President Donald Trump says that he, along with many Americans, is concerned about the energy demand and strain AI data centers are putting on the electrical grid.
In a brief moment during his 2026 State of the Union speech, the president gave remarks that, while only lasting a minute or so, could, in effect, save the American household hundreds of dollars per year.
‘A single large AI data center consumes as much electricity annually as 2 million homes.’
“We have an old grid. It could never handle the kind of numbers, the amount of electricity that’s needed,” Trump said. “So I’m telling them, they can build their own plant.”
These simple comments actually have a massive ripple effect when put into practice. When companies like Apple or Meta build sprawling campuses to house their AI and user data, the power has to come from somewhere, and it often comes at the price of the American family.
For example, Pew reported that data centers have accounted for over $9 billion in price increases in capacity markets for 2025-2026; this refers to the amount of electricity a provider says it will provide. This is expected to increase the average monthly residential electrical bill by $16 in Ohio and $18 in Western Maryland.
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Photographer: Heather Khalifa/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Connecticut’s Office of Legislative Research found that residents in Virginia could see an increase between $14 and $37 per month by 2040 due to data centers. At an average increase of $25.50, that’s $306 annually.
Moreover, a Carnegie Mellon University study reported that data center growth could increase electric bills between 8% and 25% nationally.
“A single large AI data center consumes as much electricity annually as 2 million homes,” AI researcher Josh Fonseca Rivera told Return. “In 2024, U.S. data centers collectively drew roughly as much power as all of Pakistan.”
He added, “These costs are already reaching households. In Washington, D.C., residential electricity bills have risen approximately $10 per month due to data center demand. I think we can all agree that trillion-dollar tech companies should pay for their own power instead of pushing costs onto families.”
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Photographer: Kyle Grillot/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Tech expert Josh Centers said that Trump actually undersold the existing problem.
“The grid has to be balanced down to fractions of a hertz every second, or the whole thing cascades into blackouts. Drop multiple data centers pulling as much power as a small city onto that, and you’ve got a serious infrastructure crisis,” he explained.
“The dirty secret is these AI models are wildly inefficient. We’re still running neural network math from the 1940s, just brute-forced with modern silicon and massive energy budgets,” Centers added. Instead of using AI to write books, “hand kids a real book,” he said, referring to his own work teaching children literacy.
One military tech CEO told Return that a co-existence between communities and Big Tech is possible, one that is mutually beneficial.
“The key will be making sure companies truly carry their share of infrastructure costs and that communities benefit from the added capacity,” said Tyler Saltsman, CEO of EdgeRunner AI. “But if structured properly, this approach could protect ratepayers, encourage modernization, and use private investment to reinforce a grid that badly needs upgrading, which is a major attack vector currently.”
During the State of the Union, the president referred to a new pledge, “Guaranteeing Rate Insulation from Data Centers.”
The new legislation is meant to “guarantee consumers [are] first priority on the grid,” ensure new data centers get their power from separate sources, and establish new transparency measures around data center utility usage.
“They’re going to produce their own electricity. It will ensure the company’s ability to get electricity, while at the same time, lowering prices of electricity for you,” Trump said.
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