IDTechEx

Beta Technologies

Beta Technologies are a start-up electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) developer. Their lift + cruise design eVTOL, the ALIA-250, has been developed with funding from American biotechnology company United Therapeutics (UT) who intend to deploy it to transport human organs for transplant surgery.

Archer Aviation

Archer Aviation based in Palo Alto, California, USA are developing all-electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, with plans to launch their own Urban Air Mobility network in Los Angeles and Miami by 2024, providing commercial passenger services.

Smart Clothes Measure your Movements

In recent years there have been exciting breakthroughs in wearable technologies, like smartwatches that can monitor your breathing and blood oxygen levels. But what about a wearable that can detect how you move as you do a physical activity or play a sport, and could potentially even offer feedback on how to improve your technique?

bp Joins BMW, Daimler EV Charging Venture

bp agreed to join BMW Group and Daimler Mobility AG in their drive to extend and significantly improve electrification, making electric vehicle charging more convenient, simpler and seamless for drivers.

CRISPR Based COVID-19 Test Detects the Virus Even When it Mutates

A team of scientists has developed a diagnostic test that can detect the virus that causes COVID-19 even after it has gone through mutations. Called the VaNGuard (Variant Nucleotide Guard) test, it makes use of a gene-editing tool known as CRISPR, which is used widely in scientific research to alter DNA sequences and modify gene function in human cells under lab conditions, and more recently, in diagnostic applications.

First Battery Energy Storage System for Saskatchewan

A battery storage system will help balance the power system when power demand spikes for short periods of time. It will also act as a support to intermittent generation options, like wind and solar. The system will be able to power up to 20,000 homes for one hour.

Apple's New Energy Storage Project, Renewable Energy Solutions

Apple today announced over 110 of its manufacturing partners around the world are moving to 100 percent renewable energy for their Apple production, with nearly 8 gigawatts of planned clean energy set to come online. Once completed, these commitments will avoid over 15 million metric tons of CO2e annually — the equivalent of taking more than 3.4 million cars off the road each year.

Scientists Create Synthetic Cell That Grows and Divides Normally

Five years ago, scientists created a single-celled synthetic organism that, with only 473 genes, was the simplest living cell ever known. However, this bacteria-like organism behaved strangely when growing and dividing, producing cells with wildly different shapes and sizes. Now, scientists have identified seven genes that can be added to tame the cells' unruly nature, causing them to neatly divide into uniform orbs.

Graphene Foam Doubles Longevity of Running Shoes

Sports footwear firm inov-8 has unveiled the world's first running shoe to use a graphene-enhanced foam in the sole, bucking the widespread trend for carbon-plate technology and doubling the industry standard for longevity.

Energy-efficient Autonomous LS-EV for Future Mobility

Teijin Limited together with Applied Electric Vehicles has developed a highly energy-efficient low- speed electric vehicle prototype for autonomous driving systems and other mobility applications that are expected to help realize zero-emission mobility.

Microsoft Wins Contract to Supply US Army with Headsets

The United States Army announced that it will work with Microsoft on the production phase of the Integrated Visual Augmentation System program as it moves from rapid prototyping to production and rapid fielding.

Electrolyzers are the First Step Toward Green Hydrogen Production

The strong potential of hydrogen is driven by the fact that it is impossible to electrify some of the most polluting sectors, including the steel, ammonia, and glass industries. In these sectors, hydrogen will be produced from renewable energy employing electrolyzer systems.

Fastest All-Electric Passenger Ship to Launch in Stockholm

The all-new foiling Candela P-30—the world's fastest all-electric passenger ship—will hit Stockholm's waterways in 2022, shuttling passengers to and from the archipelago above the waves without wakes, noise and CO2 emissions.

Automated Embryo Selection Could Have Success in Infertility Treatment

Researchers have applied artificial intelligence methods to evaluate data of human embryo development. The AI based system photographs the embryos every five minutes, processes the data of their development and notifies any anomalies observed. This increases the likelihood of choosing the most viable and healthy early-stage embryo for IVF procedures.

Leveraging the 5G Network to Wirelessly Power IoT Devices

Researchers have uncovered an innovative way to tap into the over-capacity of 5G networks, turning them into "a wireless power grid" for powering Internet of Things devices that today need batteries to operate.

ADS-TEC Large Scale Storages Stabilise Swiss Power Grid

In Graubünden, a new 1.25 megawatt large-scale battery has put into operation. At the beginning of 2020, the largest Swiss indoor battery with 1.35 megawatts was connected to the grid in Thurgau. Both storage power plants support Swissgrid with primary and secondary control energy, stabilize local grids and serve to avoid peak loads.

Yotta Energy Teams up with Flex on PV-Coupled Energy Storage System

Yotta Energy has selected Flex as its manufacturing partner for the production of its PV-Coupled energy storage system. This partnership will allow Yotta to rapidly scale its technology for commercial and industrial markets.

Event Summary: Flex2021

In late February 2021 IDTechEx attended the Flex2021 conference. Conference talks and attendees were a mix of primarily early-stage companies and academics. This premium article covers a selection of the most interesting and/or commercially relevant talks.

Meatable

Meatable is a Dutch company developing technology for producing cultured meat - slaughter-free meat products created from cultured animal cells. In March 2021, IDTechEx Senior Technology Analyst Michael Dent spoke with Daan Luining, CTO and co-founder of Meatable.

Non-Invasive Glucose Sensing Technologies

In this premium article, IDTechEx examines various approaches that have been made in developing non-invasive glucose sensors for diabetes management.