Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology and Secretary of State
for Energy Security and Net Zero led the second meeting of the AI Energy Council in
London this week (Monday 30 June).
Joined by regulators and representatives of
the energy and tech sectors, the latest round of talks
centred on the energy demands which will be needed to
power the UK's compute ambitions, and the
future energy needs of the sector as a whole.
The government has set the ambition of ramping up the UK's public
compute capacity - the building block of AI development - 20 fold in
the next 5 years, with talks focused on how the
country's energy grid can meet that goal.
Presentations from the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the National Energy
System Operator (NESO) on energy demands
for AI kicked off
the session, with the Energy Secretary reflecting on the work
being undertaken by the council's dedicated working group on
forecasting energy demand.
With the energy demands of data centres - key drivers of
AI development and
growth - expected to double in the coming years, attendees also
reiterated the importance of ensuring they can be connected to
the power grid as swiftly as possible.
This was further highlighted by the Technology Secretary's
reflections on the importance of growth and increasing the UK's
sovereign AI
capabilities as central pillars of the AI Energy Council's work, noting
its role as a vital forum for answering key questions and
unlocking opportunity.
At the conclusion of the meeting, those in attendance reflected
on the shared mission across the energy and tech sectors and the
urgency of the council's work in the coming years as the
government powers both its AI and clean energy superpower
ambitions. This also included an agreement to work together
to forecast future trends support the government's broader work
on grid connections.
The council will next meet in Autumn.
