AI and Energy

Launching June 2026

This three-part series continues the conversation begun in The Elephants in the AI Room by taking a deeper look at one of the most consequential, and least understood, dimensions of AI adoption: energy use and sustainability.

As governments increasingly rely on AI-enabled systems, the energy demands of data centers, model training, and continuous deployment are becoming a growing public policy concern. Decisions about procurement, cloud services, data infrastructure, and regulation now carry implications not only for performance and cost, but also for climate goals, grid resilience, and environmental justice. This series helps public professionals understand those tradeoffs and the policy levers available to address them.

Rather than treating AI’s energy footprint as a purely technical issue, the series examines it as a governance and policy challenge. Participants will explore how public institutions can measure and manage energy impacts, encourage efficiency and transparency, and align AI adoption with sustainability commitments—while also considering how AI itself can support energy and climate objectives.