye on its progress next year.
“It is likely to be a year or two before it is finalized and then organizations will be given a 24-month transition period to comply,” he said. “However, it is never too soon to be aware of upcoming changes. Regularly monitoring for updates will ensure that businesses are prepared for the changes in good time.”
This is a picture of Kostas Rossoglou, Shopify’s Head of Public Policy and Government Affairs for EMEA and International.
Indeed, these preparations could become increasingly crucial. Calder predicts new EU rules to be accompanied by stricter enforcement.
“The whole area of cyber security will, in particular, experience a ratcheting up in terms of regulation, and regulatory enforcement as the EU Commission moves to force organizations to take cyber security steps they’re failing to take voluntarily,” he said.
Algorithmic accountability
The EU is also developing new regulation for artificial intelligence, which is based on the technology’s potential to cause harm. Named the AI Act, the legislation will force anyone who wants to use, build, or sell AI products and services within the EU to follow the rules.
“It is expected that the legislation will set a precedent for other jurisdictions to evolve or follow,” said Matt Peake, Global Director of Public Policy at ID verification firm Onfido. “The framework is designed to be risk-based, so that the level of regulation will depend on the level of risk.”
According to a global survey by Accenture, the rules will have a deep impact. Some 95% of respondents said at least part of their business will be affected by the EU regulations.
Accenture’s researchers expect a risk management framework to become necessary for compliance with the AI Act. They also predict the regulation will be adopted before the end of 2023, with a two-year grace period before the rules come into force. That timetable, however, may be less generous than it appears.
“Our experience working with large organizations on major enterprise-wide compliance programs (e.g. GDPR, Responsible AI) suggests that it could easily take as long as two years to establish all the necessary controls they will need to be compliant,” the research team wrote in a report.
Follow the money
Cryptocurrencies are becoming a focal point of tech regulation. In the EU, a growing range of controversies has led the bloc to develop new legislation for the sector.
“I think 2023 will be a landmark year for crypto regulation,” said Ivan Liljeqvist, cofounder and CEO ofMoralis, a Web3 API provider.
Liljeqvist highlights the importance of the Market in Crypto Assets (MiCA) bill. In February, the European Parliament is expected to vote on the bill — the first comprehensive crypto regulation in the continent.
Ivan Liljeqvist, cofounder and CEO of Moralis.
With Big Tech getting into Web3 and the metaverse, competition is likely to heat up over the next few years — which could invite more regulatory scrutiny. The European Union recently introduced its Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) legislation, but even insiders from the EU Commission agree some of the phrasing around NFTs is ambiguous and even straight-up inaccurate.
The proposals could become integral to the European Commission’s future digital finance strategy. In addition, they may provide a reference point for other regulatory bodies.
“While the bill is unlikely to be rolled out until the end of the year, whenever we are dealing with legislative firsts I think the expectancy is for legislators to be cautious and over-regulate rather than under-regulate,” said Liljeqvist.
“What I want to see, and what I think others in the market want to see, is regulation that is sensible rather than stifling, protecting the principles of innovation and competition. I believe the most important thing is for the bill to be open-minded and flexible enough to be revised depending on how markets develop.”
Liljeqvist wasn’t alone in expressing caution. Jake Stott, CEO of Web3 creative agency Hype, is concerned about the impact on the market.
“As tech behemoths like Meta, Reddit, Google and Apple continue to venture into Web3 and NFTs, the regulatory situation could quickly escalate, triggering even more uncertainty in the market.”
“They must move at a faster pace.
Some critics, however, argue that the EU needs to be quicker to regulate the sector. Martin Magnone, co-founder and CEO of credit company Tymit, believes the new legislation will only start to make an impact in 2024.
“If the EU is to successfully take a stronger stand, they must move at a faster pace in line with industry movements,” he said.
Opening access
The payment sector, meanwhile, is preparing for the European Commission’s review of the PSD2, an EU regulation for online transactions.
Industry insiders have high hopes for the review, which is slated for 2023. They believe it could lead European SMEs and consumers to receive better payment outcomes — at a better price.
Under the current rules, only credit institutions can access European payment schemes. As a result, non-banks and more innovative firms must go through traditional banks to benefit from the schemes.
“This creates dependencies on credit institutions and their legacy systems; single points of failure; and increases the cost of payment services offered by non-credit institutions to European SMEs and consumers,” said Elanie Steyn, Director of Operations at payments platform Modulr.
“Should the PSD2 review include consideration on which institutions can directly access and settle European payments, the impact could be seismic. Opening access has the potential to level the playing field, create greater competition, and lower payment costs for all Europeans.”
Indeed, many of the experts we spoke to expect the EU to prioritize open access.
“The EU’s main focus for 2023 will still be the Big Tech platforms and achieving their goal of making them more open and interoperable,” said Tymit CEOMartin Magnone.
“The measures introduced so far to moderate the monopoly of large tech companies, from labor laws to taxes, have only been partially effective and not yet produced the desired effects. In 2023, we will see the EU make further strides to remedy this and achieve its open access goals.”
Here we go again! For the sixth year running, we present Neural’s annual AI predictions. 2022 was an incredible year for the fields of machine learning and artificial intelligence. From the AI developer who tried to convince the world that one of Google’s chatbots had become sentient to the recent launch of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, it’s been 12 months of non-stop drama and action. And we have every reason to believe that next year will be both bigger and weirder.
That’s why we reached out to three thought leaders whose companies are highly invested in artificial intelligence and the future. Without further ado, here are the predictions for AI in 2023:
First up, Alexander Hagerup, co-founder and CEO at Vic.ai, told us that we’d continue to see the “progression from humans using AI and ML software to augment their work, to humans relying on software to autonomously do the work for them.” According to him, this will have a lot to do with generative AI for creatives — we’re pretty sure he’s talking about the ChatGPTs and DALL-Es of the AI world — as well as “reliance on truly autonomous systems for finance and other back-office functions.”
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He believes a looming recession could increase this progress as much as two-fold, as businesses may be forced to find ways to cut back on labor costs.
Next, we heard from Jonathan Taylor, Chief Technology Officer at Zoovu. He’s predicting global disruption for the consumer buyer experience in 2023 thanks to “innovative zero-party solutions, leveraging advanced machine learning techniques and designed to interact directly and transparently with consumers.” I know that sounds like corporate jargon, but the fact of the matter is sometimes marketing-speak hits the nail on the head.
Consumers are sick and tired of the traditional business interaction experience. We’ve been on hold since we were old enough to pay bills. It’s a bold new world and the companies that know how to use machine learning to make us happy will be the cream that rises to the top in 2023 and beyond.
Jonathan Taylor, Chief Technology Officer at Zoovu
Taylor also predicts that Europe’s world-leading consumer protection and data privacy legislation will force companies large and small to “adopt these new approaches before the legacy approaches either become regulated out of existence by government or mandated out of existence by consumers.”
The writing’s on the wall. As he puts it, “the only way to make these zero-party solutions truly scalable and as effective as the older privacy-invading alternatives, will be to use advanced machine learning and transfer learning techniques.”
Finally, we got in touch with Gabriel Mecklenburg, co-founder at Hinge Health. He told us that the future of AI in 2023 is diversity. In order for the field to progress, especially when it comes to medicine, machine learning needs to work for everyone.
In his words, “AI is clearly the future of motion tracking for health and fitness, but it’s still extremely hard to do well. Many apps will work if you’re a white person with an average body and a late-model iPhone with a big screen. However, equitable access means that AI-powered care experiences must work on low-end phones, for people of all shapes and colors, and in real environments.”
Gabriel Mecklenburg, co-founder of Hinge Health
Mecklenburg explained that more than one in five people suffer from musculoskeletal conditions such as neck, back, and joint pain. According to him, “it is a global crisis with a severe human and economic toll.”
He believes that, with AI, medical professionals have what they need to help those people. “For example,” says Mecklenberg, “AI technology can now help identify and track many unique joints and reference points on the body using just the phone camera.”
But, as mentioned above, this only matters if these tools work for everyone. Per Mecklenburg, “we must ensure AI is used to bridge the care gap, not widen it.”
From the editor of Neural:
It’s been a privilege curating and publishing these predictions all these years. When we started, over half a decade ago, we made the conscious decision to highlight voices from smaller companies. And, as long-time readers might recall, I even ventured a few predictions myself back in 2019.
But, considering we spent all of 2020 in COVID lockdown, I’m reticent to tempt fate yet again. I won’t venture any predictions for AI in 2023 save one: the human spirit will endure.
When we started predicting the future of AI here at Neural, a certain portion of the population found it clever to tell creatives to “learn to code.” At the time, it seemed like journalists and artists were on the verge of being replaced by machines.
Yet, six years later, we still have journalists and artists. That’s the problem with humans: we’re never satisfied. Build an AI that understands us today, and it’ll be out of date tomorrow.
The future is all about finding ways to make AI work for us, not the other way around.
Few could have predicted the economic and geopolitical landscape that confronted the mobility sector in 2022. With the industry still reeling from materials shortages — particularly semiconductor chips — caused by COVID-19 lockdowns, the invasion of Ukraine has further tested the sector’s resiliency.
This has led to companies scrambling to wean themselves off Russian oil. The outcome of this has created a strong focus on renewable energy, including preservation, optimization of operational efficiency, and electrification, topics that’ll extend across all areas of mobility in 2023.
But there’s a lot more we can expect from the sector next year, and here are a few of those predictions.
Greater subsidized public transport
2022 saw countries like Spain and Germany subsidise public transport and these initiatives will extend into 2023.
France has banned short-haul domestic flights, reducing the cost of rail tickets along the way. We’ll likely see more countries investing in public transport to reduce citizens’ reliance on gas.
Solar electric vehicles (sEVs) will hit roads for the first time
This is the Sono Motors Sion car.
We can expect big things for solar EVs in 2023. Sono Motors’ €25,000 solar electric hatchback, Sion, is expected to go into production in the second half of year. According to CEO Laurin Hahn, the company will begin fulfilling pre-orders within the EU after that. Although, the company is going through some issues.
Lightyear’s €250,000 Model “0” solar electric vehicle — which is developed in the Netherlands — will probably hit the roads alongside the Squad Solar City. Over in California, Aptera may also release its two-seater solar electric vehicle.
According to Sono Motor’s CEO, Hahn, the availability of technologically-advanced, safe, energy-producing solar electric vehicles — as opposed to simple energy-consuming EVs — represents a great leap forward in the electric vehicle industry to date.
He added: “Each of these companies are pioneers in an emerging industry that is committed to delivering on the dream of truly zero-emission mobility, which has evaded us for too long.”
Bidirectional charging to have its moment
Bi-directional charging is the ability for your car battery to receive energy from the electricity grid, as well as sharing the power it generates.
Currently, EV bidirectional charging is a nice-to-have feature, but, in 2023, it will become far more sought after.
EV owners will want to reduce home and office energy costs, and using their EV as an alternative power source could be just the ticket.
Bidirectional charging usually requires a hardware investment. But according to Hahn, Sion could be among the first European car makers to offer consumers the ability to charge other vehicles or put energy back into a public or private grid (e.g. home grid) — without any additional hardware.
Ebikes are at a point of inflexion
2022 has been a great year for ebikes, with the hardware even outselling cars in the US. In much of Europe, they are becoming the ubiquitous mode of transport for urban dwellers.
Tanguy Goretti — co-founder and CTO of Cowboy — predicts a wider adoption amongst families who will continue to ditch their second car as it becomes too expensive to run. Ebikes provide families with “a more affordable, practical transport option that the whole household can share.”
TNW has reviewed many great ebikes for their great design and utility, but there’s also a considerable amount of software innovation that Goretti expects to grow in 2023.
He believes ebikes will have their iPhone moment, explaining that in the last 10 years, two significant hardware moments occurred: electrification and connectivity. He continued: “This is precisely what happened with iPhone or Tesla; hardware differences became less relevant, and software became the main element, and soon the ebike industry will follow suit.”
Micromobility will expand, but will struggle with profitability
2022 has been another big year for micromobility, as operators focused on expanding fleets and entering new markets. But the challenge of profitability has loomed large, leading to the layoffs we’ve seen across the entire tech ecosystem. This year major operators of shared micromobility services like Voi, Bird, and Tier have all significantly downsized.
A Lime escooter being driven around Paris.
There’s also speculation that Paris may ban escooters in response to parking challenges and accidents, despite a boost in both ownership and ridership. The city’s contracts with Lime, Dott, and Tier are all up for renewal in February 2023, so expect to see the dangers of escooters dominating the French media.
Parking and sidewalk riding remain notable pain points, so expect to see more attention given to the technology that manages how escotoers are ridden and parked. Docking (and charging) solutions may become a critical part of city infrastructure in some public spaces to reduce clutter.
And then there’s Berlin. Beginning on Jan 1, bikes, escooters, scooters and motorcycles (rental or otherwise) can be parked in regular spaces free of charge. While I like the elevation of their status in the parking food chain, I’m just waiting for the hordes of angry car owners to drive over them.
There’s also good news in the UK with the Department for Transport extending trials of hire escooters until May 2024. This will be a litmus test as to whether vendors can improve rider behaviour and increase user numbers. That said, it’s unlikely we’ll see the ban lifted on private escooters, which are currently restricted to private land use.
The rise and rise of circular design
I predicted last year that circular design would be a key feature of 2022 — and this will continue.
As a reminder, circular design completely reimagines product creation, from the original blueprints to various lifecycle stages, and what happens to each element after it has fulfilled its original purpose.
Next year kicks off the expansion of global regulations for batteries and the origin of critical, but not infinite, materials like cobalt and lithium.
New EU Battery Regulations have created a series of mandatory incremental requirements. These force battery makers (and users like carmakers) to consider the battery lifecycle, from R&D to mining source materials, closing material recycling loops, and end-of-life battery management.
In practice, in 2023, we’ll see car and bike makers focused on closed-loop circularity where end-of-life parts are reused to make new designs. We can also expect an expansion of R&D in battery innovation from materials design to the development of reusable and repairable batteries.
Greater manufacturing of sustainable materials
In 2023, innovation will continue to grow in terms of the materials used to build our vehicles.
the first electric trucks from Volvo with fossil-free steel are now being delivered to customers.
This year, Swedish Volvo became the world’s first truck manufacturer to begin using fossil-free steel in its electric trucks. The steel is made by using a completely new technology with green electricity and hydrogen. The result is a significantly lower climate impact and an important step towards a net-zero emissions value chain.
Additionally, startup Roetz is working on a modular bike called Life, something made up of swappable parts. Modules will be repaired or remanufactured, ready for the next lifecycle. Roetz’s modular ebike will be launched in 2023.
Also, German company igus and Dutch company MTRL have partnered to create igus:bike, and what makes it so special is the fact that it is made from 90% recycled plastic waste, including the frame, bearings, brake levers, pedals, and belt.
So there we have it, just a few predictions for 2023. We know that even with challenges, the mobility sector is forever improving and evolving product offerings and changing how we move people and products for the better.
According to the International Energy Association (IEA), the buildings sector in 2021 was responsible for around one-third of global energy and process-related CO2 emissions.
Specifically, 6% of these emissions resulted from the manufacture of cement, steel, and aluminium used for construction; 8% from the use of fossil fuels; and 19% from the generation of electricity and heat needed to maintain them.
This makes one thing clear: more attention needs to be paid to making our buildings greener and more sustainable.
Thankfully, 2023 will be the year when we start taking some significant steps towards this goal.
“The building sector has not received nearly the amount of attention that it deserves given the havoc it wreaks on the environment,” Talia Rafaeli, Partner at KOMPAS, a Copenhagen-based early-stage VC firm, told TNW.
“Next year, I think that the quicker we provide financing to scale sustainable technologies for the built environment, the faster we reach economies of scale to allow for widespread adoption,” she added.
Rafaeli specified that the investments should focus on the following: lower-emission concrete, green steel, cooling technologies to improve HVAC systems (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning), and heat pumps.
Optimistically, we’re already seeing European companies developing projects on lower-emission concrete and green steel production.
Among them, is the Finnish Betolar, a business is creating an alternative to cement-based concrete. There are also Swedish manufacturers H2 Green Steel and SSAB, which are developing hydrogen-based green steel solutions.
Betolar’s Geoprime solution has up to 80% lower carbon footprint. Credit: Betolar
Yet, there is a lot to be done with pre-existing buildings. Dr Aidan Bell, co-founder of UK-based EnviroBuild maintains this is a “significant” step which should start with ensuring a house is well-insulated. “Roof and wall cavity insulation [in particular is] very cost-effective,” Bell told TNW.
There are also additional technologies for those who have already done the basics, he added, telling us about Airex a type of smart air brick that reduces heat loss.
Bell foresees two more trends picking up in 2023: the increased installation of solar PV panels on rooftops and the use of smart meters, which enable “better awareness of electricity peaks and troughs.” Even simple steps such as using machines overnight can assist in lowering peak demand on the national grid, he noted.
A way of encouraging this balance of energy consumption are flexibility services. Chantel Scheepers — CEO of OakTree Power — believes these are likely to become mainstream in 2023. The goal os these schemes is to offer consumers financial compensation for using less energy during peak times, she told TNW.
Scheepers noted that they’re gaining popularity in cities like London, where they’re being adopted by multinational companies, such as the Financial Times and Pinsent Masons — showing their “enormous potential” to optimize energy usage.
Ultimately, making our buildings more sustainable won’t happen in 2023 alone, but every small action we take is crucial in the long term — and there’s no time like the present to begin.
New research values the UK tech industry at a whopping $1 trillion (€942 billion) — making it comfortably the leading ecosystem in Europe.
This sector is now worth more than double Germany’s ($467.2 billion) and three times more than France’s ($307.5 billion), according to a report by data provider Dealroom. The UK also leads the continent in overall funding, unicorns, and startup numbers.
“UK tech has remained resilient in the face of global challenges and we have ended the year as one of the world’s leading destinations for digital businesses,” said Digital Minister Paul Scully in a statement. “This is good news and reflects our pro-innovation approach to tech regulation, continuing support for start-ups, and ambition to boost people’s digital skills.”
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Dealroom conducted the research for the Digital Economy Council, which is part of the British government’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport (DCMS).
The study found that fast-growing UK tech companies raised a near-record £24 billion (€27.3 billion) during 2022 — more than France and Germany combined. A total of 144 unicorns and 237 futurecorns have now been created in the country — up from 116 unicorns and 204 futurecorns at the same time last year.
DCMS credited sustained upskilling, investment, and growth for the expansion of the sector, which now employs 3 million people. The department also noted the UK’s focus on standards and values. It highlighted recent proposals for AI regulation, based on core principles such as safety, transparency, and fairness. DCMS claims it’s taken a less centralized approach than that of the EU.
Fintech dominance
The UK becomes the third country to hit the $1 trillion milestone, after China and the US. A large chunk of this figure comes from British fintech, which dominates Dealroom’s list of the most valuable startups.
The Amsterdam-based organization named Worldplay, a payments software firm, as the UK’s most valuable tech company. The top five also included Revolut, FNZ, Rapyd, and Blockchain.com.
Rounding out the rankings were The Access Group, Checkout.com, Global Switch, JustEat, and ION Group. The combined valuation of the top 10 is $177.9B — almost 20% of the entire ecosystem.
Green energy also attracted growing investment — a shift that’s set to accelerate in the coming years.
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Ioanna is a writer at SHIFT. She likes the transition from old to modern, and she’s all about shifting perspectives. Ioanna is a writer at SHIFT. She likes the transition from old to modern, and she’s all about shifting perspectives.
On January 13, 2023, Spaceport Esrange — mainland Europe’s first satellite launch facility — will be inaugurated in Sweden. This marks a critical milestone for the continent’s space industry.
At first, the spaceport will be used to launch satellites into orbit.
“Satellites are decisive for many functions of the daily lives of today’s modern world, and the need for them will only increase in the years to come with space playing an even more important role,” Stefan Gardefjord, CEO of the Swedish Space Corporation (SSC), said in a press release.
According to the SSC’s data, around 10,000 new satellites are expected to be launched over the next few years. By 2040, their total number could reach 100,000 — a 1,900% increase compared with the operational satellites in orbit today.
Spaceport Esrange under construction in November 2021. Credit: Copyright SSC
Spaceport Esrange will also host testing of the ESA’s Themis program, which is Europe’s initiative for reusable rocketry. Themis’ reusable space launcher will start first-stage tests, seeking to achieve vehicle liftoff and recovery.
Finally, the facility will be used for suborbital test launches of various next-gen rockets.
Thanks to the above, Spaceport Esrange will help establish the continent’s resilience in space. As per Gardefjord, it will enable a “secure, competitive, and sustainable Europe.”
The launch of Spaceport Esrange will also be a huge positive for startups working in this sector. Not only will there be ample business opportunities, there’s also the question of talent. Having a launch facility will require skilled operators, many of whom will move into different companies, spreading their expertise across the whole continent and helping accelerate and grow Europe’s space sector.
At the moment, Spaceport Esrange is trying to attract satellite owners and orbital rocket manufacturers for potential partnerships. The first satellite launch is expected late 2023.
Ioanna is a writer at SHIFT. She likes the transition from old to modern, and she’s all about shifting perspectives. Ioanna is a writer at SHIFT. She likes the transition from old to modern, and she’s all about shifting perspectives.
As part of the 2022 European Innovation Council (EIC) Accelerator program, the Commission selected 78 startups and SMEs to receive up to €470 million in funding.
Depending on its needs, each company will get up to €17.5 million in grants and/or equity investments.
The latter will be made through the EIC Fund, which is now “fully operational” after appointing Luxembourg-based Alter Domus as an external fund manager to streamline the equity payment process and avoid past delays.
The selected companies span across 17 EU and EEA nations, with the addition of Israel and the UK.
Among them, 17% of startups and SMEs are located in Germany, 14% in the Netherlands, and 12% in France and Spain, respectively. These countries combined make up 53% of the total selection.
Below you can see a detailed graph of the number of companies selected in each country:
And you can observe on the map below, the selected startups are mostly located in Western and Northern Europe, while Eastern countries in the EU/EEA aren’t represented at all:
Notably, the sector that attracts most funding by the EIC is health — with 51% of the selected companies offering technologies for medical solutions. Other industries include mobility, climate management, energy storage, agriculture, manufacturing, and AI.
Here are three notable examples of the finalists:
Spanish Inbrain Neuroelectronics is engineering graphene for the development of neural interfaces, seeking to revolutionize the treatment of neurological diseases.
Estonia-based Efenco is aiming to reduce natural gas needs and carbon emissions in industrial usage by enabling the industry’s transition to hydrogen with HERC, a novel plasma-assisted combustion (PAC) technology.
Energy Dome in Italy is working on a long-duration battery energy storage system based on a closed thermodynamic loop that uses CO2 as working fluid. Thanks to the properties of carbon dioxide, the system can store energy efficiently and cost effectively.
These 78 companies will join the 314 selected for funding by the European Innovation Council so far. This is bound to grow, as the EIC’s Accelerator fund has secured €1.13 billion for 2023.
The war in Ukraine has become the largest testing ground for artificial intelligence-powered autonomous and uncrewed vehicles in history. While the use of military robots is nothing new — World War II saw the birth of remote-controlled war machines and the US has deployed fully-autonomous assault drones as recently as 2020 — what we’re seeing in Ukraine is the proliferation of a new class of combat vehicle.
This article discusses the “killer robot” technology being used by both sides in Russia’s war in Ukraine. Our main takeaway is that the “killer” part of “killer robots” doesn’t apply here. Read on to find out why.
Uncrewed versus autonomous
This war represents the first usage of the modern class of uncrewed vehicles and automated weapons platforms in a protracted invasion involving forces with relatively similar tech. While Russia’s military appears, on paper, to be superior to Ukraine’s, the two sides have fielded forces with similar capabilities. Compared to forces Russia faced during its involvement in the Syrian civil war or, for example, those faced by the US during the Iraq and Afghanistan engagements, what’s happening on the ground in Ukraine right now demonstrates a more paralleled engagement theater.
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It’s important, however, to mention that this is not a war being fought by machines. It’s unlikely that autonomous or uncrewed weapons and vehicles will have much impact in the war, simply because they’re untested and, currently, unreliable.
Uncrewed vehicles and autonomous vehicles aren’t necessarily the same thing. While almost all autonomous vehicles — those which can operate without human intervention — are uncrewed, many uncrewed vehicles can only be operated remotely by humans. Perhaps most importantly, many of these vehicles have never been tested in combat. This means that they’re more likely to be used in “support” roles than as autonomous combat vehicles, even if that’s what they were designed to do.
But, before we get into the how’s and why’s behind the usage of military robots in modern warfare, we need to explain what kind of vehicles are currently in use. There are no “killer robots” in warfare. That’s a catch-all term used to describe military vehicles both autonomous and uncrewed.
These include uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs), uncrewed ground vehicles (UGVs), and uncrewed surface vehicles (USVs, another term for uncrewed maritime or water-based vehicles).
So, the first question we have to answer is: why not just turn the robots into killers and let them fight the war for us? You might be surprised to learn that the answer has very little to do with regulations or rules regarding the use of “killer robots.”
To put it simply: militaries have better things to do with their robots than just sending fire downrange. That doesn’t mean they won’t be tested that way, there’s already evidence that’s happened.
A British “Harrier” USV, credit: Wikicommons
However, we’ve seen all that before. The use of “killer robots” in warfare is old hat now. The US deployed drones in Iraq and Afghanistan and, as we reported here at TNW, it even sent a Predator drone to autonomously assassinate an Iranian general.
What’s different in this war is the proliferation of UAVs and UGVs in combat support roles. We’ve seen drones and autonomous land vehicles in war before, but never at this scale. Both forces are using uncrewed vehicles to perform tasks that, traditionally, either couldn’t be done or require extra humanpower. It does also bear mentioning that they’re using gear that’s relatively untested, which explains why we’re not seeing either country deploying these units enmasse.
A developmental crucible
Developing wartime technology is a tricky gambit. Despite the best assurances of the manufacturers, there’s simply no way to know what could possibly go wrong until a given tech sees actual field use.
In the Vietnam war, we saw a prime example of this paradigm in the debut of the M-16 rifle. It was supposed to replace the trusty old M-14. But, as the first soldiers to use the new weapon tragically found out, it wasn’t suitable for use in the jungle environment without modifications to its design and special training for the soldiers who’d use it. A lot of soldiers died as a result.
A US Marine cleaning their M16 during the US-Vietnam War, credit: Wikicommons
That’s one of the many reasons why a number of nations who’ve so far refused any direct involvement in the war are eager to send cutting-edge robots and weapons to the Ukrainian government in hopes of testing out their tech’s capabilities without risking their own soldiers’ skin.
TNW spoke with Alex Stronell, a Land Platforms Analyst and UGV lead at Janes, the defense intelligence provider. They explained that one of the more interesting things to note about the use of UGVs, in particular, in the war in Ukraine, is the absence of certain designs we might have otherwise expected.
“For example, an awful lot of attention has been paid inside and outside of Russia to the Uran-9 … It certainly looks like a menacing vehicle, and it has been touted as the world’s most advanced combat UGV,” Stronell told us, before adding “however, I have not seen any evidence that the Russians have used the Uran-9 in Ukraine, and this could be because it still requires further development.”
On the other side, Stronell previously wrote that Ukrainian forces will soon wield the world’s largest complement of THeMIS UGVs (see the video below). That’s exceptional when you consider that the nation’s arsenal is mostly lend-leased from other countries.
Milrem, the company that makes the THeMIS UGV, recently announced that the German Ministry of Defence ordered 14 of its vehicles to be sent to the Ukrainian forces for immediate use. According to Stronell, these vehicles will not be armed. They’re equipped for casualty evacuation, and for finding and removing landmines and similar devices.
But it’s also safe to say that the troops on the ground will find other uses for them. As anyone who’s ever deployed to a combat zone can tell you, space is at a premium and there’s no point in bringing more than you can carry.
The THeMIS, however, is outfitted with Milrem’s “Intelligence Function Kit,” which includes the “follow me” ability. This means that it would make for an excellent battle mule to haul ammo and other gear. And there’s certainly nothing stopping anyone from rekitting the THeMIS with combat modules or simply strapping a homemade autonomous weapon system to the top of it.
As much as the world fears the dawning of the age of killer robots in warfare, the current technology just simply isn’t there yet. Stronell waved off the idea that a dozen or so UGVs could, for example, be outfitted as killer guard robots that could be deployed in the defense of strategic points. Instead, he described a hybrid human/machine paradigm referred to as “manned-unmanned teaming, or M-UMT,” where-in, as described above, unmounted infantry address the battlefield with machine support.
In the time since the M-16 was mass-adopted during an ongoing conflict, the world’s militaries have refined the methodology they use to deploy new technologies. Currently, the war in Ukraine is teaching us that autonomous vehicles are useful in support roles.
The simple fact of the matter is that we’re already exceptionally good at killing each other when it comes to war. And it’s still cheaper to train a human to do everything a soldier needs to do than it is to build massive weapons platforms for every bullet we want to send downrange. The actual military need for “killer robots” is likely much lower than the average civilian might expect.
However, AI’s gifts when it comes to finding needles in haystacks, for example, make it the perfect recon unit, but soldiers have to do a lot more than just identify the enemy and pull a trigger.
However, that’s something that will surely change as AI technology matures. Which is why, Stronell told us, other European countries are either currently in the process of adopting autonomous weaponry or already have.
In the Netherlands, for example, the Royal Army has engaged in training ops in Lithuania to test their own complement of THeMIS units in what they’re referring to as a “pseudo-operational” theater. Due to the closeness of the war in Ukraine and its ongoing nature, nearby nations are able to run analogous military training operations based on up-to-the-minute intel of the ongoing conflict. In essence, the rest of Europe’s watching what Ukraine and Russia do with their robots and simulating the war at home.
Soldiers in the Netherlands Royal Army in front of a Netherlands Royal Air Force AH-64 Apache helicopter, credit: Wikicommons
This represents an intel bonanza for the related technologies and there’s no telling how much this period of warfare will advance things. We could see innumerable breakthroughs in both military and civilian artificial intelligence technology as the lessons learned from this war begin to filter out.
To illustrate this point, it bears mention that Russia’s put out a one million ruble bounty (about €15,000) to anyone who captures a Milrem THeMIS unit from the battlefield in Ukraine. These types of bounties aren’t exactly unusual during war times, but the fact that this particular one was so publicized is a testament to how desperate Russia is to get its hands on the technology.
An eye toward the future
It’s clear that not only is the war in Ukraine not a place where we’ll see “killer robots” deployed enmasse to overwhelm their fragile, human, enemy soldier counterparts, but that such a scenario is highly unlikely in any form of modern warfare.
However, when it comes to augmenting our current forces with UGVs or replacing crewed aerial and surface recon vehicles with robots, military leaders are excited about AI’s potential usefulness. And what we’re seeing right now in the war in Ukraine is the most likely path forward for the technology.
That’s not to say that the world shouldn’t be worried about killer robots or their development and proliferation through wartime usage. We absolutely should be worried, because Russia’s war in Ukraine has almost certainly lowered the world’s inhibitions surrounding the development of autonomous weapons.
Ioanna is a writer at SHIFT. She likes the transition from old to modern, and she’s all about shifting perspectives. Ioanna is a writer at SHIFT. She likes the transition from old to modern, and she’s all about shifting perspectives.
As we’re moving towards an EV-dominated future, efforts to introduce wireless on-road charging systems are increasing.
Now, Germany’s famous Autobahn will welcome its own wireless charging system — although it won’t be available to individual EV drivers. Instead, it will power a public bus transporting passengers to the city of Balingen.
The technology will be provided by Israeli wireless charging company Electreon, which will collaborate with German EnBW — an EV charging infrastructure provider — for the realization of the project.
Electreon will deploy 1km of Electric Road System (ERS) along a stretch of the Autobahn, providing dynamic wireless charging while the bus is in motion. This will be accompanied by two static charging stations placed at stops along the bus route.
The project consists of two phases: firstly, the deployment of a 400-meter-long route with two static charging stations. Secondly, the expansion of the electric road by another 600 meters.
Notably, this endeavor follows a successful pilot of the two companies in the Germany city of Karlsruhe. An electrified road was installed at the EnBW training center, powering a local public bus at peak hours.
“We have already shown in our joint Karlsruhe project with EnBW how effective, safe, and easy to deploy wireless dynamic charging is. We hope this is the start of many more projects on public and private roads in Germany,” Dr. Andreas Wendt, CEO of Electreon Germany, said in the press release.
The Israeli company has run wireless on-road charging projects in Italy and Sweden as well.
But although Electreon and severalUS-basedcompanies are testing the tech, only a few European companies are active in the field. These include Italian Enermove, German-based Magment, and Swedish Elonroad.
Wireless on-road charging could play a pivotal role in eliminating range anxiety and the inconvenience of long charging times at stations. This, in turn, will facilitate the transition to electric vehicles.
On the downside, it requires a tremendous change (and investment) in infrastructure, which, by the time it is realized, might turn out to be obsolete as a result of technological advancements in conventional charging stations. Perhaps, the European industry is taking a wait-and-see approach before shelling out all that cash.
Ioanna is a writer at SHIFT. She likes the transition from old to modern, and she’s all about shifting perspectives. Ioanna is a writer at SHIFT. She likes the transition from old to modern, and she’s all about shifting perspectives.
JUPITER is set to become the first European supercomputer to make the leap into the exascale era. This means, it’ll be capable of performing more than an exaflop (or 1 quintillion) operations per second. In other words, the device’s computing power willsurpassthat of 5 million laptops or PCs combined.
The European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU), which is being behind the project, has now signed ahosting agreementwith theJülich Supercomputing Centre(JSC) in Germany, where JUPITER will be located.
Under the terms of the agreement, JUPITER (which stands for “Joint Undertaking Pioneer for Innovative and Transformative Exascale Research”) will be installed on the campus of the Forschungszentrum Jülich research institute in 2023. The machine will be operated by the JSC.
This new supercomputer will be backed by a €500million budget, split equally between the EuroHPC JU and German federal and state sources.
JUPITER’s remarkable power will support the development of high-precision models of complex systems. The machine will be used to analyse key societal issues in Europe, such as health, biology, climate, energy, security, and materials. It will also support intensive use of AI and analysis of enormous data volumes.
Experts expect the computer to improve research quality (while reducing costs), and integrate future technologies such as quantum computing. The device will be available to a wide range of European users in the scientific community, industry, and public sector.
Along with its outstanding computing power, JUPITER will feature a dynamic, modular architecture, which will enable optimal use of the various computing modules used during complex simulations. Notably, JUPITER has been designed as a “green” supercomputer and will be powered by green electricity, supported by a warm water cooling system. At the same time, its average power consumption is anticipated to be up to15 megawatts— approximately six megawatts less than the US Frontierexascale supercomputer.
Upon completion, JUPITER will become the ninth (and best) supercomputer the EuroHPC JU has provided to Europe. Three are expected to be available shortly, and five are already operational. Among them isLUMI, which has beenrankedthe fastest in the EU and third fastest in the world.
