Feng Huang Wang·2025-08-04 23:10Core Insights - Google has signed agreements with two U.S. utility companies to reduce power consumption at its AI data centers during peak demand periods [1][2] - The increasing power demands from AI data centers are straining the electricity supply across the U.S., raising concerns about rising electricity costs and potential blackouts for households and businesses [1] - The agreements are part of a demand response program, which allows Google to temporarily reduce its machine learning workloads to free up power for the grid [1] Group 1 - Google's agreements are with Indiana-Michigan Power Company and Tennessee Valley Authority [1] - The demand response program is a new approach for AI data centers, which traditionally has been used in heavy industries like manufacturing and cryptocurrency mining [1] - Google aims to help utility companies manage the power system more efficiently and reduce the need for new power plants and transmission lines [1] Group 2 - The current agreements only address a small portion of the overall electricity demand, but such arrangements may become more common as U.S. power supply tightens [2]