Know More Know Less Solar, Nuclear, and AI: The Race for Clean Energy w/ Ryan Driskell Tate (#88)
The energy transition isn't coming—it's already here. But how fast is it actually moving? And what's slowing it down?
In this episode, I sit down with Ryan Driskell Tate, a historian and energy analyst who serves as Associate Director at Global Energy Monitor. We dig into the numbers: 40% of global electricity now comes from renewables and nuclear. Solar has grown from less than 1% in 2000 to nearly 9% today. Investment in clean energy is now double what's going into fossil fuels.
But it's not all good news. 740 million people still lack electricity access. AI and data centers are creating massive new demand. And legacy industries—coal, oil, gas—aren't disappearing overnight.
**Topics covered:**
- Current state of the global energy transition
- Why solar is scaling faster than any energy source in history
- The role of batteries and storage in making renewables "24-hour fuel"
- Nuclear energy: small modular reactors, public perception, and geopolitical ties
- AI and data centers: friend or foe to the clean energy transition?
- The real bottlenecks: financing, permitting, and supply chains
- Pakistan's DIY solar boom and what it means for emerging markets
- Why the status quo is now the most expensive option
- The importance of open data in energy planning
**Key stats mentioned:**
- Renewables and nuclear now generate ~40% of global electricity
(2024 record)
- 740 million people still lack electricity access, mostly in Sub-Saharan Africa
- Double the investment is now going into renewables vs. fossil fuels
- 15 years ago: 150 proposed coal plants in the US → today: fewer than 5 in all of OECD
- Solar went from less than 1% (2000) to ~9% of global electricity today
- 70 GW of nuclear under construction—highest in 30 years
**Resources:**
- Global Energy Monitor: https://globalenergymonitor.org
- IEA (International Energy Agency): https://www.iea.org
- Ember (global electricity data): https://ember-climate.org
- RMI (Rocky Mountain Institute): https://rmi.org
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