Powering a Sustainable Future with Darryl Willis

We talked about Microsoft initiatives, solutions, and technologies in the energy sector with Darryl Willis. Darryl is the Vice President of Energy at Microsoft and he is responsible for driving digital transformation all around the world for companies within oil & gas, mining, renewables, and power & utilities.We’re all aware that energy sustainability is an important topic, and in this episode, we talk about what Microsoft is doing in this area to improve our own sustainability and highlight the great work of our customers and partners.The Energy Transition is real and is underway and it is being accelerated by the COVID19 pandemic. The Oil and Gas Industry has been delt a one / two punch…. oversupply driven by technological success, mainly in the Onshore USA associated with things like horizontal drilling (and hydraulic fracturing) which has contributed to global oversupply. This combined with demand destruction that has occurred as a result of much of the world sheltering in place during the early months of the pandemic means that as a result, for the first time ever, oil prices went negative in April 2020!  These cost pressures have created new digital transformation opportunities as oil and gas companies seek cost reductions.  And despite cost-cutting measures, much of the industry is moving more aggressively towards low-carbon and no-carbon sources of energy (by 2050 or sooner).Darryl shares some things in the forefront of the energy sector right now (i.e: trends and technologies), how AI is impacting the energy sector, and how Microsoft is helping to realize the vision of helping everyone in the world gain access to affordable heat, light, and mobility. Episode LinksMicrosoft demonstrates how to increase green energy in Ireland one rooftop at a timeAGL transforms 200+ applications, goes all in on cloud, and sets up for sustained successVattenfall and Microsoft pilot world’s first hourly matching (24/7) of renewable energyENGIE brings AI to renewable energy platform, helps decarbonize energy production with AzureMicrosoft for EnergyMicrosoft Ignite Event – Judson / Shell videoMicrosoft Transform BlogShellNorthern LightsMachine Platform Crowd: Harnessing Our Digital Future (book)BP Energy Outlook (good stats energy)Energy Industry Inspire recordingIEA reportsJason Zander IHS fireside chat recordingMicrosoft Sustainability CalculatorGuestDarryl Willis, Vice President of Energy at Microsoft, is responsible for driving digital transformation for companies within the oil & gas, mining, renewables, and power & utility verticals globally. Darryl helps companies thrive using innovative Microsoft and partner solutions that enable operational efficiency, improve productivity, and uncover new business models that will ultimately accelerate the energy transition.Check out Darryl's Wikipedia page and follow Darryl on LinkedIn or Twitter.HostsPaul Maher is General Manager of the Industry Experiences Team at Microsoft. Follow him on LinkedIn and Twitter.David Starr is a Principal Azure Solutions Architect in the Industry Experiences Team at Microsoft. Follow him on LinkedIn and Twitter.