The Race Between AI And Rural America
It is unclear what the effects of AI energy consumption will mean for the availability of electricity across the country. It remains unclear how much energy data centers will consume. The capacity of the grid to carry electricity remains uncertain due to its age and other limitations. It is unclear where energy will come from because the sources range from solar to coal. One plan is to target the effects of these factors on rural America.
According to Route Fifty, “A new bill in Congress would require the federal government to study the impact of artificial intelligence and data centers on rural America’s energy supply and cost to consumers.” The nature of the bill is such that it could also apply to cities. The Departments of Agriculture, Interior, and Energy would study the impact of electricity for data centers on the resources available to residents, farms, and businesses.
Farm Challenges
One of the primary objectives of the study is to examine the impact on electricity prices when demand surges. The increase in electricity bills has already started in many parts of the country.
What this study will not show is what happens when the overall supply of electricity is such that it has to be “metered.” No one has figured out what happens when AI uses so much power that too little is left for everyone else.
While rising electricity costs are extremely important, so is whether people can get the electricity they need when they need it.
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