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"The transition to a more decentralised and intelligent energy system will continue in 2017, driven by the continued regulatory support for renewable energy in a number of key markets. The 3 Ds of energy are driving future investment - increased decentralisation, the need to decarbonise electricity generation, and digitisation to boost the sector's operational efficiency and open up new market opportunities. The highest growth rates will be for solar PV, with investment forecast to increase by 11.5% to €141.6 billion in 2017. China continues to be the largest market in terms of revenue investment, but the fastest growth will come from India, which will see double-digit growth in investment to 2020. New business models that incentivise smarter consumption patterns, and the growth of energy storage technologies, will increasingly reduce the need for peak capacity investment in mature energy markets."

"Global Trends 2030 is intended to stimulate thinking about the rapid and vast geopolitical changes characterizing the world today and possible global trajectories over the next 15 years."

"Today, the parking industry is being transformed by new technologies that are enabling cities to reduce levels of congestion significantly. Sensor networks that detect vehicle occupancy are providing the basic intelligence behind smart parking systems, which provide real-time parking availability information to make it easier for drivers to find a parking space."

Compared to other solar energy applications, solar cooling is a relatively new, but growing, technology. Many projects using the technology are still for the purposes of demonstration only, but a growing number of systems are being implemented all over the world for conventional use. In order to give an insight into this innovative technology, detailed information about the possible technical applications of solar cooling systems is provided in this section.\n\nPassive solar cooling, based on bioclimatic strategies such as sun protection using natural screening devices or increased cooling by using ponds or water basins o the roof or close to the external walls, is widely applied and should be the first step to take in cooling a building. Such measures are easier and less costly to implement, they decrease the need for additional cooling and, therefore, for additional energy demand (and also for investment). Sufficient insulation of the building also decreases the need for cooling, as well as for heating.\n\nIf the outcome of these measures is not sufficient in itself, a solar assisted cooling system may be an intelligent solution. In solar assisted cooling systems solar heat is used to drive the cooling process for air conditioning in buildings. Instead of using electricity, free solar thermal energy is used for cooling through a thermal-chemical sorption process.\n\n

Following on from its 2008 report on corporate sustainability, the Economist Intelligence Unit has released a major new research report at its 2009 Sustainability Summit, focusing specifically on climate change and what it means for business. The research was sponsored by the Carbon Trust, KPMG, SAP and Shell.

The agency's intelligence report on copper thefts says the thieves are now impacting critical infrastructure in the U.S. The threat assessment, released Thursday, cites a crime committed at a Polk County electrical substation as a prime example.

The research result is interesting in that polymer-protected metal particles can also be used in various electronics applications: various kinds of intelligent patterns can be printed on paper that, in the future, may replace components such as electronics boards.

"Safety-related electrical and electronic systems are an increasingly important aspect of automotive product development - a trend accelerated by the increasing electrification of vehicle architectures and the implementation of new innovations in intelligent transport technologies.

The EU energy package has officially come into force with two Directives and three Regulations aimed at creating an integrated Europe-wide energy market that will drive the first steps toward a smart grid. The gas and electricity market Directives require that EU member states implement "intelligent metering systems that shall assist the active participation of consumers". By 2020, the Directive targets that 80% of households in Europe should be equipped with smart electricity meters and that a complete rollout should be achieved by 2022.

Top-level executives disagree with other senior executives on how much their companies are doing to address energy efficiency, according to a study by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU). In the survey by EIU and Ingersoll-Rand, 49 percent of C-suite executives said their organizations do not do enough to integrate energy efficiency into business strategy, compared to 61 percent of executives below that level.

"How can we measure ROI? The more general the market research objective, the more difficult it is to achieve a ROI measurement. In possibly half the market research projects that are commissioned, it is likely to be difficult, if not impossible, to measure the ROI. For these projects though, a more subjective approach would be useful to justify the market research expenditure. For example, to the question 'what is the risk to the business of taking a decision without market intelligence?' the importance of the business decision can be ranked from 1-5, where 1 is low and 5 is high. If the answer to it is a score of 4 or 5, then market research could be justified. Where is the measurement most feasible? It is clear that the measurement of market research ROI is a valid concept, even though there are inherent difficulties in doing so. It is worth holding a post mortem after every research study is completed to judge the success of the project and whether it was financially justified. In other words, a straightforward satisfaction score on the research project may, in itself, be as good a measure as any."

Nvidia has partnered with the American College of Radiology (ACR) to offer an open artificial intelligence (AI) platform for the development of diagnostic algorithms.