National Grid and Emerald AI are partnering to demonstrate a system that uses artificial intelligence to adjust data center energy use in real-time, aiming to improve the efficiency of the United Kingdom’s transmission network.
The collaboration will feature a live demonstration in the U.K. targeted for late 2025. The project will utilize Emerald AI’s Conductor system, which is designed to mediate between the electricity grid and data centers to manage energy demand flexibly. According to the companies, the trial will use NVIDIA GPUs to dynamically adjust energy consumption in support of grid stability.
This initiative seeks to address the growing energy demands of data centers, particularly those powered by AI. The companies stated that by enabling data centers to temporarily decrease their energy usage during periods of peak demand, the demonstration could allow for better use of existing grid capacity. This approach may reduce the need for new infrastructure to connect data centers to the network.
National Grid Partners, the investment arm of National Grid, has also made a strategic investment in Emerald AI.
“As the UK’s digital economy grows, unlocking new ways to flexibly manage energy use is essential for connecting more data centers to our network efficiently,” said Steve Smith, chief strategy and regulation officer at National Grid. “This groundbreaking trial with Emerald AI demonstrates how innovative technologies can help us optimize the grid.”
Varun Sivaram, founder and CEO of Emerald AI, highlighted the potential for AI infrastructure to be an asset to the grid. “Together with National Grid, we’re proving that flexible AI Factories can accelerate AI innovation in the UK while enhancing reliability and affordability for everyone connected to the grid,” Sivaram said.
The demonstration is expected to showcase how different types of AI workloads can be adjusted in real-time to respond to grid conditions. The partnership also plans to advance technical standards for AI data center flexibility and collaborate with customers to bring this capability to the U.K.’s growing pipeline of data centers.
The effort is part of a broader trend within the energy sector to integrate digital technologies to manage supply and demand more effectively. By optimizing the use of existing infrastructure, the partnership aims to support economic growth and the transition to a more flexible energy system in the U.K.
By Michael Kern for Oilprice.com
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