Elon Musk’s worrisome prediction is gradually becoming a reality

Elon Musk has warned of a potential energy crisis caused by artificial intelligence and electric vehicles that could occur as early as this year, if we don’t act.

At the Bosch Connected World conference held at the end of February in Berlin (Germany), billionaire Elon Musk issued a warning that global electricity demand is increasing at an alarming rate, mainly due to the two main “culprits” being artificial intelligence (AI) and electric vehicles (EVs).

Accordingly, AI with data centers will consume huge amounts of electricity, creating a huge burden on the global energy sector.

Economist Alex de Vries estimates that by 2027, dedicated servers for AI could consume up to 100 billion kilowatt hours per year, which is equivalent to the annual consumption of a country like the Netherlands.

Along with that, the millions of electric vehicles that need to be charged, especially through fast charging stations, also put enormous pressure on the existing power grid.

The SpaceX boss pointed out the paradox: “The transition to green transportation, while necessary to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, weighs heavily on the already aging electrical infrastructure. We are on the brink of crisis.”

To avoid this, Elon Musk called for a global energy revolution such as investing heavily in renewable energy, prioritizing solar and wind energy, diversifying supply, and reducing dependence on fossil fuels. Encourage the use of photovoltaic solar panels to produce energy on their own.

In addition, each country needs to modernize its power grid by building a “smart grid” to efficiently manage energy flows, balancing supply and demand in real time, even when consumption is at its peak.

Using huge battery systems to store electricity from renewable energy, this technology plays an essential role in overcoming the discontinuity of renewable energy (wind, solar).

Finally, he emphasized cooperation between governments, businesses and people to accelerate the energy transition.

Although admitting that building new infrastructure will take a huge amount of time and cost (billions of dollars), Elon Musk is still optimistic, seeing the energy challenge as an opportunity to innovate.