tech
The Populist War on Technological Capacity
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TL;DR
- Residents and officials are increasingly criticizing data centers for consuming significant electricity and increasing energy bills, with some counties enacting moratoria.
- The narrative frames data centers and AI as frivolous uses of scarce electricity, prioritizing conservation over capacity expansion.
- Historically, surging demand has been met by expanding production (e.g., oil, internet, electricity), not by restricting usage.
- Decades of policy have constrained electricity supply, making scarcity feel permanent, while over 2,600 gigawatts of proposed generation capacity are stuck in regulatory backlogs.
- The current debate is framed as a choice between building new capacity to meet demand or implementing gatekeepers to ration existing resources.
- Advancements in AI, crucial for fields like medicine and national security, are powered by electricity and require increased capacity.
- Nations like China are prioritizing and rapidly building generation and data infrastructure, viewing computing power as a strategic resource.