Moonshots in Rio
In a global first, four moonshots will be deployed in Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro has a bold vision to become a global hub for AI and innovation—and yesterday, we announced a new partnership with the city to help it get there faster. In a global first, we're deploying multiple moonshot projects to support Rio's mission to become an urban sandbox for innovation and economic growth. At an event with Mayor Eduardo Paes and his team, we shared how Tapestry, Taara, Anori, and Materra can help Rio seize the opportunities that AI presents and apply breakthrough technologies to solve urban challenges.
Moonshots in Rio Launch Event
Earlier this year, Mayor Paes unveiled Rio AI City, a bold initiative to harness artificial intelligence to transform the city and improve quality of life for Rio's residents. Located in the Olympic Park area, Rio AI City will become one of the largest data center hubs in Latin America, anchored by an AI campus powered entirely by clean energy.
X's deployments in Rio aim to support the Mayor’s vision in four key ways:
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Tapestry, X’s moonshot for the electric grid, will ensure Rio’s grid is "AI ready.” The team’s AI, machine learning and computer vision tools will deliver a more detailed understanding of the grid’s physical network—for example, identifying poles or other equipment that may require upgrades or repair. Tapestry will also help Rio’s grid planners do large-scale, long-term grid simulations so they can deliver the community affordable and reliable power as the AI City expands. Read more about their deployment here.
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Taara, our moonshot for connectivity and recent X spinout, will work with the city to deploy the world's first wireless optical mesh network to connect schools, hospitals and other government centers with fast, affordable and abundant connectivity. You can learn more about their work here.
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Anori, X’s moonshot for building and development, will help the city build more affordable housing more quickly by transforming its urban licensing process.
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Materra, X's moonshot for circularity, will work with local partner Comlurb to identify—at the molecular level—the types of plastics and materials that can be recycled. The goal is to help Rio meet its ambitious targets of raising the recycling rate to 35% by 2030 and 80% by 2050.
Innovation is a team sport, and we’re really excited to be working with Mayor Paes and his team over the coming months and years to roll out these technologies. We hope our collaboration can serve as a blueprint for other cities interested in applying creativity, systems thinking and breakthrough technologies to local challenges.