IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jeners/v18y2025i17p4512-d1732282.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Unpacking Artificial Intelligence’s Role in the Energy Transition: The Mediating and Moderating Roles of Knowledge Production and Financial Development

Author

Listed:
  • Abdulmonaem Essed

    (Department of Business Administration, Institute of Graduate Research and Studies, University of Mediterranean Karpasia, Mersin 33010, Turkey)

  • Kolawole Iyiola

    (Department of Business Administration, Institute of Graduate Research and Studies, University of Mediterranean Karpasia, Mersin 33010, Turkey)

  • Ahmad Alzubi

    (Department of Business Administration, Institute of Graduate Research and Studies, University of Mediterranean Karpasia, Mersin 33010, Turkey)

Abstract

This study pioneers an investigation into how artificial intelligence (AI)—shaped by financial development and knowledge production—is transforming the energy transition across BRICS economies and paving the way for a digitally enabled, sustainable future. Using panel data for 2005–2020, the findings confirm that AI is the primary driver of both explicit (EET) and implicit (IET) energy transitions in the BRICS nations, while economic growth, human capital, and financial globalization play comparatively smaller roles. We further find that AI’s effect on the explicit transition is fully mediated by efficiency gains. Financial development weakens—whereas knowledge production strengthens—AI’s green impact. Robustness checks across alternative models support these results, and spillover analyses indicate that cross-border AI advances, economic growth, human capital, and innovation flows shape each BRICS country’s energy-transition path. Based on these findings, the study proposes coordinated policy packages to harness AI for the energy transition while managing distributional and cross-border effects.

Suggested Citation

  • Abdulmonaem Essed & Kolawole Iyiola & Ahmad Alzubi, 2025. "Unpacking Artificial Intelligence’s Role in the Energy Transition: The Mediating and Moderating Roles of Knowledge Production and Financial Development," Energies, MDPI, vol. 18(17), pages 1-19, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:18:y:2025:i:17:p:4512-:d:1732282
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/17/4512/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/17/4512/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Dimos Chatzinikolaou & Charis Michael Vlados, 2024. "New Globalization and Energy Transition: Insights from Recent Global Developments," Societies, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-21, August.
    2. Zhao, Congyu & Dong, Kangyin & Wang, Kun & Nepal, Rabindra, 2024. "How does artificial intelligence promote renewable energy development? The role of climate finance," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    3. Daron Acemoglu & Ufuk Akcigit & Douglas Hanley & William Kerr, 2016. "Transition to Clean Technology," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 124(1), pages 52-104.
    4. Wang, Qiang & Cheng, Xinchen & Pata, Ugur Korkut & Li, Rongrong & Kartal, Mustafa Tevfik, 2024. "Intermediating effect of mineral resources on renewable energy amidst globalization, financial development, and technological progress: Evidence from globe based on income-groups," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    5. Anton, Sorin Gabriel & Afloarei Nucu, Anca Elena, 2020. "The effect of financial development on renewable energy consumption. A panel data approach," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 147(P1), pages 330-338.
    6. Talaat, Fatma M. & Kabeel, A.E. & Shaban, Warda M., 2024. "The role of utilizing artificial intelligence and renewable energy in reaching sustainable development goals," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 235(C).
    7. Popp, David & Hascic, Ivan & Medhi, Neelakshi, 2011. "Technology and the diffusion of renewable energy," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 648-662, July.
    8. Wang, Zhaohua & Danish, & Zhang, Bin & Wang, Bo, 2018. "The moderating role of corruption between economic growth and CO2 emissions: Evidence from BRICS economies," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 148(C), pages 506-513.
    9. Zhang, Xiaojing & Khan, Khalid & Shao, Xuefeng & Oprean-Stan, Camelia & Zhang, Qian, 2024. "The rising role of artificial intelligence in renewable energy development in China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 132(C).
    10. Horky, Florian & Fidrmuc, Jarko, 2024. "Financial development and renewable energy adoption in EU and ASEAN countries," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 131(C).
    11. Di Jin & Muhammad Wasif Zafar, 2025. "Fostering green progress: The dual influence of natural resource rent and human capital on emerging economy energy transition," Natural Resources Forum, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 49(1), pages 656-676, February.
    12. Yang, Zheng & Zhan, Jinyan, 2024. "Examining the multiple impacts of renewable energy development on redefined energy security in China: A panel quantile regression approach," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 221(C).
    13. Zhang, Wei & Zhang, Yunjia & Lan, Xuling & Song, Malin, 2025. "“Green BRICS”: How artificial intelligence can build the explicit structure and implicit order of energy transition," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 149(C).
    14. Horvey, Sylvester Senyo & Odei-Mensah, Jones & Moloi, Tankiso & Bokpin, Godfred A., 2024. "Digital economy, financial development and energy transition in Africa: Exploring for synergies and nonlinearities," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 376(PB).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Zheng, Mingbo & Zhang, Xinyu, 2025. "Digitalization and renewable energy development: Analysis based on cross-country panel data," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 319(C).
    2. Le, Thai Hong & Mai, Minh Lam & Nguyen, Mai Quynh Thi & Nguyen, Anh Phuong & Do, Chi Phuong, 2025. "Examining the role of environmental tax, green innovation, and digital financial inclusion for energy transition: Evidence from OECD countries," Research in Economics, Elsevier, vol. 79(1).
    3. Zhu, Qingyuan & Sun, Chenhao & Xu, Chengzhen & Geng, Qianqian, 2025. "The impact of artificial intelligence on global energy vulnerability," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 15-27.
    4. Ibrahiem, Dalia M. & Hanafy, Shaimaa A., 2021. "Do energy security and environmental quality contribute to renewable energy? The role of trade openness and energy use in North African countries," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 179(C), pages 667-678.
    5. Javed, Asif & Shabir, Maria & Rao, Fabeha & Uddin, Muhammad Salah, 2025. "Effect of green technological innovation and financial development on green energy transition in N-11 countries: Evidence from the novel Method of Moments Quantile Regression," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 242(C).
    6. Dima AlAyoubi & Tarik Atan & Majdi Awad, 2025. "The Quantile Effects of Climate and Global Economic Policy Uncertainties on Renewable Energy Demands in the BRICS Nations: The Role of Green Ecological Policies," Energies, MDPI, vol. 18(2), pages 1-19, January.
    7. Mazzucato, Mariana & Semieniuk, Gregor, 2018. "Financing renewable energy: Who is financing what and why it matters," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 8-22.
    8. Muhammad Hafeez & Saif Ur Rehman & C. M. Nadeem Faisal & Juan Yang & Sana Ullah & Md. Abdul Kaium & Muhammad Yousaf Malik, 2022. "Financial Efficiency and Its Impact on Renewable Energy Demand and CO 2 Emissions: Do Eco-Innovations Matter for Highly Polluted Asian Economies?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-12, September.
    9. Daniel Icaza Alvarez & Fernando González-Ladrón-de-Guevara & Jorge Rojas Espinoza & David Borge-Diez & Santiago Pulla Galindo & Carlos Flores-Vázquez, 2025. "The Evolution of AI Applications in the Energy System Transition: A Bibliometric Analysis of Research Development, the Current State and Future Challenges," Energies, MDPI, vol. 18(6), pages 1-31, March.
    10. Baudino, Marco, 2024. "Oil rents, renewable energy and the role of financial development: Evidence from OPEC+ members," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    11. Huang, Shuai & Tan, Huizhu, 2025. "Evaluating the effects of green supply chain, digital technologies, and energy prices on renewable energy innovations: A way forward for an emerging economy," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 141(C).
    12. Zheng, Huanyu & Wu, Jie & Li, Runze & Song, Yanwu, 2025. "The role of artificial intelligence in renewable energy development: Insights from less developed economies," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    13. Shunan Fan & Yuhuan Zhao & Sumin Zuo, 2025. "Financial Development and Energy Transition: A Literature Review," Energies, MDPI, vol. 18(15), pages 1-28, August.
    14. Li, Lingxiao & Wen, Jun & Li, Yan & Mu, Zi, 2025. "Supply chain challenges and energy insecurity: The role of AI in facilitating renewable energy transition," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
    15. Dong, Zequn & Tan, Chaodan & Ma, Biao & Ning, Zhaoshuo, 2024. "The impact of artificial intelligence on the energy transition: The role of regulatory quality as a guardrail, not a wall," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    16. Li, Kai & Yan, Yaxue & Zhang, Xiaoling, 2021. "Carbon-abatement policies, investment preferences, and directed technological change: Evidence from China," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 172(C).
    17. Liu, Wei & Shen, Yedan & Razzaq, Asim, 2023. "How renewable energy investment, environmental regulations, and financial development derive renewable energy transition: Evidence from G7 countries," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 206(C), pages 1188-1197.
    18. Zhilun Jiao & Chenrui Zhang & Wenwen Li, 2025. "Artificial Intelligence in Energy Economics Research: A Bibliometric Review," Energies, MDPI, vol. 18(2), pages 1-30, January.
    19. Jin, Wei, 2021. "Path dependence, self-fulfilling expectations, and carbon lock-in," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    20. Wu-Shun Tee & Lee Chin & Abdul Samad Abdul-Rahim, 2021. "Determinants of Renewable Energy Production: Do Intellectual Property Rights Matter?," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(18), pages 1-15, September.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:18:y:2025:i:17:p:4512-:d:1732282. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.