Google announced Monday that it has struck agreements with two regional grid operators to reduce its data center demand at times when the grid is under more strain.
The tech giant unveiled agreements with Indiana Michigan Power and the Tennessee Valley Authority to shift certain workloads to limit the stress on the grid in a process known as demand response.
“As AI growth accelerates, we recognize the need to expand our demand response toolkit and develop capabilities specifically for machine learning workloads,” Amanda Peterson Corio, Google’s global head of data center energy, said in a statement.
“We want to be thoughtful about how we can continue to be a good grid citizen and see this as a vital tool for enabling responsible data center growth,” she added.
Google first launched efforts to use demand response in 2023. However, it said Monday that its latest agreements represent “the first time we’re delivering data center demand response by targeting machine learning (ML) workloads.” Machine learning is a subset of artificial intelligence (AI).
Energy has increasingly become one of the most important factors in the race to develop AI. The technology requires vast amounts of energy to both train and interface with users.
An Energy Department report released last month warned that blackout risks could increase 100 times by the end of the decade due to growing strain on the grid from AI development and efforts to reshore manufacturing.
These concerns about growing energy demand were reflected in President Trump’s AI Action Plan last month, in which he called for fast-tracking both data center and energy construction.
