IT technology is increasingly seen as a tool to reduce energy demand. Smart devices, automated buildings or self-driving cars have the potential to reduce energy demand substantially. However, many studies on the potential impact of these technologies miss important points. First, these technologies are likely to alter behavior. This could result in classical rebound effects but could also have more wide ranging implications that can lead to ambiguous total effects on energy consumption. Second, new technologies are typically first adopted by a specific subgroup of households. A timely broad diffusion is often difficult to attain and can show outcomes that differ substantially from those of early adopters. Finally, the framing conditions under which new technologies are introduced matter: Depending on how energy markets evolve, the same technologies might prove to be highly valuable or almost obsolete. In this presentation, I will use examples from 7 years of research in SCCER CREST to highlight these points and to provide some conclusions as to what conditions are required so that new technological opportunities result in desirable outcomes.