Why it matters: The new commitments — along with other companies' recent announcements — show a surge of interest in small modular reactors to prevent burgeoning AI computing tasks from torpedoing climate goals.
The world is entering anew era increasingly dominated by electricity, the International Energy Agency said.
Why it matters: Electricity use has grown at twice the pace of overall energy demand over the last decade, with China leading the way, IEA's new "world energy outlook" finds.
The Small Business Administration has "exhausted funds for its disaster loan program" following increased demand as officials respond to hurricanes Helene and Milton, the SBA announced Tuesday.
Why it matters: President Biden said in a statement shared with outlets including Axios that the program is "a critical lifeline to small businesses, homeowners, and renters affected by disasters."
Catch up quick: Google inked a deal with Kairos Power for deployment of 500 megawatts' worth of SMRs by 2035, with the first targeted to arrive by 2030.
Why it matters: These storms combined caused up to $55 billion in insured losses. They portend an era of increasingly human-influenced storms that are wetter and stronger as the climate continues to warm.
Back-to-back superstorms have tested health systems' ability to turn tabletop crisis exercises into reality on a dime as they raced to keep their facilities operational in the face of dangerous storm surges.
Why it matters: They largely passed the test. But the one-two punch of Hurricanes Helene and Milton exposed the need for better preparations and costly infrastructure upgrades.
