Industry leaders think digital solutions are a top priority for enabling the energy transition, according to a new report by MIT Technology Review Insights, in partnership with Shell, which examines how leaders leverage digital technologies to meet decarbonisation targets.

The survey was conducted with 350 C-level executives at large global companies in the energy and other sectors and includes insights gathered from discussions with nine subject matter experts.

Over half of the respondents see achieving a circular economy as the leading environmental goal. Only one-third believe that forging partnerships with tech experts is the best way to promote the uptake of digital technologies in industries.

While experts argue that open standards and data sharing across the supply chain are inevitable for reaching net zero goals, only a few industry leaders (16%) perceive them as top accelerators for digital technology deployment.