Trump Unveils Big AI Plans and Raises Questions About US Electricity Needs

At a major event in Washington DC called Winning the AI Race, former US President Donald Trump shared his new ideas for boosting artificial intelligence in the country. During his speech, Trump stressed how much electricity will be needed for future AI data centers. He jokingly told Nvidia's CEO Jensen Huang that the amount of power needed is hard to believe and might even be double what the US currently produces.

According to experts, the United States created over 4 trillion kilowatt hours of electricity in 2023. Switching to more AI would require much more electricity, and it is unclear if all that extra power is only for AI or includes everything else in the country. Trump mentioned making it easier for companies to build their own power plants and become their own utilities. He also said the US will need many more electricians to help with these changes.

Nvidia's CEO explained that energy is essential for new industries like AI and manufacturing. If the country wants to lead in AI, it must find ways to produce more electricity. The US already gets energy from fossil fuels, renewables like wind and solar, and nuclear power. Wind and solar have been growing, and some states now get over 30 percent of their power from the sun.

However, building enough new power plants is a big task. Nuclear plants are one possible answer, and some new nuclear projects have just been approved, but they take years to finish. Meanwhile, the fast growth of AI means data companies need huge amounts of electricity right now.

With all these changes coming, it is clear that the future of AI is closely tied to the future of US electricity. People might need to save energy where they can, even if just by turning off the lights a bit earlier.

Original article and image: https://www.pcgamer.com/software/ai/youre-going-to-need-more-electricity-than-any-human-beings-ever-jensen-youre-gonna-have-to-explain-that-to-me-someday-says-trump-to-the-nvidia-head-honcho-as-he-rolls-out-his-mega-ai-expansion-plan/