Five Solar Startups Using AI To Make An Impact

If tech in the 2020s had to be defined by a phrase, it’d be Artificial Intelligence or AI. With every product nowadays coming out with some form of AI, it’s not surprising to see AI make its way to solar as well. In particular, startups have been at the forefront of the AI revolution for solar, bringing innovations and fresh ideas to the market. Here are some of the most promising AI-Based Solar startups:

Tespack:

While most of us have access to near-uninterrupted electricity, a lot of regions in the world are not as fortunate. Tespack looks to revolutionize smart mobile energy, combining hardware and software energy solutions for rescue personnel, governments and extreme athletes worldwide. Founded in 2015, the Finnish startup has already unveiled the Smart Solar Media System or the S²MS. The S²MS provides a modular power station that houses the capability to turn any classroom into a smart classroom. Housing a projector, speakers, 80W solar panel and power station, the S²MS has seen adoption in multiple locations. It makes use of AI to collect energy data and predict optimal times for charging the power station. The S²MS has additionally been used to power mobile health clinics, power farm equipment and supply renewable energy to refugee camps. While the tech is still in the early stages of adoption, it has a promising future and as such gets our badge of approval.

Solavio:

Looking to make solar panel ownership more convenient, Solavio offers autonomous solar panel cleaning bots which are fully autonomous, lightweight and portable. What sets them apart from other bots is their use of dry cleaning technology which makes them suitable for ground mount and carport installations. The ability to clean panels without the use of water makes the robots especially suitable for desert installations, where sunlight is maximum.

Scopito:

Traditional methods like visual inspection and manual testing have limitations in terms of accuracy, efficiency and scalability while being subject to human error. As more countries look into large-scale solar infrastructure, there is a growing need for advanced inspection technologies that allow for the automation of fast and reliable error detection.

In recent years, AI and thermal imaging have emerged as promising tools for defect identification. Using thermal imaging, miniscule cracks which would’ve otherwise gone unseen can be detected. Capturing infrared radiation emitted by the panels provides insights into panel health and performance, facilitating proactive maintenance and troubleshooting.

Founded in 2014, the Denmark-based company looks to make use of thermal imaging assisted by AI-powered fault detection for a scalable fault detection system which is reliable and accurate. With upto a 27.46% return on investment, Scopito looks to replace linemen and reduce human error, thus making solar panel defect handling less of a pain.

The integration of AI, more specifically Machine Learning models with thermal imaging techniques allows for enhanced defect detection and classification, enabling automated analysis of thermal images and identification of specific defect types. Convolutional neural networks (CNNs), support vector machines (SVMs), and other AI models process thermal data to recognize patterns and anomalies associated with defects, achieving high accuracy and efficiency in defect identification tasks. The synergy between thermal imaging and AI offers real-time monitoring capabilities, allowing for early detection of defects and timely intervention to prevent performance degradation and costly repairs.

While the technology is still in its infancy, using AI for defect identification shows a promising future. Furthermore, recent advancements in thermal imaging technology, such as the development of multispectral and hyperspectral imaging systems, have expanded the capabilities of defect detection in solar PV panels.

Amphibious AI:

Founded by Gurpreet Singh in 2021, the US-based company looks to manufacture green and sustainable solar-powered amphibious autonomous cars which can be used for both land and underwater travel and tourism without affecting marine ecosystems. While the company does not have any prototypes ready yet, the company is investing time into the development of graphene-based batteries and MHD superconductors.

Solar Captus:

For most of us, buying solar is never as simple as just pressing the “buy” button. There are a large number of factors which should be taken into consideration when buying a solar installation, most of which make the average consumer averse to buying solar. Solar captus aims to change that. Founded in 2016 by Jelmer van Rooij and Peter Tylee, the Australian company offers a simple solar panel installation pathway. Simply input and address and the Solar Captus system shows customers exactly how many solar panels their roof can fit and provides them with a digital buying experience. It makes use of image recognition AI to improve its results to the best level possible.