Bill Gates Company to Mine Rare Earth Metals Using Machine Learning

Bill Gates to Mine Rare Earth Metals Using Machine Learning 

Bill Gates’ venture firm, with backing from Jeff Bezos and Jack Ma, just minted a $1 billion A.I. unicorn that uses machine learning for mining rare earth metals crucial for EVs

Mary Meeker and Andreessen Horowitz were also involved in the $250 million funding round.

By Chris Morris in Fortune

June 20, 2023 10:55 AM EDT

Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Energy Ventures is one of the lead investors in a new funding round for KoBold Metals. Jordan Vonderhaar—Bloomberg/Getty Images

KoBold Metals, a Berkeley-based mining company that uses artificial intelligence to mine for rare earth elements, has closed out a funding round that crowns it an A.I. “unicorn” worth $1 billion and ropes in some of the biggest investors in the world.

The $200 million round, reported in the Wall Street Journal, included money from Breakthrough Energy Ventures, a Bill Gates–backed venture capital firm that invests in clean energy companies on behalf of people including Jeff Bezos and Jack Ma.

Other investors included the massively influential VC firm Andreessen Horowitz and Bond Capital, cofounded by Mary Meeker, a longtime VC known for spotting big-picture trends early and whose annual Internet Trends Report is one of the most highly anticipated among tech investors.

The raise brings KoBold’s valuation to more than $1 billion. The company’s last funding round raised $192.5 million in February 2022. Breakthrough Energy Ventures and Bond were both part of that earlier round.

KoBold, founded in 2018, uses machine learning to look for deposits of metals that are crucial to the construction of batteries for electric vehicles—specifically lithium, nickel, cobalt, and copper.

The company has more than 60 projects across three continents, in which it is currently investing $100 million annually. It also has an extensive research and development budget devoted to A.I.’s use in modeling the earth’s subsurface and exploring depths beyond the reach of conventional techniques.

“Our proprietary A.I. tools build on a concept we call efficacy of information (EOI), enabl[ing] KoBold to determine which data to collect at each exploration step, to maximize uncertainty reduction,” the company said on its website.

It might take longer to reach the metals, but the drilling will be precision-focused, the company says. The recent purchase of a copper deposit in Zambia, for example, is expected to take eight years to yield results.

Demand for lithium, nickel, cobalt, and copper is on the rise. By 2050, KoBold predicts, there will be a $12 trillion gap between supply and demand.

Battery Metals Scramble

 Car makers are going mining. 

Tesla, GM Among Carmakers Flocking to Mining Events Amid Battery Metals Scramble

February 24, 2023 Bloomberg      in SupplyBrainChain

Top automakers including Tesla, General Motors, and Ford are heading out on the mining conference circuit as soaring demand for metals used in electric vehicles ignites a scramble to lock in long-term supplies.

Those major U.S. firms, along with Rivian Automotive Inc. and European counterparts Stellantis N.V., Mercedes-Benz Group AG, and Jaguar Land Rover Automotive, will be mingling with the crowds of mining industry executives attending a major metals conference in Florida in early March.

The four-day event is expected to attract almost 1,500 participants to Hollywood, Florida. Bank of Montreal, which is organizing the annual gathering, sees strong interest from several car manufacturers that are seeking to secure supplies of lithium, nickel, graphite and other battery metals.

“There’s an urgency to it now that wasn’t there a few years ago,” said Ilan Bahar, co-head of global metals and mining business at BMO Capital Markets.“If three or four years ago we had invited car companies to our conference, they probably wouldn’t have made it a priority.”

It’s unusual for massive end-users of raw commodities, like auto manufacturers, machinery producers or aerospace companies, to attend large mining conferences. But the huge demand for raw materials to support the electrification of those industries is changing that.

Bahar said a number of automakers are attending, including officials in procurement or corporate development, and are focused on securing supply and investing.

“They’re there as investors,” he said. “They want to meet with companies, and the companies want to meet with investors.”  ... ' 

China Discovers Fusion Fuel on Moon

How real are the claims here?  This could lead to considerable Space mining efforts as fusion capabilities progress. 

China Discovers Stunning Crystal on the Moon,  Nuclear Fusion Fuel for Limitless Energy

The find makes China the third country to discover a new mineral on the Moon, and the country says it's analyzed the soil for rare helium-3.  By Becky Ferreira

China has discovered a crystal from the Moon made of a previously unknown mineral, while also confirming that the lunar surface contains a key ingredient for nuclear fusion, a potential form of effectively limitless power that harnesses the same forces that fuel the Sun and other stars.

The crystal is part of a batch of lunar samples collected by China’s Chang’e-5 mission, which landed on the Moon in 2020, loaded up with about four pounds of rocks, and delivered them to Earth days later. After carefully sifting through the samples—which are the first Moon rocks returned to Earth since 1976—scientists at the Beijing Research Institute of Uranium Geology spotted a single crystal particle, with a diameter smaller than the width of a human hair.

The crystal is made of the novel mineral Changesite—(Y), named after the Chinese Moon goddess, Chang’e, that also inspired China’s series of lunar missions. It was confirmed as a new mineral on Friday by the Commission on New Minerals, Nomenclature and Classification (CNMNC) of the International Mineralogical Association (IMA), according to the Chinese state-run publication Global Times.

Changesite—(Y) is the sixth new mineral to be identified in Moon samples, and the first to be discovered by China. Before China, only the U.S. and Russia could claim to have discovered a new Moon mineral. It is a transparent crystal that formed in a region of the northern lunar near-face that was volcanically active about 1.2 billion years ago. ... ' 

Asteroid Mining

 A longtime interest, here some good background information.  Skeptical of some value analyses, but ultimately this will be done.

Asteroid Material Provides ‘Most Uncontaminated’ Extraterrestrial Samples Ever

By Ryan Whitwam   in  Extremetech

The Japanese Space Agency (JAXA) made history in late 2020 when it successfully recovered asteroid samples from the Hayabusa2 mission. Now, research carried out on the precious bits of rock is being published. Researchers from the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science Technology confirm that the bits of asteroid Ryugu collected by the probe represent “undoubtedly among the most uncontaminated Solar System materials available for laboratory study.”

Hayabusa2 made history during its mission, and not just at the end. It arrived in orbit of Ryugu in 2018, and soon after deployed a number of small tumbling and stationary robots on the surface. This returned some incredible images and preliminary data on the nature of the asteroid’s surface. It also picked up a few bits of regolith from the surface with the aid of dense tantalum slugs fired at the surface. Later, it deployed the Small Carry-on Impactor (SCI), which launched a shaped HMX explosive charge to create a small crater on the surface, revealing material unaltered by solar radiation. 

In total, Hayabusa2 picked up 5.4 grams of material from the asteroid, which was considered a huge success. NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft, which is still on its way back to Earth, may contain as much as two kilograms of material. In the meantime, the new study published in Nature Astronomy confirms we have a lot to learn from the Hayabusa2 samples, reports Vice.  ... ' 

Early Looks at Asteroid Mining

Science, Space, Health & Robotics

Asteroid-mining startup books its first mission, launching with SpaceX

Astroforge, a Y Combinator asteroid-mining startup, has scheduled its first mission due to launch aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

Adam Hunt  @AdamHuntTT

The Y Combinator asteroid-mining startup is based out of California, and was only founded in January 2022 with the only goal of taking "asteroid mining out of the realm of sci-fi into the realm of reality," according to AstroForge cofounder and CEO Matt Gialich.

The $13 million in funding secured will finance Astroforge's first two missions, the first of which will be a demonstration flight currently booked for a rideshare mission about a SpaceX Falcon 9 next year. Astroforge has also partnered with OrbAstro to create the first satellite for its initial demonstration flight and already has its eye on a collection of candidate asteroids to visit.

The asteroids Astroforge will be targeting are between 20 meters (65.6 feet) to 1,500 meters (0.93 miles) in diameter. Astroforge is particularly targeting asteroids with high concentrations of platinum-group metals, which include ruthenium, rhodium, palladium, osmium, iridium, and platinum. ..... '

Thoughts of Mining Asteroids

Was also involved in an analysis of making this possible.  Still difficult thing to do if we cannot easily determine the value of resources there.      Not too much different from mining the earth or ocean, though the risks and costs are still far different.   Look forward to new data.   Its also been brought up much recently:  'space elevator' solutions.  

NASA debuts the spacecraft bound for the $700-quintillion Psyche 16 asteroid

Although the bottom line has been cast into doubt.  By  Chris Young

NASA's Psyche spacecraft was shown off to the world as the space agency prepares for its summer launch.

NASA showcased its Psyche spacecraft for civilians — protective smock-wearing members of the media — to see before engineers make the final adjustments and the machine is sent to Florida in anticipation of liftoff in August.

The spacecraft will launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida before making a roughly three-year trip to Psyche 16, an asteroid that could be a target for future space mining missions.

Will NASA's spacecraft uncover precious space metals?

One early estimate suggested the roughly 173-mile-wide Psyche 16 contains approximately $700 quintillion in heavy metals, though this initial analysis has been cast in doubt by follow-up studies. The initial estimate was made using spectroscopy readings, but gravitational calculations suggest the asteroid has a lower mass than would be expected from a space rock composed mainly of iron and nickel — leading some to believe it only has a thin outer coating composed of heavy metals.

The only recourse left is to actually travel to the asteroid, which is exactly what NASA will do with its Psyche mission. Now, NASA is showcasing its spacecraft to the world thanks to the press event it held on Monday, April 11, during which the asteroid-bound machine was on full display  .... ' 

Hard-Rock Mining

Once consulted in this space.  McKinsey talks the underlying economic processes of mining.

Digging deeper: Trends in underground hard-rock mining for gold and base metals

July 13, 2021 | Commentary

While underground mining methods show higher cost than open pit, their complexity almost always means that there is opportunity in both productivity and cost improvement.

 Article (5 pages)

Underground hard-rock mining accounts for 40 percent of global mining operations but only 12 percent of run-of-mine (ROM) production.1 Underground mines also tend to be more targeted, more costly, and less productive than open-pit mines. Because the choice of which underground method to deploy is predominantly driven by the geology of the deposit being mined, the operator has little flexibility in choosing the mining method given that the objective is to maximize net asset value over the life of the mine. But given the inherent complexity in underground mining, we frequently uncover improvement opportunities in both productivity and cost. Of these methods, stopping not only is the most common but also delivers the highest overall production share, at almost 50 percent; block caving is one of the least-used methods but is responsible for an outsize share of overall production, at almost 25 percent (Exhibit 1). Again, these underground mining methods are often determined by the deposits and the economics of mining and are, thus, somewhat out of the operator’s control. ... '

Mining Digitization

Studied mining efforts for a potential application, and can see the direction, especially regards patterns of detection.

Where digitalization is a goldmine, for real  by Steinar Brandslet, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU)   in TechExplore

Digitalizing multiple parts of the mining industry could generate value to the tune of U.S. $321 billion worldwide, according to the World Economic Forum.

Digital transformation is driving a lot of the development around the world, but the rough-and-tumble mining industry still has a way to go. A Chinese-Norwegian cooperation project will accelerate the process.

"Digitalization will be a driving force in furthering development of the mining and metals industry. It will impact interactions with employees, municipalities and other authorities and every step along the value chain," says researcher Xiang Ma at SINTEF Industry, a part of Scandinavia's largest independent research institute, SINTEF.

This result won't be easy to achieve, however. It will require the researchers to effectively coordinate people who are experts in completely different disciplines, such as mineralogy, metallurgy and of course digitalization.

Several researchers at SINTEF Industry and SINTEF Digital are working with master's students from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) to collect precise data and see how artificial intelligence, data analysis and big data could provide the digitalization that the industry so badly needs.

Both China and Norway have significant mining and metals industries, and their international collaborative efforts aim to solve digital stumbling blocks.

Norway produces ferroalloys like ferrosilicon and ferromanganese. Silicon is used in solar panels and the electronics industry, and as an additive in aluminum alloys. Ferromanganese is an important additive in the production of steel.

China is a leading producer of gold. .. 

Nokia and Claro Chile Deploy Private Wirelesss Network for Minera

 See more about mining applications at the link and my topic label: 

Nokia and Claro Chile deploy private wireless network for Minera Gold Fields  GlobalNewsWire: 

Press Release Nokia and Claro Chile deploy private wireless network for Minera Gold Fields The project with Claro Chile will transform Salares Norte into one of most digitalized mines in Latin America, and a benchmark for Industry  ... 

Press Release

Nokia and Claro Chile deploy private wireless network for Minera Gold Fields

The project with Claro Chile will transform Salares Norte into one of most digitalized mines in Latin America, and a benchmark for Industry 4.0

Nokia’s private LTE/4.9G network will help make mining safer, more efficient and productive

Deployment is an example of asset-intensive industry digitalizing as they embrace the Fourth Industrial Revolution, expanding the possibilities for industries such as energy, railways, utilities and agriculture ... 

Foiling illicit cryptocurrency mining with artificial intelligence

Again matching, finding patterns that are malicious.

Foiling illicit cryptocurrency mining with artificial intelligence
by James Riordon, Los Alamos National Laboratory in TechXplore

Los Alamos National Laboratory computer scientists have developed a new artificial intelligence (AI) system that may be able to identify malicious codes that hijack supercomputers to mine for cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin and Monero.

"Based on recent computer break-ins in Europe and elsewhere, this type of software watchdog will soon be crucial to prevent cryptocurrency miners from hacking into high-performance computing facilities and stealing precious computing resources," said Gopinath Chennupati, a researcher at Los Alamos National Laboratory and co-author of a new paper in the journal IEEE Access. "Our deep learning artificial intelligence model is designed to detect the abusive use of supercomputers specifically for the purpose of cryptocurrency mining." ... " 

More information: Poornima Haridas et al, Code Characterization with Graph Convolutions and Capsule Networks, IEEE Access (2020). DOI: 10.1109/ACCESS.2020.3011909

Looking for Ocean Bed Riches

We were involved in early regional estimates of such efforts. This gets better information about the specifics vs high costs.   Data for further predictive 'mining'.  Have heard of Konigsberg Maritime.

Underwater Drones Join Hunt for Trillions in Mineral Riches Trapped on Ocean's Floor
By CNBC

The nascent seabed mining industry is using underwater drones from companies like Kongsberg Maritime to map the ocean floor in the hunt for manganese and other precious minerals worth trillions.

Kongsberg's underwater automated vehicles can capture seabed images with a resolution superior to surface-ship sonar, and its latest model takes acoustic, laser, and photographic measurements.

Kongsberg's Richard Mills predicts next-generation drones will have more in-mission processing capability, including automated object detection for real-time quantification of manganese nodules.

Mining company DeepGreen Metals’ Gerard Barron said automated vehicles are the only solution for tapping the ocean floor's mineral wealth. He added that drones will be excellent tools for environmental studies of potential mining areas, for tracking and monitoring mining apparatus, and for compiling data on dust plumes that can threaten deep-sea life.

From CNBC
View Full Article 

Mining and AI

Mining,  here Geo-Mining, not cryptocurrency or Data-Mining.    A complex, sensor based problem with considerable cost and potential reward, would seem to have real application of AI-style analytics.  But it seems not much has been applied to it.    Why?   Useful summery of challenges and also current companies involved.

Mining and AI.  in  The Wall Street Journal   By Alistair MacDonald; Rhiannon Hoyle

Despite expectations by the mining industry that artificial intelligence (AI) would transform operations, some experts consider that promise overhyped and unrealistic. Companies like Barrick Gold and Rio Tinto are running AI-led projects, but widescale deployment faces obstacles including little executive engagement, more appealing alternative modernization options, and longer-than-anticipated project timeframes. AI's potential benefits to mining include sensor-based data collection to predict breakdowns or improve operational efficiency, and geological data-filtering to locate likely ore deposits. Other challenges to implementing AI-driven changes to the industry include the high cost of the technology, mining's lack of appeal as a career choice for AI experts who are sorely in demand, and dissatisfaction with making only incremental gains with AI at this point. ...  " 

Big Data and Visualization in Mining Industry

Mining Global (@MiningGlobal) Jason Nitz of @Newmont Mining discusses the potential Big Data presents to the mining industry.   Good piece on an industry you usually do not see talked about in this context.   " ...  There has been a similar explosion of ‘big data’ in mining, albeit slightly behind that of the Internet revolution, but nonetheless, the amount of data now available from mining equipment is staggering. In fact, there is so much data available people often don’t know which way to turn. ... ".  

As described this work is similar work that we did to optimize complex plant operations in other industries. These are usual 'local' supply chain interactions, on a plant floor, or in an operations yard. Doing this well can save millions of dollars in costs, and increase throughput.

And how they are dealing with real time big data by effectively visualizing it in operations centers.  At the same time the results of analytics can be applied and displayed.  This kind of visualization was also an area we spent much time on.