Itron partners to include AI and GenAI at the smart grid edge
Image: Itron
Through partnerships with Nvidia and Microsoft, Itron is bringing AI and GenAI to the grid edge.
Itron’s partnership with Nvidia is aimed to integrate Nvidia’s Jetson Orin Nano and AI Enterprise platforms into Itron’s grid edge intelligence portfolio to leverage the edge computing power of these solutions for AI tasks for utilities that can help to optimise their operations.
The partnership with Microsoft is focused on integrating Microsoft’s GenAI Copilot technology into Itron’s intelligent edge operating system to enable utilities to use natural language queries to request information previously only available to their data scientists.
In the Itron – Nvidia partnership, the two companies intend to collaborate to develop solutions in areas including grid resilience, disaster management and prevention, consumer engagement, operational efficiency and the secure delivery of affordable energy to customers as well as future challenges that may emerge.
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Itron collects data from hundreds of millions of endpoints every day, and with this collaboration, Nvidia’s AI platform should help transform how this data, including smart meter and grid data, can be turned into intelligent, real-time information to utility users.
To accelerate delivery to its customers, Itron and Nvidia intend to leverage ecosystem partners, with more details and information about the collaboration due to be made available.
In the Itron-Microsoft partnership, the AI-powered platform, serving as a virtual assistant to utility operators, should allow utilities to access advanced analytics for electricity, gas and water distribution devices, as well as distributed energy resources such as wind, solar and battery storage through rich database queries with access to extensive data pools.
Built and running on Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service, Itron’s grid edge intelligence solutions should ensure secure data processing at the grid edge.
Initial applications that will use the platform, due to be available globally in Q2 of 2025, are Itron’s IEE Meter Data Management System and Operations Optimiser to enable common inquiries about metering, network and customer electricity usage.
“Innovation is at the forefront of Itron and we continue to seek new ways to help our customers to improve their operations,” said Don Reeves, Itron’s senior vice president of Outcomes.
Extending grid edge intelligence to the utility control centre
Coupled with its partnership with Microsoft, Itron is also expanding its partnership with Schneider Electric, integrating its grid edge intelligence solutions with Schneider Electric’s digital grid solutions.
With the combined solution, initially to be available in North America by the end of 2025, Itron’s distributed intelligence-enabled meters should send real-time insights from behind the service transformer, as well as from individual distributed resources, to Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure ADMS.
This data exchange is housed in Microsoft’s unified AI-powered SaaS platform that brings together data and analytics into a single experience, which should allow utilities to dramatically improve system visibility for both load and voltage conditions all the way to the customer premise.
It also provides a mechanism to reliably manage behind-the-meter DERs, such as EV charging equipment, without relying on the customer’s broadband connection
Through the collaboration, the companies intend to enable new grid edge use cases, including transformer to meter mapping, state estimation/load flow accuracy improvement, enhanced volt-var optimisation and local DER grouping for forecast and management.
