World Solve

Storing renewable energy at the scale needed to fully support national power grids still requires battery technology that remains too expensive for widespread deployment. Closing this cost gap remains one of the biggest barriers to a fully renewable grid.

Solar lighting technology exists, but durability and cost issues have limited how widely and reliably it can be deployed in regions that need it most. Improving both affordability and long-term reliability remains an unresolved challenge.

Hospitals, power plants, and water systems increasingly run on connected computer systems that can be targeted remotely. A serious attack on any of these could cause harm far beyond the digital world.

Millions of rural households in Bangladesh remain unconnected to the grid, and mini-grid and solar home system providers struggle with financing models that make service affordable while remaining commercially viable.

Build risk-based grid maintenance, vegetation management, shutoff policies, and backup systems that prevent sparks without leaving communities vulnerable.

Integrate shore power, cargo equipment electrification, logistics optimization, local grids, and pollution monitoring in ports serving developing economies.

Create predictive maintenance and equipment-upgrade strategies for overloaded local grids serving growing cities and newly electrified rural areas.

Develop locally calibrated weather and generation models for grids affected by rapidly changing clouds, aerosols, heat, and seasonal rainfall.

Develop modular panels, controllers, batteries, training, spare-parts supply, and warranties so off-grid solar systems remain functional beyond initial installation.

Create reliable hybrid energy systems for isolated sites with high, variable loads where diesel remains entrenched because outages are extremely costly.

Build low-cost standards, inverters, storage coordination, and incentive systems that enable high rooftop-solar adoption without destabilizing distribution grids.

Develop accurate sensors and interventions for biomass smoke, kerosene, mold, and particulate exposure in low-income homes without assuming reliable internet or grid power.

Develop tamper-resistant, ultra-low-cost monitoring and backup cooling systems for vaccines, insulin, biologics, and diagnostic reagents where electricity failures are frequent.

Despite recognition of its importance, reliable methods for energy storage and conversion systems optimized for intermittent renewable microgrids are still lacking. Progress is hindered by incomplete mechanistic knowledge, high capital and operational barriers, and the absence of deployment models suited to the contexts of greatest need.

The absence of robust, context-adapted solutions for solutions for providing reliable electricity to health facilities in off-grid regions creates cascading risks across interconnected human and natural systems. Key missing elements include durable performance, low lifetime cost, and governance arrangements capable of sustaining impact beyond pilot stages.

The absence of robust, context-adapted solutions for grid-forming control for fully inverter-based power systems creates cascading risks across interconnected human and natural systems. Key missing elements include durable performance, low lifetime cost, and governance arrangements capable of sustaining impact beyond pilot stages.