London Tech Week day two: How can tech help solve the climate crisis?
As London Tech Week kicks off, Russ Shaw, founder of Tech London Advocates & Global Tech Advocates, gives us the inside scoop on the industry with his daily diary
A central question in the tech ecosystem is what can tech do to solve the climate crisis.
Technology is rightly considered a powerful asset when approaching the target of net-zero, providing the innovative solutions required, backed by investor confidence.
Recent L&P research found that London-based Climate Tech startups raised $3.5bn, ranking second globally in terms of investment in the sector. More broadly, the sector has a current turnover of £344.6bn and is growing at 11.1 per cent per year.
To put things in perspective, the UK cleantech sector is three times the size it was in 2017.
These numbers speak volumes , and a clear demonstration of the economic incentive that is coupled with the moral case for urgently finding solutions to the climate crisis, recognising tech as fundamental to the UK’s path to net-zero.
London (Clean)tech Week
It comes as no surprise that at London Tech Week this year, there is a commitment to sustainability, with the event working to achieve carbon net-zero and zero waste.
As tech experts from over 100 countries gather in London this week, they will engage with themes addressing today’s most pressing issues, showcasing how technology can positively impact society.
The focus on a sustainable future at the UK’s biggest tech event aims to inspire attendees by providing a platform for decision-makers, industry leaders, and entrepreneurs to implement change.
Today, attendees at Olympia heard from ClimateTech founders and CEOs, from companies including ENSO and Materials Nexus, as part of a green-focused speaker line-up with the message of providing a better future for our planet through technology.
In the festival’s fringe events I attended today with Tech in Ghana, Tech Malaysia Advocates and Tech China Advocates, sustainability was a theme across the board. Each group spoke about the importance of net-zero, how we can look after the planet and underlined how tech for net-zero is something that we must work together on to achieve global sustainability goals.
Furthermore, the ClimateTech Summit returns to London Tech Week once again this year, with speakers from the SOSV, National Grid and Katapult all set to offer their insights.
These convening moments all restate the commitment of the tech sector to putting the planet at the forefront of tech decision-making.
How tech can lead the green-way
The incentive to position London tech at the heart of our fight against climate change goes beyond the moral argument – though that of course plays a major role too.
London is respected, and renowned around the world, for its approach to climate tech – the fact that investment in climate tech in the UK was only second globally is clear testament to that fact. This tech vertical is a significant asset that brings in billions in investment yearly and has the potential to create thousands of jobs around the country.
Addressing climate change requires innovative solutions – an area in which tech clearly shines. Just today, high-level representatives from IBM, AVEVA and Cognizant discussed potential usage of AI in reaching a ‘sustainable future’.
These are conversations that demonstrate the very best uses of transformational technologies that stand at the frontier of innovation, and it is great to see London Tech Week acting as a crucial facilitator of such insight sharing.
No time to waste
Ultimately, we are behind in the climate fight.
The time for tech in the path to net-zero is now, as it was when hydroelectricity – the first renewable energy source – was created, when wind turbines were manufactured in the late 1800s, or when solar panels were first used in the 1950s.
This is tech’s moment, and we have an opportunity to push ahead with the climate fight by doubling down on climate tech and the benefits it can deliver.
We need to use moments like this week, with 45,000 tech leaders all gathering in London, to galvanise progress and plan how we can accelerate the tech innovation that will shape a sustainable, green future.
Moments like London Tech Week have the power to inspire solutions and drive forward the urgent action needed to combat climate change.
Russ Shaw CBE is the founder of Tech London Advocates & Global Tech Advocates