The success of America’s AI race depends on winning the energy race first: the expert

America’s ability to compete globally artificial intelligence An (AI) race may depend less on computing power and more on the energy required to maintain it.

“The artificial intelligence competition is definitely energy competitionand one of the things we’ve said is that in order to win the AI ​​race, you have to win the power race, » Nathan Lord, president of the nonprofit Shale Crescent USA, told FOX Business. « But the only way you can win the power race is if you prioritize reliable fuel supply. »

The electricity demand of data centers could be up to half of the new electricity US power consumption According to the International Energy Agency IEA, from 2030.

Goldman Sachs reported in April that natural gas is projected to meet 60% of electricity demand growth driven by artificial intelligence and data centers.

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« Natural gas is the only type of fuel that can be deployed quickly enough, scaled large enough, and still be affordable to even be a viable option for data centers, » Lord said.

For years, data centers have typically been built near fiber hubs, but Lordi believes that needs to change.

« We’ve spent the last decade building where the fiber is and not where the electricity is, and that creates a lot of problems, » he said. « … What we’re communicating to energy-intensive data centers is the safest and most reliable place for them to be located above natural gas, and we’re not building them 500 miles away or in parts of the U.S. that don’t have energy. »

About 80 percent of America’s natural gas supplies come from the Texas Gulf Coast and the Shale Crescent — which includes Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania — where Shale Crescent USA supports high-wage production, according to Lord.

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« The Shale Crescent region is uniquely equipped to address future data center demand, » he said.

Chevron is one of the companies positioning itself for this change.

The company announced earlier this year that it will partner with Engine No. 1 and with Chevron USA Inc. to create a a new company focused on developing natural gas-powered energy solutions for data centers.

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At the same time, China has increased its energy production dramatically. The country now produces 2.5 times more electricity than the United States, although it overtook America just 15 years ago, Lord said.

“America cannot supplant China if China is going to sideline us, so the U.S. must prioritize developing a credible force, » he said.