Currently, the annual utilisation of CO2 stands at approximately 230 million tonnes, with the majority being channelled into urea production for the fertiliser industry and enhanced oil recovery. However, this figure falls significantly short of the volume we must capture by 2050 to achieve net zero emissions. To address this shortfall, a substantial increase in utilisation methods and sequestration is required.
Despite the increased adoption of renewable energy and growing maturity of several key decarbonisation pathways, CO2 emissions peaked in 2023 and are projected to continue rising for decades to come. Even governments of countries with firm climate commitments, such as the UK which pledged to achieve zero-carbon electricity by 2035, will continue to build new natural gas-fired power plants to ensure reliable power supply.
The urgency of the water crisis is likely to drive further investment and innovation in the coming years. With freshwater demand projected to surpass supply by 40% by 2030, there is a clear and growing need for innovative water solutions. This gap between supply and demand represents a substantial market opportunity for companies that can develop effective technologies to address water scarcity, improve water quality, or enhance water use efficiency…
The magnitude of the global food waste crisis is nothing short of alarming. Approximately one-third of all food produced worldwide—a staggering 1.3 billion tonnes—ends up in bins and landfills annually. This equates to roughly £1 trillion worth of food lost or wasted every year. In the UK alone, the scale is equally sobering: households and businesses squander around 9.5 million tonnes of food annually, with a value exceeding £14 billion.
Currently, the annual utilisation of CO2 stands at approximately 230 million tonnes, with the majority being channelled into urea production for the fertiliser industry and enhanced oil recovery. However, this figure falls significantly short of the volume we must capture by 2050 to achieve net zero emissions. To address this shortfall, a substantial increase in utilisation methods and sequestration is required.
Despite the increased adoption of renewable energy and growing maturity of several key decarbonisation pathways, CO2 emissions peaked in 2023 and are projected to continue rising for decades to come. Even governments of countries with firm climate commitments, such as the UK which pledged to achieve zero-carbon electricity by 2035, will continue to build new natural gas-fired power plants to ensure reliable power supply.
The urgency of the water crisis is likely to drive further investment and innovation in the coming years. With freshwater demand projected to surpass supply by 40% by 2030, there is a clear and growing need for innovative water solutions. This gap between supply and demand represents a substantial market opportunity for companies that can develop effective technologies to address water scarcity, improve water quality, or enhance water use efficiency…
As the demand for AI surges, so does the energy consumption of data centres. It’s predicted that by 2026, data centre electricity consumption could reach 1,000 terawatt-hours, equivalent to Japan’s total annual usage. However, AI itself may hold some of the keys to addressing this challenge. Our blog delves into how AI-driven solutions are transforming data centre operations, from optimising power usage to enabling smart grid integration…
NPUs are emerging as the solution of choice in an AI semiconductor market bifurcating into training and inference applications. These specialised chips offer significant advantages in terms of size, cost and energy efficiency for AI processing tasks. With projections indicating the edge AI inference device market will reach c$50bn by 2026, this presents a considerable opportunity…
In our earlier posts we explored two key elements of successful exit preparation: the overarching idea of preparing to be “bought not sold” and the “essential actions” a company and board can undertake, well in advance of any planned exit, to maximise both price and certainty. A third vital dimension in any successful exit prep phase (what we term “Stage 1”) is cultivating serious buyer interest well in advance of an intensive exit process (“Stage 2”).
In this second post on exit planning, we explore some of the key actions that underpin successful preparation (what we call Stage 1) before an intensive, competitive M&A sale process (Stage 2). Based on our experience across 300 exits spanning decades, we firmly believe that thoughtful, sustained preparation over several months or even 1-2 years before a company is formally put up for sale increases both the price and certainty of an eventual deal.
Insights into the African tech ecosystem
Tech investing in Africa
Feeding millions of Africans with fish protein
Building a credit-led neobank for Africa
Streamlining Africa’s complex supply chains to boost trade
Investing in African technology companies
Capitalising on first-mover advantage
Scaling to 3M customers across Africa
Surviving & thriving after the Lagos State ride hailing ban
Solving Africa’s broken retail supply chain
Investing in Africa’s female founders
Transforming pharmacies into the ‘care co-ordination infrastructure’ for Africa
Tackling Africa’s $300bn logistics supply chain
Dare Okoudjou talks about building a pan-African payments company
Last month, after a prolonged hiatus due to COVID-19, DAI Magister, in partnership with DAI Nigeria, held its first Development […]