Energy

The company announced the grant last week, which is supposed to support an effort to train 100,000 electrical workers and 30,000 apprentices across the US. A shortage of electricians has hampered efforts to add new, clean energy to power grids. And Google and other tech giants need more electricity for energy-hungry AI data centers.

The Trump administration reportedly plans to shutter the program that certifies products for energy efficiency and slaps the recognizable blue Energy Star label on refrigerators, washers, dryers, LED bulbs, and more. CNN and E&E News report that Energy Star is on the chopping block as part of a “reorganization” planned at the Environmental Protection Agency that would end key initiatives on climate change.

It paves the way for the startup to partner with OpenAI on energy deals in the future, the Wall Street Journal reports.

That’s more than triple the total clean energy investments canceled over the past 30 months, according to a report from nonpartisan think tank E2. Economic uncertainty and proposals to rollback tax credits for renewables under the Trump administration are already taking a toll.

The company announced $99 million in new funding, part of its goal of transitioning its supply chain to entirely carbon pollution-free energy by 2030. This marks the second phase of the China Clean Energy Fund that Apple launched in 2018, AppleInsider reports.

Donald Trump continues to push his trade war with Canada, saying in a Truth Social post that he’s adding an extra 25 percent tax on steel and aluminum imports — doubling what he announced on Monday. These additional tariffs are in retaliation for a surcharge on electricity coming into the US that Ontario implemented (which itself was retaliation for previous Trump tariffs).

Ontario added a 25 percent surcharge on electricity flowing from the Canadian province to the US in response to the Trump administration’s tariff threats toward Canada. The province generates electricity for 1.5 million customers across Minnesota, New York, and Michigan.

Much of the country lost electricity today in a blackout affecting millions of people. It’s disrupted business and traffic with lights out and intermittent mobile service, ABC reports. Officials are still investigating the cause, according to the national disaster response service, Senapred.

Here’s the unelected government official speaking about his part-time hobby, Tesla:

The Senate confirmed his nomination today. Zeldin has been tasked by Donald Trump to “ensure fair and swift deregulatory decisions that will be enacted in a way to unleash the power of American businesses.” That seems to include removing roadblocks to building energy-hungry AI data centers in the US.

It’s 89 seconds to midnight on the Doomsday Clock. Rest assured, the clock merely “visualizes humanity’s metaphorical proximity to global catastrophe,” according to the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists that sets the time each year and updated it today.

Necropsies tie whale deaths off the east coast to ship strikes, not offshore wind, as Trump claimed during his inauguration eve rally. The US has very few offshore wind turbines anyway.

“Emissions of greenhouse gasses trap heat,” Lee Zeldin, said during today’s Senate confirmation hearing when pressed about climate science. Whether he’ll take action is another issue.

The $319 1.8kW Solar/Car Super Fast Charger will charge the company’s giant batteries at 600W off the alternator when the engine’s on, plus an additional 1200W max from rooftop solar that’ll continue to provide a charge when parked at the job site or campground (unlike DJI’s $299 1kW car charger). It can also reverse charge the starter battery in your van, truck, or RV.