The Payoff
If this Utopian dream is realized it will forever change the way we see carbon dioxide: instead of a foe, it will become our greatest friend. The development of a practical artificial leaf will in turn seed the development of a global CO2 economy that will provide a carbon neutral replacement for fossil fuels. Recycling carbon dioxide in our atmosphere and converting it to solar fuels and solar chemicals seems to be the only silver bullet solution to enable the human race to sustain its existence in a world depleted of fossil fuels.