RC4ALL: artificial intelligence for responsible consumption

Get to know customers better to offer more personalised products and services. That is the objective of the RC4ALL project, an initiative that starts from artificial intelligence to achieve more efficient energy consumption.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is still so innovative that no definition is accepted by all experts. In its simplest form, it is understood as the recreation of the same capabilities of human intelligence (such as musical, mathematical, verbal and spatial capabilities), by combining algorithms.

This technology is becoming increasingly relevant and accelerating its development. This is also the case in the energy sector since, together with digitalisation, this is becoming key to achieving maximum energy efficiency and for the transition to decarbonisation.

Since our beginnings, we have always been committed to innovation. Especially when it comes to using technology to deliver better and more efficient products and services. "Endesa is already using this technology in many areas of the energy sector throughout the value chain: generation, the distribution grids, the management of our customer service channels and even advertising, where we can see how DeepFake is used in promoting the Única tariff of Endesa Energía", José Mínguez, Head of Commercial Innovation, explains.

“Endesa is already using artificial intelligence in many areas of the energy sector throughout the value chain.”

- José Mínguez, Head of Commercial Innovation.

Creating an efficient consumption culture

Harnessing natural light, using energy-efficient lamps or turning off appliances when they are not being used are some examples of how to consume responsibly and efficiently. When we talk about responsible energy consumption, we mean saving energy resources by changing consumption habits to save both energy and money.

One of our challenges is to get our products and services adapted to the needs of our domestic customers, while improving their habits and building a culture of efficient and responsible consumption.

To advance in this customisation, we need to know our customers better and to analyse the consumption of their home appliances or devices. The information available at the moment (hourly consumption and the contract's technical characteristics) is not sufficient to achieve the level of knowledge needed to make recommendations and offer new specific products for each customer.

As a consequence, RC4ALL (Responsible Consumption for all) was devised. This project was carried out in consortium with the Technological Research Institute of the Pontifical University of Comillas. Its objective is to develop a system that, based on the specific information of consumption per device of a small number of customers and enriching it with information from external sources thanks to artificial intelligence, is able to generate personalised recommendations that improve consumption efficiency of any customer. This is only possible by using the most advanced artificial intelligence techniques.

Machine learning to get to know our customers

A key factor of the project is the selection of a sample of customers. As such, it is necessary to analyse all the available information on the population of the various customer segments. Once this representative group of customers is selected, specific measuring equipment is installed in their homes to monitor the consumption of their electrical devices.

From all the data collected about customers (initial data, new consumption data obtained from the installed devices and data retrieved from other sources of information), machine learning techniques will be used to extract the relevant knowledge in each of the planned analytical stages.

In the words of Alicia Mateo, Head of Advanced Analytics Market Iberia, "applying machine learning techniques allows us to improve the knowledge of our customers and their preferences to offer products and services adapted to their individual needs".

“Machine Learning techniques allow us to improve the knowledge of our customers and their preferences to offer products and services adapted to their needs.”

- Alicia Mateo, Head of Advanced Analytics Market Iberia.

In addition, as Alicia Mateo explains, given the large volume of information, "The management of our more than 10 million customers requires Big Data technology to be applied, which allows us to offer them personalised recommendations to help them achieve a conscious and more efficient consumption".

Without a doubt, RC4ALL is a reflection of how the commitment to open innovation, the use of new technologies and the correct use of artificial intelligence can promote responsible consumption and efficient use of energy.

The RC4ALL project is funded by the Ministry of Science and Innovation under the call for Collaboration Challenges 2019 (file number: RTC2019-007380-3).