Green Tech

After succeeding at the once inconceivable task of making thermostats sexy, Nest is now out to change peoples' relationships with their utility companies, and make the energy industry more efficient in the process.

Today, Nest, the company founded by Tony Fadell -- the "godfather" of the iPod and fellow former top Apple employee Matt Rogers -- rolled out its next big effort.

While many had speculated that the company's follow-up to its Learning Thermostat would be another smart home appliance, the company instead unveiled Nest Energy Services, a broad initiative aimed at attacking the problems of general … Read more

Electric scooters are being positioned as eco-friendly alternatives to traveling everywhere in your car. What could make an electric scooter even more green? How about a built-in solar panel? The Solar Electric Scooter does just what its name suggests: gives you a lift with an assist from the sun.

We've seen sleeker scooters (like the MUV-e) and weirder scooters (like the ZeitEco). The Solar Electric Scooter's claim to fame is right underfoot where the solar panel is built into the vehicle.… Read more

It's a good week for renewable energy around the globe, with the world's first algae-powered building opening in Germany, and the official opening of the largest wind farm in the southern hemisphere. Now, France is getting in on the action, with construction officially beginning on the Nouveau Stade de Bordeaux, by Swiss design firm Herzog & de Meuron.

The project consists of three parts: the stadium bowl, including the sports field and the seating; the concourse; and the aesthetic look of the stadium. Located in the Bordeaux Lac region on the banks of the Garonne in the city's north, the stadium will be able to hold up to 42,000 spectators. … Read more

There's long been speculation and research about algae's potential as a power source. The fast-growing plants waste three-quarters of the sunlight they absorb, so what if that energy could be captured and converted?

That's the premise behind BIQ House, designed by architectural firm Splitterwerk. It's a new algae-powered building that's opening on April 25 as part of the International Building Exhibition (IBA) in Hamburg, Germany. The building's east and south facades are covered in a system of louvres. Filled with microalgae, these louvres form 200 square meters of panels to power the building. … Read more

Segway scooters are still kind of cool, but they have the disadvantage of being big. It's a bit difficult to just pack one up, take it on your morning public transportation commute, and then saddle up to ride it to the office. Israeli designer Amir Zaid is thinking smaller than Segway when it comes to his all-electric MUV-e scooter. It's small enough to fold up into a suitcase-size bundle.

Zair's resume includes design work for Ferrari and Fiat, so you know the MUV-e isn't going to look like other scooters. It has three wheels and lots of rounded edges. There's even a bit of a Tron aesthetic at work here in looking at the renderings for the final product. Dare I say, it looks a little sporty? Not at all like this boxy scooter we saw recently.… Read more

After setting a world record for the longest distance traveled on Earth's surface by a robot, Liquid Robotics today unveiled the latest version of its Wave Glider technology.

The updated platform is capable of autonomously prowling the world's seas while analyzing, processing, and transmitting data gathered from a wide variety of on-board sensors.

The new Wave Glider SV3 is essentially a self-powered sea-faring data center, a system that gives users the ability to investigate the world's water ways for months on end. The SV3 features a hybrid propulsion system, Silicon Valley's Liquid Robotics said, that can … Read more

Earth -- unlike perhaps any other planet out there -- provides a mostly hospitable home for humankind. Yet we seem to have opted for unsustainable growth instead of preservation.

At least that's the message in photographer David Thomas Smith's "Anthropocene" exhibition, which Smith describes as a visual examination of global landscapes transformed by the actions and activities of humanity. Each of the 12 prints in the collection derives from thousands of screenshots, which Smith captured from Google Maps and metamorphosed in Photoshop.… Read more

Fisker sent 160 of its employees home from its Anaheim, Calif., headquarters this morning, apparently decimating its workforce, according to a report by Reuters. The move seems to spell the end for the electric vehicle startup.

Reuter's report goes on to say that 53 executives remain on staff, tasked with selling the company's assets.

The company's sole product, the Karma, is a luxury plug-in hybrid with a base price of $103,000. The car uses an electric motor to power the rear wheels and includes an onboard gasoline engine to generate electricity, a drivetrain concept similar to … Read more

Last week, Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted of an upcoming big announcement. Despite product-oriented speculation, the details that came out today lay out a new financing plan for the Model S.

The plan could bring net payments down to $500 a month according to Tesla, after taking into account the savings from purchasing electricity over gasoline, government incentives, and resale value.

Tesla added a True Cost of Ownership calculator to its site, which lets prospective buyers see how the numbers add up.

Tesla's announcement says it developed the plan with Wells Fargo and U.S. Bank, each of which … Read more