Americans could soon feel the artificial intelligence boom in an unavoidable place — their monthly electric bills.
Research from the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas finds that the rapid growth of AI data centers could make electricity more expensive for households in the coming years.
And researchers estimate existing data centers that have popped up all over the country in recent years have already pushed average wholesale electricity prices 2% to 6% higher nationwide, with even larger surges in areas where these facilities are concentrated.
The issue is sure to take even more prominence as affordability, emerging technology and the future of energy-sucking data centers becomes central to many Americans’ sentiments at the ballot box.
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The pressure in monthly bills could grow in conjunction with the AI boom. The preferred middle-range scenario for researchers show the cost increases of generating electricity could be 20% to 30% higher by 2028 compared to what it would be without new data centers.
That does not mean a family’s electric bill will jump 20% to 30% — that figure is much more nuanced.
Depending on its size, a single large data center can use as much electricity as a small city, according to estimates compiled by Fed researchers.
Wholesale electricity is only one part of what consumers pay for, alongside costs such as transmission and distribution.
The researchers at the Dallas Fed estimate energy costs make up roughly half of a typical retail electricity price, and wholesale increases generally take time to work their way into household rates. In short – the future of electricity bulls is unclear, but is likely to steadily rise over the next two years.
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At its core, the explanation is straightforward, though the implications are more complex. Data centers need enormous amounts of electricity to run the computers behind AI.
As more data centers connect to the grid, utilities may need additional power plants, transmission lines, substations and other infrastructure to serve them.
Who ultimately pays for those upgrades depends in part on how regulators and utilities divide the costs between data centers and other customers.
The growing strain has is at the center of many political debates.
President Donald Trump has pushed to expand America’s AI infrastructure while backing a voluntary pledge aimed at preventing data centers from driving up household utility bills.
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In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, has ordered regulators to halt data center projects seeking to connect to the state’s main power grid until they undergo a comprehensive audit.
In Pennsylvania, Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro has also moved to tighten oversight of large-scale data center development as the state weighs how to balance new investment with rising electricity demand.
Other governors have gone further, including Democratic New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, who imposed a one-year moratorium on new hyperscale data centers.
States continue to grapple with concerns over electricity costs, grid reliability and the rapid pace of development.