As we navigate this important decade for sustainable development and climate action, the UAE consensus to triple renewable energy capacity and double energy efficiency improvements by 2030 sets a clear agenda. The Pact for the Future, presented at the Summit of the Future, will further guide us towards these targets. Meeting these bold commitments demands bold actions, and achieving them will be challenging without leveraging the triptych of digital innovation, data, and AI.  

These are powerful tools to speed up the energy transition, helping to identify the best investment opportunities, guiding smart decision-making, and driving breakthroughs in renewable energy. In fact, if scaled effectively, digital technologies could reduce emissions by 20% by 2050 in the energy, materials, and mobility sectors — the three largest contributors to global emissions. In other words, digital innovation could be the ‘low-hanging fruit’ that can offer a fast, cost-effective way to accelerate the energy transition. 

But creating digital tools is only part of the solution; we need to ensure that data-driven policies translate into real-world impact. The energy transition value chain is producing a vast amount of data, which must be leveraged to respond to the socio-economic implications and environmental challenges of the transition. The true value of data lies in how well we use them to reveal integrated opportunities for sustainable energy development and ensure a just energy transition. However, without robust regulatory and institutional frameworks, these changes cannot be fully realized. Read on to explore how we can achieve this.