As demand for electricity for artificial intelligence data centers continues to rise, the US government is in talks with technology companies to address sustainability issues.
A report from Axios claims that Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm is encouraging efforts to boost energy generation and reduce consumption, including potential investments in nuclear power.
Curiously, Granholm does not see AI as the problem, but rather as part of the solution, although energy needs must be met.
AI energy demands
One proposed solution to combat the depletion of the power grid by data centers is to locate small nuclear power plants near energy-hungry locations. Nuclear power already accounts for about a fifth of U.S. electricity production.
Nuclear energy is a complicated and controversial subject. It is considered a much greener source than burning fossil fuels, even though it carries greater risks, and nuclear power plants could be targeted amid ongoing geopolitical tensions.
According to Granholm, discussions with companies such as Amazon, Google and Microsoft “must gain momentum, because the demand for power is only increasing.”
Technology companies such as those already mentioned have already started investing more heavily in their contribution to the energy network, with nuclear, solar, wind and geothermal power stations planned.
Granholm’s exclusive interview with Axios followed the announcement of a $1.52 billion loan guarantee to restart a nuclear power plant in Michigan. Subject to regulatory approval, it will become the first recommissioned nuclear power plant in U.S. history.
More broadly, artificial intelligence has been crowned the technology with the greatest potential impact on humanity to date, offering significant productivity and efficiency improvements. However, as technology becomes more and more ingrained in enterprise workflows and data centers are already attracting a lot of attention for their energy and natural resource consumption, it is clear that a massive global effort is needed to ensure sustainability.