AI’s Biggest Energy Impact Might Be in the Oil Patch, Not the Data Center

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AI’s Biggest Energy Impact Might Be in the Oil Patch, Not the Data Center

Article Published August 14, 2026

This article was originally published in The Wall Street Journal on August 13, 2026.

By Ed Ballard, featuring Holly Alpine, Environmental Policy Accelerator alum, and Will Alpine, Policy Primer alum

AI data centers guzzle as much electricity as entire cities. They have ignited demand for any energy source you can name. They’re straining the grid and making people fret about their utility bills. Yet all that gargantuan power consumption is a sideshow.

That’s the conclusion of a new paper that seeks to quantify how artificial intelligence will change the energy system. It says the most profound impact won’t come from how the technology is powered but what it’s used for. Its big prediction: AI is on course to extend the dominance of fossil fuels

Read the Full Article

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