Here is today’s sustainable IT services news, research and analysis -- written for technology partners, green IT service providers, CIOs, chief sustainability officers (CSOs) and climate accounting professionals.
A. Sustainable Technology, Talent, Partnerships and Green IT Alliances
1. Green Buildings - Executive Departure: High-Profile CEO Donnel Baird has resigned his chief executive post at BlocPower, reinforcing question marks about the green building and climate tech startup, which is backed by Goldman Sachs, VoLo Earth Ventures and Microsoft's Climate Innovation Fund.
2. Supply Chain Research: Scope 3 emissions — which can account for up to 75 percent of a company’s total emissions — continue to be the most difficult to track and manage, due to the complexity of supplier networks and inconsistent data-sharing practices, MIT research found.
3. HVAC Software: SmartAC.com has introduced “Connect” -- an app-only service that allows HVAC contractors to stay connected with homeowners who decline to sign up for service agreements.
4. IBM - AI Perspectives: In a Climate Tech NYC recap, multiple IBM leaders shared their views on AI and sustainability.
5. IBM - Quantum Computing Expansion: IBM has unveiled the first IBM Quantum Data Center located outside of the United States. The new center is located in Ehningen, Germany. IBM positions quantum computing for advanced use cases -- including climate tech research.
6. Quantum Computing Perspectives: Global IT consulting giant Accenture and the World Economic Forum report positions quantum computing as a potential way to advance sustainable development goals.
7. Partnership: WNS and Uniqus Consultech are partnering to promote sustainability, technology accounting and reporting solutions.
8. Return to Office: Avangrid, a sustainable energy company with more than 8,000 employees, has fully implemented its return-to-office policy for employees.
9. Lawsuit: OpenAI and Microsoft's GitHub will head to the country’s largest federal appeals court to resolve their first copyright lawsuit from open-source programmers, Bloomberg reported. The programmers claim Microsoft Copilot violates a decades-old digital copyright.
10. Ford - Free EV Chargers: Ford Motor is offering free home chargers and installation to buyers of its electric vehicles (EVs) in a bid to boost sales and overcome range anxiety among mainstream car shoppers, Bloomberg reported.
11. Wind Turbine Collapse - Settlement Reached: GE Vernova apparently will pay a settlement fee to developer Enefit Green, according to Recharge News. The settlement involves a 2023 wind turbine collapse.
B. Sustainability M&A, Climate Tech Investments, Funding and Green IT Business Launches
1. Incubator: Keep an eye on the ClimateTech Incubator at Northeastern University’s Roux Institute in Portland, Maine. The incubator is a "regional hub for startups working on technology solutions to climate change," the university said. Related: List of incubators and accelerators for ClimateTech startups.
2. Cash Crunch: Investors heard numerous startup pitches at Climate Week NYC, The Wall Street Journal reported, but the investors saw few bankable opportunities at a time when fledgling Climate Tech companies badly need the cash.
3. Startup Funding - CSRD Compliance Software: Atlas Metrics has raised €12.2M in Series A funding to "make ESG compliance effortless across Europe," the startup claims. MMC Ventures led the funding round, with participation from existing investors Cherry Ventures, b2venture and Redstone, the startup said. Atlas Metrics develops an ESG software platform for midsize companies and financial institutions. The software can automate and streamline CSRD reporting "and all related regulatory obligations, reducing both costs and legal risks," Atlas Metrics asserts.
4. Investment - Software: Consulting firm EBO has acquired a minority stake in Pelt8, a sustainability reporting software company serving SMB (small and midsize business) customers in Switzerland. Moreover, Tenity and SICTIC investors have joined the round as follow-on investors. Financial terms and business valuation metrics were not disclosed.
5. Complete M&A List: Here's our database of all M&A deals involving green IT and renewable energy buyers, sellers and investors.
C. Regional and Global Sustainability Policies and News
1. European Union - CSRD Warnings: The European Commission has opened infringement procedures against 17 Member States that have failed to fully transpose the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) by the 6 July 2024 deadline, JD Supra reported.
2. Italy - Data Center Investments: Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni met the head of the U.S. fund BlackRock, Larry Fink, in Rome to discuss possible investments in data centers and supporting energy infrastructure, Reuters reported.
D. Sustainability and Green Technology Conference Calendar
- Sustainability Expo Europe 2024 (October 1-2, Amsterdam, The Netherlands)
- Industrial Decarbonization North America 2024 (October 1-2, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania)
- ESG Africa Conference 2024 (October 1-2, Gauteng, South Africa)
- ClimateTech 2024: MIT Technology Review's Sustainability Conference (October 2, Cambridge, Massachusetts)
- Sustainable Industry Live 2024 (October 6, Manchester, United Kingdom)
- Complete Calendar of Sustainability Conferences
E. Previous Updates & Future News
Future Updates: If you have news to share then please email me the details.
Did You Miss Yesterday's Daily Update?: Here is our previous sustainability, green IT and renewable energy news for technology partners.
