Sungrow Renewables launches solar module integrating AI, power electronics

Sungrow Renewables, a division of Chinese inverter and storage system manufacturer Sungrow, has launched its first solar module at on June 1 at its 2026 smart technology conference in Shanghai.

Dubbed Pulson, the new product is described as a smart PV module designed to function as an active terminal within photovoltaic power plants rather than as a passive power-generating component.

The panel is based on what Sungrow Renewables calls a “5S” architecture comprising self-diagnosis, self-rapid shutdown (RSD), self-cleaning, self-cooling and self-logging functions. It also integrates power electronics, advanced materials and artificial intelligence algorithms to improve safety, energy yield and lifecycle management in PV plants.

According to Sungrow Renewables, the self-diagnosis function relies on a module control box with embedded chips that collect voltage, current, temperature and other operating data from individual modules. Moreover, AI-based analysis enables module-level fault detection and localization, allowing operators to move beyond plant-level monitoring.

The self-RSD function provides both module-level and system-level protection, which means faulty modules can be isolated to limit the impact on the rest of a string. In emergency situations, the system can also reduce site-wide DC voltage to a human-safe level within 25 seconds, according to the manufacturer.

The module also incorporates self-cleaning and self-cooling technologies. Sungrow said nano-hydrophilic surface treatment and its proprietary “Silver Ant” cooling technology help reduce power losses caused by dust accumulation and elevated operating temperatures. The company claimsthe two features can increase energy generation by about 6%.

The self-logging function assigns each module a digital record, or “electronic passport,” containing carbon footprint data, health status, operating logs and other lifecycle information. Sungrow Renewables said the feature is intended to support operation and maintenance activities, asset evaluation and long-term plant management.

During the event, TÜV SÜD issued what Sungrow Renewables described as the industry’s first certificate for a high-efficiency smart PV module. The company also said Pulson is the first product to achieve the L2 “active safety intelligence” level under the smart module classification framework proposed in the new white paper. The framework categorizes smart PV modules into four levels, ranging from L1 sensing and optimization capabilities to L4 autonomous decision-making.

The module will initially be deployed in PV plants developed by Sungrow Renewables. Chairman Zhang Xucheng said the product emerged from a development cycle involving “power plant application, pain-point identification, technology accumulation, hardware iteration and power plant feedback.”

More technical details about the new product were not revealed.

Sungrow Renewables is the renewable energy project development arm of Sungrow. The company develops, invests in, designs, builds and operates PV, wind, energy storage and other renewable energy projects. It said it has developed and constructed a cumulative 59 GW of renewable energy projects across more than 17 countries and regions.