An analysis found real-world carbon emissions from plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) were about six times their official certified levels, drawing attention to a proposal to cap fuel tank capacity at 15 litres to encourage more frequent charging. The European transport group T&E urged design and charging improvements, citing data showing 2024-registered PHEVs in Europe cut emissions only 14 percent versus conventional cars and hybrids.

Surging demand for AI computing is pushing the data centre industry up against physical limits in power supply, cooling performance and GPU-to-GPU data transfer, making rapid expansion harder through chip gains alone. Grid constraints, long waits for high-voltage transformers and rising costs are key hurdles. Operators are adding on-site generation and exploring SMRs. Cooling is shifting from air to liquid systems. Interconnects are moving from copper to optics, while solid-state transformers draw interest despite high costs.