Fusebox among 41 suppliers to be selected by AI4Cities

Fusebox has been selected to take part in Phase 1 of AI4Cities, an EU-funded Pre-Commercial Procurement (PCP) project aiming to help cities accelerate their transition toward carbon neutrality. The project is looking for AI solutions that can help reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in mobility and energy — two domains responsible for 82% of all GHG emissions in European cities.

Following AI4Cities’ Request for Tenders on 1 December 2020, Fusebox was one of 44 companies and consortia to submit an application for the AI4Cities energy challenge. In total, 97 applications were submitted across both challenges; after a thorough evaluation by the AI4Cities Buyers Group, 21 suppliers were selected for the mobility challenge and 20 for the energy challenge — Fusebox among them.

“This challenge facilitates Fusebox’s expansion into new markets, creates opportunity for the virtual power plant to grow much faster, and enables us to offer new services to our customers through larger tradable volumes,” said Tarvo Õng, Fusebox CEO.

Fusebox received €40,000 to further develop its solution based on input from the AI4Cities Buyers Group. All participants had three months to do so, after which the Buyers Group would decide which suppliers continued to Phase 2, the prototyping phase of the PCP.

“Our innovative project helps cities reduce CO2 emissions and involves the private sector in contributing to CO2 reduction,” explained Reio Orasmäe, Fusebox’s Partnership Manager. “Through this new solution, the private sector can participate in the virtual power plant platform, and contribute to CO2 reduction through its flexible electricity consumption,” he added.

Who’s behind AI4Cities?

The AI4Cities Buyers Group brings together lead procurer Forum Virium Helsinki (representing the city of Helsinki), Cap Digital (representing the Paris Region), and the cities of Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Stavanger, and Tallinn. All six have their own strategies to reach carbon neutrality by 2050 at the latest. Through AI4Cities, they’re jointly running a PCP process to procure not-yet-market-ready solutions — using AI and related technologies like big data, 5G, edge computing, and the Internet of Things (IoT) — to speed up that transition. Energy and mobility are the focus because together, they account for that same 82% of GHG emissions in Europe’s cities.

Curious how Fusebox’s platform puts flexible electricity consumption to work today? Explore the solution →