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From the earliest days, competing companies invested in better technology to extract fossil fuels,
这些竞对企业从一开始就在投资研发更先进的，提炼化石燃料的技术，
better drills, better pumps, and they developed better techniques for finding new oil reserves,
研发更好的钻机，更好的泵，他们还研发出了更好的技术，用于寻找新的石油储量，
creating seismic vibrations to see underneath the ground,
借助地质振动查探地下的情况，
using satellite LIDAR to reveal hidden structures,
使用卫星激光雷达揭秘地质的隐藏结构，
detecting subtle changes in the Earth's gravity and magnetism.
探测地球重力和磁力的细微变化等。
Thanks in part to these advances, by 2007, when a very rusty Belvedere was exhumed, global oil production was still on the rise.
从一定程度上说，正是因为有了这些进步，2007年已经严重生锈的贝尔维迪被挖掘出来时，全球石油产量才能照旧保持增长趋势。
In the US, it did look like oil was finally petering out,
美国确实有过石油终于已经走向枯竭的日子，
until investment in new technology, fracking and horizontal wells in vast shale formations, brought it roaring back.
直到对新技术的投资以及在巨大的页岩地层中进行的水力压裂和水平井开采使得石油开采重新焕发出了勃勃生机。
Today, once again, if we just rely on current reserves and current tech, oil production will start to falter,
今天，如果我们重回完全依靠现有储量和现有技术的老路，那石油开采还是会逐渐日薄西山，
but if new technology lets us squeeze more out of the reserves we already have and find new sources of oil,
但如果新技术能保证我们在继续榨取现有储量的同时还能找到新的石油资源，
we'll be able to meet the growing demand.
那么就算需求不断增长，我们也不用慌。
It's just a matter of finding the next technological leap.
不过就是再次突破技术瓶颈的问题。
Of course, there's a problem with using fossil fuels to meet the world's energy needs. Climate change.
当然了，用化石燃料来满足国际社会的能源需求也有一个问题——气候问题。
Oil, gas and coal are a time capsule of a different sort, sealing ancient carbon deep below the Earth.
石油、天然气和煤炭也算是一种时间胶囊，只不过封存的是很久以前就存在于地球深处的碳而已。
When humans open that time capsule and burn those fossil fuels,
当人类打开这一时间胶囊，点燃那些化石燃料，
carbon reenters the atmosphere as the greenhouse gas--CO2.
那些碳就会以温室气体--二氧化碳的形式重回大气，
Since 1859, CO2 levels have shot up and so has the planet's temperature.
自1859年以来，二氧化碳水平急剧上升，地球温度也随之上升。
If we keep going like this, if we burn all the fossil fuels we currently have access to,
我们若是继续这样下去，如果我们点燃我们目前能够获得的所有化石燃料，
models suggest that the Earth could warm somewhere between 6.4 and 9.5 degrees.
（气候）模型显示，地球的温度或将上升6.4~9.5度。
And so climate activists say there's only one thing to do.
这样一来，气候活动家表示，我们就只剩一个选择了。
"Keep it in the ground. Keep it in the ground. Keep it in the ground. Keep it in the ground.”
“让它们(化石燃料)待在地下。让它们(化石燃料)待在地下。让它们(化石燃料)待在地下。”
That's easier chanted than done.
说起来容易做起来难。
Currently, the world relies on fossil fuels for 85 percent of its energy needs.
目前，全世界85%的能源需求都要依赖于化石燃料。
Keeping it in the ground will require a huge shift to renewables and lower energy use in general.
要让化石燃料待在地下需要调整能源策略向可再生能源与普遍降低能源消耗大规模倾斜。
And big tech companies have publicly rushed to be part of this effort.
大型科技公司已经公开地争相加入这一行列了。
"Sustainability has been a core value since our founding."
“从我司成立之日起，可持续发展就是我们的一大核心价值观。”
"There had been pockets of sustainability living within Amazon's business since the very beginning.”
“亚马逊的业务从一开始就给可持续发展留足了空间。”
"One of the problems we can help solve is energy consumption.”
“我们能够帮助解决的问题之一便是能耗问题.”
"We can invent our way out of this problem.”
“我们能够自行开创一条解决之道。”
"Innovation is the key to solving this problem.”
“创新是解决这个问题的关键.”
"We can put artificial intelligence and digital technology to use
“我们可以利用人工智能和数字技术，
to help our customers in every part of the economy become more sustainable themselves.”
帮助遍布各个经济领域的客户自己也走上更加可持续的发展道路。”
It turns out that same artificial intelligence technology is just what oil companies need to stay profitable.
事实证明，石油公司保持盈利所需的恰好也是这一人工智能技术。
See the fossil fuel industry has amassed lots and lots of valuable data as they've mapped Earth's crust in search of reserves.
化石燃料行业已经在绘制地壳地图，寻找储量的过程中积累了海量的宝贵数据。
Take this patch of ocean floor in the North Sea.
就拿北海的这片海床来说。
In 1989, Dutch geologists painstakingly mapped the different rock layers using seismic scans.
1989年，荷兰地质学家费了很大功夫才用地震扫描绘制出了这片海床的岩层结构。
Researchers at IBM recently fed all that seismic data into a machine learning algorithm
前不久，IBM的研究人员将那些地质数据输入到机器学习算法以后
and after about 10 minutes of training,
只用了大约10分钟，
the AI was able to label the rock layers nearly as accurately as human experts.
人工智能就已经对岩层做好了标记，准确度跟人类专家堪称不相上下。
Another group at Georgia Tech used machine learning to quickly identify structures important to oil discovery.
佐治亚理工学院的研究小组则将机器学习应用到了快速识别对石油发现有着重大意义的地质结构上。
You could imagine how an AI could train itself with all kinds of data to pinpoint the best places to drill.
大家可以想象一下人工智能是如何用各种数据自我学习并确定最佳钻探地点的。
And once drilling begins, AI can streamline extraction to make it cheaper.
钻探开始后，人工智能还能简化提取过程，节约提取成本。
That kind of efficiency can help the oil and gas industry compete with renewables
有了如此高效的技术，石油和天然气工业就能与可再生能源抗衡了，
and so it's no surprise that they spent an estimated 1.75 billion dollars on AI in 2018.
正因为如此，2018年的时候，他们会在人工智能上花费近17.5亿美元的投资也就不足为奇了。
Google, Microsoft, and Amazon are competing for a piece of that pie.
谷歌、微软和亚马逊都在争夺石油这块蛋糕。
Google has signed agreements with several fossil fuel companies.
谷歌已经与好几家化石燃料公司签署了协议。
Microsoft has teamed up with Exxon and Chevron, and just hired Daryl Willis away from Google.
微软也同埃克森美孚和雪佛龙联手，不久前还从谷歌挖走了达里尔·威利斯。
And Amazon, who already provides cloud services to BP and Shell
还有亚马逊，现已开始为BP和壳牌提供云服务了，
is marketing its ability to accelerate and optimize exploration, drilling, and production of oil and gas.
眼下，他们正在推广自己加速，优化石油天然气勘探、钻探和生产的能力。
While they talk up their commitment to sustainability, big tech is making sure the world can keep burning plenty of fossil fuel.
大型科技公司一边在大肆宣扬他们对可持续发展的孜孜追求，一边在努力确保世界能够继续使用大量的化石燃料。
"And if you have both of these things, any goal is possible.
“如果这两个东西你都有了，那就没有什么目标不可能了。
It's destination unlimited.”
其终点将不可限量。”
