Trump Adds Nearly 200 Signatories to AI Power-Cost Pledge as 80% of US Load Joins
Updated
Updated · The Verge · Jul 22
Trump Adds Nearly 200 Signatories to AI Power-Cost Pledge as 80% of US Load Joins
3 articles · Updated · The Verge · Jul 22
Summary
Nearly 200 organizations have signed Trump’s voluntary “rate payer protection pledge,” with new utility and data-center backers including NextEra Energy, Duke Energy, Equinix and Digital Realty set to be announced Thursday.
About 80% of power delivered to U.S. homes and businesses is now covered by companies that have joined the pledge, according to a White House official, as backlash grows over AI-driven electricity demand.
The March pledge asks AI companies to bear the cost of new infrastructure needed to train and run generative AI models, but it has no enforcement mechanism or penalties for noncompliance.
$6.3 billion in added consumer costs is expected across 13 states in PJM territory because of data-center demand, underscoring why critics say the federal pledge may do little to restrain power bills.