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Welcome to the fifth issue of the Tech Wrap-Up Europe newsletter. Every fortnight, Sam Shead and Orlando Crowcroft bring you the latest news, analysis and views in European tech. In this issue we are exploring if the planet can handle our insatiable appetite for EVs, what UK chip leaders want to see in the nation's semiconductor strategy and how technology is going to change the way we move around. By Orlando Crowcroft When Roger Atkins took to the stage at the University of Bath back in 2020, the last thing the students expected was a stinging rebuke to the accepted wisdom that we all needed to start driving electric vehicles in order to save the planet. Atkins - the founder of the consultancy, Electric Vehicles Outlook Ltd, and host of the Electric and Eclectic podcast - had spent the previous five years travelling the globe as something of an electric vehicle evangelist. His talk, by contrast, was titled: Mass adoption of electric vehicles would be a big mistake. "It went down badly," he admits to LinkedIn News Europe three years on. "Someone even accused me of taking money from oil companies." But Atkins, who still runs Electric Vehicles Outlook and hosts his podcast, stands by it. If we really want to save the planet, the solution isn't manufacturing 70 million EVs, it is re-evaluating whether we need to drive altogether.
"We cannot make 70m electric vehicles a year – each of them with a 60kw battery with the current mining capability that exists on the planet. If we try to do that, we're going to have to dig up half of Indonesia and mine the ocean floor," he said. EV batteries use substantial amounts of minerals including copper, cobalt, nickel, rare earth and lithium. Since 2015, EVs and battery storage have surpassed consumer electronics to become the largest consumer of lithium, making up 30% of demand. By 2040, the International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that demand for lithium could be 13 times higher. Most of the world's lithium comes from China, Chile, the US and Australia, and the latter made €1.3bn in 2019 from exports of what is being called 'white gold'. Environmentalists warn of soil degradation and damage to local ecosystems, as well as water shortages: 2.2m litres of water is needed to produce one tonne of lithium. Meanwhile, in the only European country with lithium deposits, Portugal, extraction has been roundly opposed by residents but embraced by the government, which has approved new mining projects in six different parts of the country. Even these new mining projects would do little to satisfy the coming demand for lithium, especially given the European Union's ban on new petrol and diesel cars by 2035. For Atkins, that means EVs cannot be the future of transport. Or at least, not the future of individual transport. Instead, the world needs to focus on autonomous shared electric vehicles, invest in massive public transport initiatives, and, yes, stop driving their own cars. Creating EVs instead of petrol vehicles is only replacing one bad habit with another, Atkins says. "Of course it is going to p*ss people off. Of course people like to drive. But we live on a resource constrained planet," he says. "We need a paradigm shift." Christian Brand, co-director of UK Energy Research Centre (UKERC) and associate professor at University of Oxford, calls that shift 'active transportation' – moving from using cars to cycling, e-biking and walking. Back in November, he pointed out that as many as 50% of car journeys were used to cover distances of under 5km and could be replaced by active transportation, such as e-scooters."Strikingly, the carbon footprint for daily travel is up to 84% smaller for people who walk or cycle than for people who use other modes of transport," he said. Indeed, this shift – from driving our own cars to cycling, walking, or taking an EV bus or train to work – may not be as revolutionary as it seems. While in the US, for example, there are 850 passenger cars per 1,000 people, in India it is far lower, at just 225 per 1,000. Even in Europe, on average, it is 560 with significant regional differences. And amid economic uncertainty and rising fuel prices, the argument against owning or leasing an individual car grows. "If you look at the cost of owning a car, there comes a point where you can't afford it," Atkins says. Roger Atkins is an electric vehicles expert and a LinkedIn Top Voice. He talks about the 'revolution' of the EV industry and is a regular contributor to LinkedIn News stories. You can follow him here.Do you agree that the solution to meeting climate goals is a car-less future? How can tech play a role in that? Join the conversation in the comments below.By Sam SheadCreating chips is an expensive endeavour and companies in the semiconductor space often need financial support in order to deliver on their goals. But UK chip firms say they aren't currently getting the cash injections they need from the government in order to survive and thrive.As a result, Cambridge's Pragmatic, Bristol's Graphcore, and Newport's IQE are all considering moves to the US, China or Europe where they could take advantage of more generous government subsidies. The UK doesn't currently have a dedicated funding pool for semiconductor companies. UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is planning to pledge £1bn (€1.1bn) this month to develop the UK's microchip industry, Politico reports. Elsewhere, the US is offering $52.7bn (€48bn) to chipmakers through its new Chips Act, while the European Union has a €43bn plan. LinkedIn News Europe asked semiconductor executives what they'd like to see in the UK's much-anticipated semiconductor strategy. "Much as I would love to see the UK with a truly global presence in technology I think we just aren't big enough," wrote Steve A., a semiconductor engineer and entrepreneur. "The best thing the government could do is enable startup businesses to grow unimpeded with initiatives like R&D tax and encourage a diverse pool of investors with EIS tax breaks and the like."Here's what others had to say:Squeno founder Billy Bradley wrote: "The UK has great universities and faculty [but] they need to be working through strategic alliances with commercial organisations and they need to be looking way, way ahead."Consultant Rob Nicholls wrote: "I think for our own security the state should offer support for domestic silicon fabs. We should focus on those that aim to produce cutting edge, high performance processors. These are likely going to be in high demand due to AI."Picocom president Peter Claydon wrote: "There is semiconductor talent in the UK. The best the government can do is provide the right environment to help it thrive. An enhanced R&D tax credit would be a great idea."CamverTech CEO Mark De Souza wrote: "The UK has a talented community of Engineers. Enable them to try new things and then let private capital take them on. The grant process in the UK needs a rethink - when gov action spawns a cottage industry, you know it is wrong. I see too many grants won by grant writers."By Sam SheadIt's no secret that getting from A to B can be a "dirty business" but governments across Europe have pledged to make their transport sectors greener and more sustainable. "The current way of transportation is simply not sustainable, and we'll see transportation increasingly moving from ground to air and becoming more shared," wrote entrepreneur Luca Carlomagno on LinkedIn.
Germany's efforts to meet its climate targets got a boost on Monday, when the country launched its €49-a-month travel subscription for buses, trams, metros, local and regional trains. The climate ticket, which is expected to cost federal and regional governments around €3bn per year, is the successor of the €9 monthly tickets that were introduced last summer amid a surge in the cost of living. The shift to autonomous electric cars will also help to reduce emissions, but there are other technological breakthroughs that could change the way we travel. Founder Mayya Geo says she's particularly excited about flying cars and high-speed trains, while Martina Fuchs, a business journalist for China Global Television Network, thinks AI and sustainable aviation fuels will be game changers. What do you think? Share your views in the comments below. [list=margin-top:1em;margin-right:0px;margin-bottom:0px;margin-left:1.5em;display:block;padding:0px][*]AI pioneer Geoffrey Hinton quits Google. A "godfather" of machine learning responsible for some of the biggest breakthroughs in artificial intelligence, Hinton has resigned from Google so he can, in his words, speak freely about the potential dangers of AI. Check out Valerie Law's take here. [*]Do you trust big tech with everything? Apple is launching a savings account with Goldman Sachs, Twitter now supports stock trading, and Meta is expanding WhatsApp's pay service. But would you trust an app that can do everything? Check out Şebnem Elif Kocaoğlu Ulbrich's take here. [*]Arm files for blockbuster share sale. Chipmaker Arm has registered to be listed on the US stock market, laying the groundwork for what could be the biggest initial public offering of the year. Check out Lauren Hart's take here. [*]UK regulator blocks Microsoft-Activision deal. The UK's Competition and Markets Authority blocked LinkedIn parent Microsoft's $68.7bn (£55bn, €62bn) takeover of Activision Blizzard, saying it was concerned the deal would lead to reduced innovation and less choice for gamers. Check out Karen Kwok's take here. [*]Can AIs be good companions? LinkedIn cofounder Reid Hoffman and DeepMind cofounder Mustafa Suleyman have launched a new sympathetic AI called Pi that's meant to act as a sounding board for users. Check out Imogene Meyer's take here. [/list] [size] Dan Caesar is CEO and presenter of EV and home energy show, Fully Charged. Caesar talks about everything electric vehicles and the wider energy industry. Chris O'Brien is an American journalist in Paris and editor of the French Tech Journal. He talks about start-ups, entrepreneurism and innovation in France and beyond. Nina Schick is an author, entrepreneur and advisor specialising in generative AI. She talks about how to make AI more accessible. Lara Sophie Bothur - is a voice for innovation & technology at Deloitte. She talks about innovations across the tech sector and their applications. Get Hired UK – A fortnightly update dedicated to advice and insights on landing your next role and progressing in your career. Get Hired Europe – A newsletter focused on helping you land your next job. A bi-weekly digest of news, views and insights from the world of tech written by Orlando Crowcroft and Sam Shead.[/size]
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«Why EVs may not save the planet»
