PowerWeb Lecture: “AI in smart electricity systems: what implications for energy justice?”
22 June 2023 12:45 till 13:30 - Location: Faculty of EWI, Mekelweg 4 (Chip Hall) | Add to my calendar
Practical information
By: Merel Noorman, assistant professor in AI, Robotics, and STS at the Tilburg Institute for Law, Technology, and Society (TILT), Tilburg University
Date: Thursday 22 June 2023
Time: 12:45-13:30 (free lunch from 12:15)
Location: Faculty of EWI, Mekelweg 4 (Chip Hall)
Moderator: Dr Francesco Lombardi
Video recording: Collegerama.
Abstract
Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques are increasingly used to address some of the challenges of the energy transition. Such challenges include the integration of renewable and more volatile energy sources as well as the increased demands on the limited network capacity due to the growing electrification. AI techniques have been used to, among other things, forecast and predict energy consumption and supply, control behind-the-meter appliances and devices, optimize energy storage, schedule battery charging, and monitor system health. They promise to enable new coordination mechanisms, new scales of flexibility and complexity, as well as new relationships, roles, and responsibilities. Using such technologies in electricity networks offers many opportunities but also raises multiple concerns. One key concern is how AI will affect energy justice, that is, the fair distribution of the benefits and burdens of energy systems, as well as equitable access to decision-making processes and adequate recognition of different stakeholder groups. The delegation of more and more decision-making tasks in the energy sector to opaque and complex AI systems could lead to energy injustices when these systems disproportionality disadvantages certain groups in society. This talk will look at what the energy justice implications are of the use of AI in smart electricity systems and what these implications mean for the design and regulation of these technologies.
Short bio of the presenter:
Merel Noorman is an assistant professor in AI, Robotics, and STS at the Tilburg Institute for Law, Technology, and Society (TILT), Tilburg University. Her research focuses on the regulation and governance of AI. She is interested in the relations between AI and democracy in critical infrastructures, such as energy networks. She studied Artificial Intelligence and Science & Technology studies at the University of Amsterdam and Edinburgh University and received her PhD from Maastricht University. Since then, she has co-initiated and worked on various research projects in the U.S. and the Netherlands, studying the ethical and social aspects of complex and intelligent computer technologies. She has also worked as an advisor for the Dutch Council for Social Development (Raad voor Maatschappelijke Ontwikkeling) and was managing director for the software company VicarVision.
