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Global Cooling Innovations

We need revolutionary, innovative cooling technologies

Cooling is a global necessity

Cooling — both air conditioning and refrigeration — is no longer a luxury but a global necessity, essential for human productivity, health, and survival. Over half of the global population now faces deadly heat conditions, of which a third have little to no access to cooling solutions.

This creates a fundamental dilemma: balancing comfortable living conditions with the urgent need to reduce carbon emissions.

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Cooling Startups

Leapfrog Potential

Carbon emissions from cooling are significant and growing rapidly. Refrigeration and space cooling are responsible for over 10 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, or 4.4 GtCO2e annually, with an additional 1 GtCO2e from food loss due to inadequate refrigeration.

Cooling-related emissions are expected to double by 2050, driven by increasing temperatures and a growing middle class. Beyond emissions, cooling is expected to drive peak electricity demand, especially in hot countries, putting additional strain on already stressed grids and potentially requiring new power plants to meet demand.

We need to push immediate adoption of the best available mature technologies in markets where AC demand and purchasing power is high. At the same time, we need revolutionary, innovative cooling technologies, such as solid-state cooling and passive daytime radiative cooling, to drive rapid improvements in efficiency, increased access, and emissions reduction.

These revolutionary technologies represent a huge leapfrog potential — they can offer step-change improvement in performance and will be maturing (and getting affordable enough) just as demand for ACs starts to take off in many parts of Asia and Africa.

Solid-State Cooling

The core principle of solid-state cooling systems is the caloric effect, which means that a solid material can change temperature by applying an external force or field.

Passive Daytime Radiative Cooling

Passive daytime radiative cooling solutions reflect sunlight and remove building heat while radiating it at mid-infrared wavelengths designed to pass directly through the atmosphere and into deep space.

Passive Daytime Radiative Cooling

Piloting PDRC Around the World

Third Derivative is working to validate Passive Daytime Radiative Cooling (PDRC) in diverse climates and building types to accelerate commercialization in the United States and India. Our work will provide critical data on PDRC’s potential to reduce indoor temperatures and associated heat-related health risks, increasing productivity, and lowering cooling energy consumption and emissions in heat-vulnerable regions.

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Solid State Cooling

Clean Energy 101: Solid-State Cooling

Innovation to Impact: Advancing Solid-State Cooling to Market

Solid-State Cooling Works. Meet the Founders Who Want to Bring it to Market.

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RMI's Global Cooling Initiative

Accelerating sustainable cooling solutions by advancing energy-efficient technologies, eco-friendly refrigerants, and improved refrigerant management.

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