At Solarplaza Summit Asset Management North America this year, Nikhil Vadhavkar, Raptor Maps Cofounder and CEO, participated in the panel “O&M Automation: The Rise of Robots.” The panel covered how robotics and AI are driving direct action in solar by pushing the field beyond analytics and producing deeper, more effective processes and systems. 

Nikhil had the following reflections following the conference. 

Gabby W (GW): What are the key takeaways from recent discussions you’ve had with solar industry stakeholders? 

Nikhil (NV): The solar industry in 2024 is changing to meet the moment, and core themes include risk mitigation, rising labor costs, reliability, and an increasingly more robust regulatory environment. Labor rates are surpassing the built-in escalators in models, leading to tough negotiations and operators feeling the pinch. The landscape of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) tax credits and pricing strategies is evolving, and there was robust discussion regarding PPA structures and the increasing role storage is playing in merchant contracts. 

We’re also increasingly having discussions focused on tackling solar’s growing pains through the lens of automation and AI–specifically zeroing in on how structured data sets enable AI applications. Robotics are gaining traction and offering a means to deploy automation at any stage of a solar project.
 

GW: How do automation, AI, and robotics impact the solar industry?

NV: Artificial Intelligence (AI) has obviously emerged as an enormous topic across the industry, and AI can be a powerful tool. When used intentionally, AI, automation, and robotics make us smarter about how we use our most valuable resource–the people on our teams.

AI can perform actions at a scale and speed at which humans cannot, which opens the aperture for how we can make sense of and act on the always-growing amount of data that we generate from every solar farm. When built with solar-specific applications in mind, AI-driven insights and automation can improve decision-making for all roles, from the technicians out in the field to the head of asset management.

Robotics are a great example of domain-specific AI applications, where AI platforms enable the operation of robotics to automate the dull, the dirty, and the dangerous. For example, you can use autonomous robotics to capture frequent and consistent imagery to monitor construction progress or to respond rapidly to a storm event to assess damage to the site.

Ultimately, AI and robotics solutions in solar need to be built with one goal in mind: empowering the people who use those solutions to do good work in driving the energy transition. It’s exciting to see more owners and operators realizing that tighter integration between humans, robotics, and software tools can pay dividends for workforce development, the performance of their solar assets, and long-term project returns.

GW: How are regulatory considerations shaping the solar industry?

NV: The industry has had to focus on new compliance requirements, like NERC’s mandated GADS reporting. In a different arena, there’s been a need to pay attention to the filing requirements to claim IRA tax credits. And insurance requirements, while always crucial, are only becoming more important. 

The increase in regulations means that inspection protocols are becoming more prescriptive, with new types outside of O&M being increasingly required to address OEM or construction issues. And, finally, technicians' roles are evolving to prioritize high-leverage tasks safely, with a greater emphasis on diagnosis ahead of physical intervention.

While all of these regulatory changes demand increased administrative heft, they’re also quite a good thing, because they’re indicative of a maturing industry. 

GW: What surprised you at AMNA this year? 

NV: It was interesting to see an increase in involvement from power purchasers such as Meta, Amazon, and others. Overall there’s a trend of these companies – as well as asset owners – requiring more visibility and oversight into how solar assets are managed. Again, this is a great sign of an industry that is evolving. 

GW: Looking forward, what are you most excited about over the next 12 months?

NV: Over the next year, I’m most excited to see how the industry pushes the pace on innovation and the adoption of advanced technologies. We’re seeing more and more companies adopting robotics in creative ways, which is strong evidence for how rapidly our industry evolves.

Events like AMNA and RaptorCon really highlight a desire for more sharing of knowledge and best practices. I’m excited to see how this collaborative energy in the industry will impact standardized best practices and workforce development.

Ultimately, witnessing the industry's relentless drive to rapidly expand and serve as the primary driver of the energy transition is inspiring, and I’m proud Raptor Maps is playing a role in that.