AI and Algae to Fight Climate Change?
Most people know about the tiny plants called algae, and with the rising global temperatures, these organisms are becoming an issue in a lot of coastal regions. However, researchers believe that they have found a way to use algae partnered with AI to save the planet from climate change. The AI company Hypergiant thinks that their method of combining AI with algae as a method for trapping carbon dioxide and reducing global warming could potentially affect the problem at a massive scale.
The Test Bioreactor
Hypergiant has already built a test EOS bioreactor that takes advantage of algae’s ability to absorb carbon dioxide and convert it into oxygen. The bioreactor aimed to optimize growth conditions for algae so that they would maximize the space. The company claims that the bioreactor can extract as much carbon dioxide from the air as an acre of trees. The most significant challenge that Hypergiant has is to scale up its operation from the size of a refrigerator to something industrial-sized.
Where the AI Comes In
Artificial intelligence is crucial to the setup as it monitors the growth of the algae and automatically adjusts conditions to allow for optimal production. Hypergiant stated that they intend to develop the system to operate without human intervention. The arrangement consists of glass tubes that are illuminated with bubbles of oxygen floating through them to make an ideal growing environment for the algae. When the reactor completes its job of carbon dioxide extraction, the algae can be extracted and dried out.
Needed at Larger Scales
The goal of implementing this sort of technology is to impact climate change in a significant way. However, the biggest problem is that it will be required at massive scales to make a difference. There is no “silver bullet” to solve a nuanced problem like climate change, but the EOS bioreactor is a step in the right direction. Hypergiant hopes that other innovators will follow their lead and utilize their technology as a springboard to propose further suggestions for solving the global problem of a shifting climate.
