Google.org’s PowerMeter application incorporates electricity usage data from smart meters installed with utility firms. It monitors real-time and historical electricity usage, and graphs it to provide insight on how much energy different appliances use and how their usage compares to neighbours. This enables people to take steps to conserve.
Its latest feature provides a list of recommendations, generated based on the type and size of a house and some basic electricity usage information, to make a home more energy efficient.
We believe that this same platform has immense potential in and outside the home, and beyond electricity to also address data from gas, telecoms, water meters, etc. A key success factor behind partnerships in this new ‘smart’ ecosystem will therefore be interoperability and standards.