Wireless energy transmission has taken an important step forward with the recent demonstration conducted by the United States Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), which successfully sent over 800 watts through a laser beam over 8.6 kilometers, setting a new record.
This advance was made as part of the Persistent Optical Wireless Energy Relay (POWER) program, which aims to overcome the historical challenges of providing efficient energy to hard-to-reach areas, a critical issue in both military contexts and humanitarian emergencies. The POWER program manager, Paul Jaffe, stated that this test far exceeds the previously accepted limits for optical energy transmission.