Innovating to zero! | Bill Gates
Why Hacker News recommends it
HN mostly cites it in nuclear power debates as Gates making the case that nuclear is needed for clean energy, with a few critical references to his views on population.
What it is
Bill Gates' TED2010 talk on the energy future, arguing for zero global carbon emissions by 2050 and the need for energy miracles. He explains why he is backing a different type of nuclear reactor.
Recommended by 1 HN commenters across 1 different months, 2011 to 2025.
What Hacker News said
Recommends vayarajesh · 2016-10 · on “Ask HN: What's your favorite tech talk?”
TED talk - Elon musk - [LINK] D10 conference - Steve jobs and Bill gates - [LINK] TED talk - Bill gates (Innovation to Zero) - [this video]
Cites Devilboy · 2011-04 · on “Nuclear Power is Safest Way to Make Electricity”
None of those can replace coal / nuclear. EDIT: Here's Bill Gates explaining why nuclear is not optional: [this video]
Cites carlhjerpe · 2022-04 · on “Utilities Want to Convert Coal Plants to Nuclear; Skeptics Abound”
Your comment loses it's value when you're trying to poke all the holes. > Storage is also plunging in cost, and additional technologies are already in commercial use (iron flow, for example.) > HVDC transmission is spreading, with higher capacity, lower cost, and higher efficiency for moving electricity greater distances (in other words, it's less of a deal if it's really windy in one spot and not in another, and ideally-suited wind sites can be further from where electricity is needed.) How do you transform DC up and down? By converting it to AC. Running it through a transformer and converting it back, HVDC isn't gonna take over the world, certain stretches might be HVDC where beneficial bu
Critical givan · 2017-08 · on “Gates Makes Largest Donation Since 2000 with $4.6B Pledge”
Instead of using the money to research renewable or more efficient energy production, reduce pollution etc his foundation uses the money for vaccines and health services which surprisingly has as target, as he says in a ted video (link below), to decrease human population which he sees it as the major problem of today. [this video] "The world today has about 6.8 billion people. That's headed up to about 9 billion. Now if we do a really great job on new vaccines, health care, reproductive health services, we could lower that by, perhaps, 10 or 15%"
Critical huijzer · 2025-11 · on “Building a 2.5kWh battery from disposable vapes to power my workshop [video]”
Sorry, I didn’t double check indeed. I posted the wrong TED talk from him, see [1] at 4:21. There he says we need to limit climate change by limiting population growth. I think this is quite a hypocritical stance from someone who flies private jet all year. [1]: [this video]