Price Over Performance: Why Green Energy Is Different From Previous Technology Revolutions
As the climate changes around us, the case for green tech gets stronger by the day. But the drivers that accelerated every transformative innovation since the industrial revolution won’t work for green tech. Previous technology revolutions have all come with massive performance advantages. But the green energy revolution won’t be like that. Instead, it must be driven by price.
Writing for UtilityDive, Robin Gaster argues society has enjoyed a long string of extraordinary technological innovations, from the steam engine to the smartphone. It’s a long and very distinguished list: railways, autos and airplanes; refrigerators and washing machines; TVs, telecommunications and the Internet. In each case, these new technologies fundamentally changed how we live, leaving marks that are still visible everywhere we look. But green energy is nothing like that.