How AI is mapping the invisible grid underground

Energy Central

We’re building the grid of the future today, but how can we do so without fully knowing what’s already underground? That’s the uncomfortable truth facing utilities, city planners, and infrastructure developers as they charge ahead with clean energy, broadband, EV charging, and transmission upgrades. In today’s episode of Power Perspectives, we confront the chaos beneath our feet, and introduce one leader’s bold vision to fix it. This episode’s guest is Itzik Malka, CEO of 4M Analytics, the company currently using AI, satellite imagery, and geospatial analytics to create the first scalable, dynamic map of underground infrastructure. Think “Google Maps” for what’s buried underground—built without boots on the ground, at global scale. In this conversation, we dive into the risks of outdated or missing subsurface data and the cascading costs of uncertainty in construction. And we explore how AI is not just a shiny new tool—but a necessary lens for utilities and contractors to see clearly, collaborate better, and avoid catastrophe. Key Links: Energy Central Post: https://www.energycentral.com/podcasts/post/how-ai-is-mapping-the-invisible-grid-underground-84vRiBufx5Kyby9 Iztik Malka on Energy Central: https://www.energycentral.com/member/u5ABP7pagw Video version on YouTube: https://youtu.be/MDtkoKef1c4 Ask a Question to Our Future Guests: Do you have a burning question for the utility executives and energy industry thought leaders that we feature each week on Power Perspectives? Leave us a message here for your chance to be featured in an upcoming episode: www.speakpipe.com/EnergyCentralPodcast