High tech

Because it will make energy systems more connected, smart, reliable and sustainable, the transition to digital technology is a key tool for carbon reduction: this is the explanation provided by GeSI’s Smarter3030 report which estimates that by 2030, digital technologies could cut energy use by 20%. In contrast, “The Shift Project”, a think tank, estimates that the digital industry’s energy intensity increases by 4% yearly. How to explain this paradox? We put the question to Anne-Cécile Orgerie, a research scientist at CNRS, and to Daniel Kaplan of Next generation internet foundation (Fing).