Name: AI Power Demand Is Rising. Can the Grid Build Fast Enough? | Joshua Rhodes
Uploaded: 2026-08-01T15:38:33.000Z
Description: Artificial intelligence is driving a new wave of electricity demand after years of relatively flat growth. In Texas, requests from data centers and other large users now far exceed what the grid can add on the timelines developers are seeking. Building enough power is one challenge. Doing it fast enough is another.

Siyamak Khorrami has been the general manager and chief editor of the Southern California edition of The Epoch Times since 2017. He is also the host of the “California Insider” show, which showcases leaders and professionals across the state with inside information about trending topics and critical issues in California.

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Artificial intelligence is driving a new wave of electricity demand after years of relatively flat growth. In Texas, requests from data centers and other large users now far exceed what the grid can add on the timelines developers are seeking. Building enough power is one challenge. Doing it fast enough is another.

Power plants and the equipment connecting them to the grid take far longer to build than the projects requesting electricity. That mismatch is changing how grid operators assess large connection requests and decide what the system can support.

Joshua Rhodes, a research scientist at the University of Texas at Austin who studies the electric grid, joins us to explain how ERCOT is handling the surge in requests. He looks at whether the grid can expand on the timetable the AI boom expects.

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