Global investment in clean tech far outpaced what went into polluting industries. For every $1 funding fossil fuel
projects, $2 went into clean power, according to the ECIU. For China, the EU, the US and India, the four largest polluters, it was $2.60.
Funds flowing into renewable power set another record in the first half of this year and were up 10% comp
ared to the same period in 2024, to $386 billion, according to the latest available research by BloombergNEF.
Solar and wind grew fast enough to meet all new electricity demand globally in the first three quarters of 2025, according to UK-based energy think tank Ember.
That means renewable capacity is set to hit a new record globally this year, with Ember forecasting an 11% increase from 2024.
Over the past three years, renewable capacity grew by nearly 30% on average. That puts the world within rea
ch of the goal set at COP 28 in Dubai in 2023 to triple clean power by 2030.
China is leading the charge, with the world’s largest polluter ex
ty, and 69% of new wind globally this year, according to Ember. Renewables also advanced in parts of Asia, Europe and South America.
AI’s Climate Benefit
The explosive power demand from artificial intelligence is also turning the tide on green technology inve
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stment, which had soured in recent years. For the first three quarters of this year, global clean tech investment, which was dominated by funding in next-generation n
uclear reactors, renewables and other solutions that help power data centers, has already surpassed all of 2024.
That marks the sector’s first annual increase since the 2022 peak.
And despite President Donald Trump’s rollback of climate policies, the S&P’s main gauge tracking clean energy is u
p about 50% this year, outperforming most other stock indexes and even gold. That same enthusiasm has also helped channel more capital into developing and
upgrading the power grid, a backbone of the global energy transition.
The rise of artificial intelligence is also playing a role in enabling new climate solutions and expediting scientific research.
Battery prices, long a sticking point in the electrification of a range of products, continue to decline.
Prices per kilowatt-hour of battery capacity fell by 8% to a record $108 this year and they’re expected to decline a further 3% next year, according to Blo
ombergNEF. The decrease is a result of better manufacturing, cheaper chemical recipes and a glut of production, factors t
hat have outweighed higher prices for the metals that go into batteries.
The swooning prices improve the economics on a range of products from lawn mowers to commercial dr
ones. Carmakers, in particular, will be able to spur EV adoption with longer range, lower cost vehicles.
The largest unlock will arguably be in utility-scale storage systems that bottle up energy from solar and wind farms and trickle it out during peaks in electricity demand.