logo
episode-header-image
Nov 2022
1m 31s

Coming soon: Will climate tech save the ...

Financial Times
About this episode

The climate crisis threatens the future of the planet. But don’t worry, technology will save us. At least that’s the message from startups, innovators and investors. Are they right? In a new season of Tech Tonic FT columnist and climate journalist Pilita Clark discovers the tech scene’s latest moonshot efforts to fight climate change, from sucking carbon straight out of the air to the apparent energy miracle of nuclear fusion. Will these technologies be ready in time, or are they a dangerous waste of money and resource at this most critical moment for our planet?


Check out stories and up-to-the-minute news from the Technology team at ft.com/technology 


Tech Tonic is Presented by Pilita Clark. Edwin Lane is senior producer. Produced by Josh Gabert-Doyon. Executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Sound design by Breen Turner and Samantha Giovinco, with original music from Metaphor Music. The FT’s head of audio is Cheryl Brumley.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Yesterday
US billionaires bankroll Republican election push
US and Chinese experts meet to discuss mitigating AI risks despite an ongoing tech rivalry, and US megadonors are largely backing Republicans in this midterm election season. Plus, Prime Minister Mark Carney strikes out on his pitch for a “unique alliance” between Canada and the ... Show More
10m 26s
Sep 15
What an AI slowdown could mean for investors
Tech stocks fell yesterday as markets reacted to ongoing talk of an AI apocalypse, industrial America is contending with a fresh wave of supply chain inflation, and foreign investors are now buying more US stocks than government bonds. Plus, China has implemented sweeping new con ... Show More
11m 45s
Sep 14
Fed and BoJ expect rate hikes as US bond market flails
US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent’s interventions in the American bond market haven’t worked so far, but could interest rate decisions from the Federal Reserve and Bank of Japan this week change things? Plus, Russia hit a Ukrainian train line moments after foreign dignitaries t ... Show More
11m 37s
Recommended Episodes
Oct 2022
Coming soon: Will climate tech save the planet?
<p>The climate crisis threatens the future of the planet. But don’t worry, technology will save us. At least that’s the message from startups, innovators and investors. Are they right? FT columnist and climate journalist Pilita Clark discovers the tech scene’s latest moonshot eff ... Show More
1 m
Nov 2022
Climate tech to save the planet: Techno-optimism or greenwashing?
<p>Billions of dollars are being spent by tech companies and investors on new technology to fight climate change. In the final episode of this series of Tech Tonic, Eric Toone, from Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Energy Ventures fund, tells FT columnist and host Pilita Clark why he bel ... Show More
24m 22s
Nov 2022
Introducing Tech Tonic, Season 5: Climate tech to save the planet
<p>Tech Tonic is back with a new season about climate tech.</p><br><p>As more people fly, aviation is on track to becoming a much bigger problem for climate change. Host Pilita Clark, FT columnist and climate journalist, looks at the potential for a more sustainable aviation indu ... Show More
25m 9s
Oct 2022
Climate tech to save the planet: Out of thin air
<p>Direct air carbon capture - taking carbon dioxide straight out of the air around us - sounds like science fiction. In this episode Pilita Clark visits Iceland to meet the engineers and scientists at the forefront of this<em> </em>new<em> </em>tech. Can carbon capture scale up ... Show More
24m 21s
Nov 2022
Climate tech to save the planet: How to keep flying
<p>As more people fly, aviation is on track to becoming a much bigger problem for climate change. Host Pilita Clark, FT columnist and climate journalist, looks at the potential for a more sustainable aviation industry, a sector that’s struggled to come up with new technology to c ... Show More
24m 30s
Aug 2023
New Technology Is Here To Fight Climate Change. Will We Use It?
Despite global efforts to slow the effects of climate change, July was the hottest month on record in over 125,000 years. The good news is, powerful new technology not available just a few years ago can help turn things around, if we get serious about taking action. Bloomberg’s E ... Show More
27m 4s
Aug 2021
Brainstorm
<p>In this episode of Tech Tonic, we ask whether AI's potential in the fight against the climate crisis justifies the massive amounts of energy it takes to run these systems. The computing power required to train AI concerns some researchers, who have built a calculator to count ... Show More
21m 2s
Sep 2024
Is it Time for Climate Interventions? | Ep177: Kelly Wanser
<p>As climate impacts mount, pressure is building on policymakers to find ways to alleviate the crisis. One controversial option being explored is geoengineering - direct human interventions to cool the planet. But can we safely and effectively implement these large-scale climate ... Show More
1h 2m
Oct 2020
A Radical Approach to Climate Change
Could altering the Earth’s atmosphere to reflect back some of the sun’s rays be a solution to climate change? It would likely decrease global temperatures, but it might lead to climate wars. Humanity might become “addicted” to it for survival. And ultimately, would this technolog ... Show More
58m 5s