Automated Emissions Reduction (AER)
Created by the nonprofit WattTime in 2019, Automated Emissions Reduction (AER) is an “environmental demand response” platform that enables smart devices to automatically reduce emissions related to electricity use. The AER app gathers data on actual electricity use, and works with any smart device to allow customers to continue using their own devices while contributing to emissions reductions. Machine learning algorithms analyze this data, and the app then redirects the device to use energy during periods when cleaner energy is available within the grid, rather than dirtier moments associated with higher emissions. Washing machines controlled by the AER app, for example, might run in the middle of the night rather than in the early evening. By “seeing” the activity of the energy grid, AER does what most users don’t have time to do: makes data-informed decisions about reducing energy use in real time AER operates quietly behind the scenes of any given smart device, and requires only a quick set-up to boot autonomous functions rather than rely on continuous user modifications. WattTime hopes to utilize AER technology not only to reduce residential and building emissions, but also to enhance environmental justice for communities most disadvantaged by the inequitable, direct impacts of fossil fuel generation. However, AER’s scope is currently limited to parts of Australia, Europe and North America, limiting potential uptake by underserved communities.
Categories
Artificial Intelligence, Climate Change, Data, Industry/Natural Commodities, Internet of Things, Monitoring, Regulation
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