Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt warns that America’s artificial intelligence ambitions could collapse under the weight of its own infrastructure limits.
In an Imagination in Action interview hosted by Google Gemini, Schmidt estimates that the US will need to construct the equivalent of more than 60 large nuclear reactors in just five years to power AI workloads.
Without it, he warns, the nation risks losing its technological edge to China, which has already solved its energy bottlenecks.
“We looked at the amount of electricity required in the United States to power the expected demand of data centers. And we needed in our calculation by 2030, 92 gigawatts to be built. And for reference, a big nuclear power plant is somewhere between one and one and a half gigawatts. To give you a sense of how many nuclear power plants are getting started in America, effectively zero.”
Schmidt highlights that the problem is a matter of national policy. While the US has promoted oil and gas production, he says the government has “hobbled” solar and wind expansion, calling that a critical error at a time when AI and AGI systems are poised to consume unprecedented amounts of energy.
Meanwhile, he notes that China put in 172 gigawatts of solar power just last year, a figure he says is “remarkable.” Schmidt also notes that China is both pragmatic and aggressive in securing the resources needed to power its AI infrastructure.
“They have solved their electric power problem. They also have full control over social media, so they don’t have the kind of problems that people here complain about. They have enormously talented software people, and they don’t have enough hardware.”
Schmidt argues that America’s fragmented energy policy could soon become the limiting factor in the AI race. Without a significant and immediate expansion of grid capacity, he says, even the world’s best chips and data centers could sit idle for lack of power.
“If we don’t get more energy, we’re not going to be able to fully exploit the lead we have in AI and AGI. It’s very clear.”
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