Smart Tesla factories to save the planet?

In its 2024 impact report, Tesla reveals a series of initiatives aimed at making its factories more sustainable.

Nothing truly revolutionary in these pages published by Tesla, which, to be very honest, we have only read the summary of. One should not expect a solution to all the ills of the automotive industry, which, whether electric or thermal, remains a heavy, energy-consuming, and polluting activity, with a major impact on resources and the climate. But in a world where every gain counts, Tesla’s approach opens an intriguing avenue, that of industrial optimization through artificial intelligence.

The most emblematic case is found at the Gigafactory Nevada, where the majority of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems are now controlled by AI. This AI analyzes sensor data, models the internal dynamics of the factory, and automatically adjusts equipment to reduce energy consumption while maintaining optimal production conditions. In 2024, this AI even took control of the chilled water production plants, allowing for precise regulation of chilled water and electricity needs.

Tesla deserves credit for proposing

Tesla is already applying this principle at other sites. In Berlin, a humidity control system has saved 17,000 MWh per year. In Texas, optimizing the plastic and paint workshops has reduced natural gas consumption, energy that Tesla ultimately intends to eliminate from its processes.

These technical advancements are real, but they do not erase the global reality of an automotive production that remains energy-intensive. The manufacturing of a car, even a “clean” one, remains a process with multiple impacts, from raw material extraction to final assembly. Tesla’s merit lies elsewhere, in the idea that artificial intelligence, when properly used, can help us do better with less.

Will machines succeed where humans have failed? To better control excesses, to optimize without sacrificing, to reduce without renouncing? We must hope so. For what we leave today to AI might be the last levers of action to prevent our children from facing a future smothered by our own contradictions.

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