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The solar power industry is growing faster than the the available workforce, and robots can help it keep up with demand for cleaner energy. AES Corp. today introduced Maximo, a robot that it said uses artificial intelligence to improve solar installation speed, efficiency, and safety. The Arlington, Va.-based company said Maximo can work alongside construction teams.  

“Maximo is the first proven solar-installation robot on the market,” claimed Andrés Gluski, president and CEO of AES. “We are facing unprecedented increases in demand, driven in large part by the rise of AI and data centers, and innovations like these will be fundamental for accelerating our ability to bring projects online faster and with greater efficiency.” 

Founded in 1981 as Applied Energy Services, AES owns and operates power plants worldwide. It created an early carbon-offset program in 1989 by planting trees in Guatemala to offset emissions from a plant in Connecticut. In addition to traditional fuels, the Fortune 500 company has invested in a variety of renewable energy sources.

Solar panel installs grow by 1M lb. per hour

By 2035, solar annual additions will triple, predicted the International Energy Agency, and the workforce will need to nearly double. 

“Today, the U.S. solar industry is setting an impressive pace, installing about 15,000 modules per hour, weighing 1 million pounds. Looking ahead, this installation rate is projected to reach 50,000 modules per hour by 2035,” said Chris Shelton, chief product officer at AES. “That rate must triple to meet the climate challenge and our customers’ needs.” 

“In response to this exponential growth, we are scaling Maximo, deploying fleets of continually improving robots to empower our teams for faster and more competitive installations,” he said. “The goal is to supercharge the workforce in clean energy, specifically in large-scale solar projects.”

AES asserted that Maximo can install solar panels at 50% of the time and cost of conventional methods, working with on-the-ground crews to reduce the time-to-power for customers.

“The demand for clean energy continues to grow, and at AES, we believe that innovation can help us meet those needs for our customers,” said Deise Yumi Asami, founder of AES. “[Maximo] utilizes some of the most advanced technology to ensure the fastest and most precise installation in even the most challenging outdoor environments.”

“Maximo is the only robot that does complete installations,” she added. “It uses generative AI to see its surroundings and learns with each installation.”

Maximo built to bring accuracy, safety to work

Maximo can enhance the safety and scalability of solar installation by automating the heavy lifting for placing and attaching solar modules, said AES. It listed Maximo’s features, which were designed with Amazon Web Services (AWS) tools:

• AI-powered computer vision: This ensures precise panel placement to enhance installation accuracy.
• Continuous learning: The system can adapt for optimal performance and for further efficiency improvements.
• Image reconstruction: A proprietary generative AI pipeline can reconstruct images obscured by glare or related lighting conditions.  

“Maximo is the first of its kind — an AI robot built using RoboMaker,” said Chris Walker, director of sustainability at AWS, during a press briefing. “The cloud-based simulation service enables developers to run at scale.”

“We have five main tech specs from AWS,” Yumi Asami told The Robot Report. “We used AWS IoT Greengrass, plus SageMaker to keep training the system and work with the AI pipeline and sensor fusion.”

“For fleet management, RoboMaker and virtual reality help optimize operations,” she explained. “AWS Insights generates building info for our construction intelligence platform.”

Robots to help address solar installation backlog

Maximo can expand job opportunities in solar installation while offering people an opportunity to develop AI skills and learn emerging technologies, claimed AES.

“Maximo is not out there to replace panel installers — we didn’t change any hiring practices,” said Ron Rodrique, vice president for project management at AES. “We’re really focusing on safety, efficiencies, and developing the workforce of the future. Our [solar] products are out for 30 to 40 years, and we want our crews out in the field look at Max as a buddy.”

The robot can also accelerate project timelines, said AES. Maximo has already installed nearly 10 MW of solar and is projected to install 100 MW by 2025. The company expects to use Maximo to help build up to 5 GW of its solar backlog and pipeline over the next three years.

“About 4 GW of our backlog is in the U.S.– this is just the beginning,” said Shelton. “Most of that backlog is hyperscalers.”

Major AES deployments to benefit Amazon

AES plans to use Maximo in its construction of the 2 GW Bellefield project in Kern County, Calif. It noted that Bellefield is the largest solar-plus-storage project in the U.S., with 1 GW generated by solar panels, and 1 GW of battery storage, enough to power 467,000 homes daily.

Amazon is an offtaker of the project. AWS is also working with AES at Baldy Mesa to use machine learning to control the charging and discharging of energy from batteries.

AES described the Oak Ridge Solar project in Louisiana, also to help power Amazon operations, as its first large-scale utility deployment and a “significant milestone in Maximo’s journey.” 

“As society’s energy needs grow, the demand for new solar and wind projects is also increasing,” said Kara Hurst, Amazon’s chief sustainability officer. “We’re excited to collaborate with renewable energy developers like AES that are bringing new renewables to the grid, and [are] prioritizing innovative technologies that can help accelerate those efforts.” 

Maximo can perform in a broad range of climates and lighting conditions and has been validated in the field across a variety of U.S. project sites. AES said it will begin installing at Bellefield in August.

“We combine decades of industry experience with an entrepreneurial culture and new technologies,” said Ashley Smith, chief technology and innovation officer at AES. “Robotics and AI are still evolving, and we’re excited to continue to grow Maximo.”

Editor’s note: This article has been updated with quotes from AES and AWS.