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<\/p>\n3-minute read<\/p>\n
Justin Wilcox
\n\u00a0|\u00a0 Special to USA TODAY Network<\/p>\n
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Trump says US will loosen rules in push to win AI race<\/p>\n
The Trump administration released a new artificial intelligence blueprint that aims to loosen environmental rules and vastly expand AI exports to allies, in a bid to maintain the American edge over China in the critical technology.<\/p>\n
New York leaders want the Empire State at the center of the artificial intelligence revolution \u2014 and a recent Brookings Institute report<\/a> says it is well-positioned to do just that. But while other states build the energy backbone for the AI economy, the state\u2019s climate law is pushing investment elsewhere.<\/p>\n In a recent interview with Bloomberg, Gov. Kathy Hochul rightfully touts New York\u2019s \u201cEmpire AI\u201d initiative<\/a>, which Brookings cites as a model for other states. Yet the irony is clear: state energy policies undercut the very data centers needed to make that vision real. AI doesn\u2019t run on good intentions. It runs on affordable, reliable electricity. Under Albany\u2019s sweeping Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, fossil-fueled generation is phased out. As a result, prices are up, and reliability margins have thinned.<\/p>\n Put simply, while the governor and NYSERDA have acknowledged that certain mandates under the state\u2019s climate law will not be achieved on time<\/a>, the Public Service Commission is still legally bound to comply with it. Until these competing visions are reconciled, AI investment will flow to Texas, Virginia and Georgia, where leaders are racing to capture the booming data center market.<\/p>\n This reality becomes clear when looking at where AI firms are choosing to locate. Interconnection requests \u2014 proposals to connect these hyperscalers to the energy grid \u2014 show New York lagging by orders of magnitude compared with these competitor states. For example, according to a recent Wall Street Journal article<\/a>, Texas has 186,000 MW in the pipeline and in earnings calls Dominion in Virginia has indicated it has 40,000 MW of pending projects<\/a>. New York\u2019s large load requests, by contrast, total just 6,055 MW.<\/p>\n The difference in scale is mainly driven by costs.<\/strong> As very large energy consumers, data centers require power that is both abundant and affordable. In New York, rising demand and generator retirements are pushing prices higher. Moreover, PSC-approved double-digit utility rate increases to fund CLCPA mandates<\/a> undermine affordability objectives. Through August, the average year-to-date cost of energy and ancillary services in New York<\/a> (i.e., excluding capacity and delivery charges) was $75.72\/MWh, nearly double the $42.52\/MWh average for the same eight-month period in 2024. A 2024 Department of Energy report<\/a> underscores the challenge: data centers consumed 4.4% of U.S. electricity in 2023 and could use 6.7\u201312% by 2028.<\/p>\n