The AI infrastructure buildout has collided with an unprecedented power crisis. Data centers consumed over 4% of U.S. electricity in 2024, with demand projected to triple by 2030. The constraint of the era isn't capital or ambition — it's electrons.
Grid interconnection queues stretch 5–7 years. Utilities have received over one terawatt of load requests they cannot fulfill. Communities near data center clusters are experiencing electricity rate increases of up to 267%, triggering mounting political backlash.
The bottleneck is real and worsening. Traditional solutions — building new power plants, extending transmission lines, negotiating grid connections — take years and face escalating opposition.