Artificial intelligence (AI) and large-scale cloud computing is speeding up the search for new battery materials. An AI-enhanced collaboration between Microsoft and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) has already produced one promising new material, which the two are sharing publicly today.
In the hunt for new materials, scientists have traditionally relied on tinkering in the lab, guided by intuition, with a hefty serving of trial and error. But now a new battery material has been discovered by combining two computing superpowers: artificial intelligence and supercomputing.
A new material could transform batteries, the researchers who found it say. It could lead to batteries based on new technology that could improve both their energy capacity and their safety, scientist say. That in turn could have dramatic consequences for the vehicles and other electronic devices that rely on batteriesfr power.
A brand new substance, which could reduce lithium use in batteries, has been discovered using artificial intelligence (AI) and supercomputing. The findings were made by Microsoft and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), which is part of the US Department of Energy.
The new discovery — which the scientists say was unintended and builds off novel electronics work — could be the foundation for better battery life across consumer devices such as laptops or smartphones, as well as more flexibility in grid-scale energy storage.
It also uses less lithium, which is getting harder to come by as demand soars for rechargeable EV batteries. There’s still a long road ahead to see how viable this material is as an alternative to traditional lithium-ion batteries. What scientists are most excited about is the potential for generative AI to speed up their work.