Solar energy is making low-powered transportation possible.

The 17th Bridgestone World Solar Challenge showcased the speed and efficiency of solar-powered cars in a 3,000-kilometer race across Australia’s rugged outback in August.

The winning car, Nuna 13 from the Netherlands, completed the Darwin-to-Adelaide route in 34 hours, 15 minutes, and 21 seconds — averaging 86.6 kilometers per hour.

According to Japan Today, the equivalent power needed to run a hair dryer, about 1.5 to 2.5 kilowatts, was enough to propel Nuna 13 and other competing solar vehicles.

Meanwhile, scientists are exploring an entirely different frontier: an alternative power source for data centers, which typically consume between 100 megawatts and 200 MW to run and maintain their supercomputers.

Dr. Fred Jordan, co-founder of the FinalSpark laboratory in Lausanne, Switzerland, is developing what may be the world’s first biological computer — one that relies not on hardware or software, but on living brain cells.

Jordan’s team uses neurons derived from stem cells and grown in a Japanese laboratory. These neurons are grouped into clusters, or organoids (mini brains), then connected to electrodes and trained to respond to basic keyboard commands, according to the BBC.

This emerging field, known as biocomputing, allows hybrid systems, combining living neurons and conventional hardware, to take on energy-intensive computing tasks such as pattern recognition, reinforcement learning, and adaptive control, according to artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT.

The living organoids themselves consume minimal energy, requiring only room temperature and glucose while housed in temperature-controlled bioreactors.