Can America Power the AI Revolution? | Climate Week Special Series | Solar Coaster

Artificial intelligence is transforming our world, but what will it take to power the technology behind it? For our Climate Week Special Series, Anna Covert welcomes Chip Comins, founder of AREDAY, Chairman and CEO of the American Renewable Energy Institute and Chairman of the American Energy Initiative's HVDC SuperGrid effort. Chip has spent decades bringing together leaders in energy, science, business, technology and entertainment. In this conversation, we explore the infrastructure challenges accompanying the AI boom and Chip's vision for connecting America's electricity resources through an underground, nationwide high-voltage direct current (HVDC) SuperGrid. **In this conversation:** * Why AI data centers are changing electricity demand. * The water and cooling challenges associated with data center development. * How a nationwide HVDC SuperGrid could connect electricity markets. * Why Chip proposes underground transmission along existing transportation corridors. * Potential opportunities for solar, wind and energy storage. * How the proposed grid could work with existing utilities. * Financing, regulatory coordination and the practical challenges of major infrastructure development. * Chip's work with AREDAY and the role of film and storytelling in public education. Chip also shares stories from more than two decades of convening energy and environmental leaders, his work on *Racing Extinction* and his collaboration with Dr. Sandy MacDonald on the SuperGrid concept. **CONNECT WITH CHIP COMINS** LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chipcomins/ AREDAY / American Renewable Energy Institute: https://areday.net/ American Energy Initiative: https://americanenergyinitiative.net/ HVDC SuperGrid: https://areday.net/hvdc-supergrid/ **THE SOLAR COASTER** Website and book: https://solarcoasterbook.com/ Buy the book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FSGKKV8X YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@solarcoasterbook **FOLLOW ANNA COVERT** Website: https://annacovert.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annacovert/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annacovert/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/annacovert **SPONSORED BY SUN ENERGY TODAY** Website: https://sunenergytoday.com/ Commercial solar: https://sunenergytoday.com/commercial/ Utility-scale solar: https://sunenergytoday.com/utility-scale-solar/ Projects: https://sunenergytoday.com/solar-projects/ Get started: https://sunenergytoday.com/get-started/ **LISTEN ON ALL PLATFORMS** Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/28LLOtNEQj8ZoCZJqVOa7o Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-solar-coaster-podcast/id1832579656 Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/342b84c9-ccb9-4cdb-99cc-ed6254503bfa/the-solar-coaster-podcast iHeartRadio: https://iheart.com/podcast/292376116/ Subscribe for more conversations from our Climate Week Special Series. #ClimateWeek #SolarCoaster #ChipComins #ArtificialIntelligence #SuperGrid #RenewableEnergy