Elon Musk may have promised the world Tesla solar roof tiles in 2016, but turns out the solar industry may not need the upgrade.

The industry has been growing exponentially thanks to plain old solar panels. You can see the evidence both on people's rooftops and in the desert, where utility-scale solar plants are increasingly popping up. Here in the U.S., of all new power capacity added to the grid in 2018, about 30% was from solar.

But the picture is not all rosy. Solar power is intermittent. The sun isn't always shining, and the price of storage solutions like lithium ion batteries is still relatively high.

These are real problems that the industry needs to tackle if solar is going to reach its potential. However, if the recent past is any indication, solar power is going to help lead the transition to a carbon-free future, and it might do it faster than we all expected. Watch the video to learn more.



