Americas needs more electricity, and fast. Data centres for AI, and new factories for computer chips and batteries, are driving up demand for electricity, putting mounting pressure on a power grid that has already been struggling. Across different industrial sectors, and different parts of the political spectrum, there is a broad agreement that new transmission infrastructure is urgently needed. But despite that support, getting new power lines built remains a major challenge. In the first of two special episodes of The Energy Gang recorded at the ACORE Grid Forum in Washington, DC, host Ed Crooks asks what is holding back investment in the grid, and what can be done to speed it up.

The Grid Forum brings together industry leaders, politicians and policy experts to discuss the future of the American electricity system. This year the hot topics were lengthy permitting processes, uncertain project costs, and market rules that are no longer fit for purpose at a time when there is a demand for new generation to be connected to the grid as rapidly as possible.

Ed is joined first by Madeline Gould Laughlin, director of regulatory affairs at Grid United, which is developing long-distance transmission projects to connect different regions of the US. Madeline explains why she thinks grid operators need to do more to recognize the reliability benefits of inter-regional transmission, giving utilities stronger incentives to invest in new connections.

Next Jenny Chen, a principal at the Regulatory Assistance Project, explores how changes to financing and regulation could encourage investment. She discusses the cap-and-floor model for funding transmission that is used in Great Britain: it combines revenue certainty for developers with incentives to make transmission projects commercially successful. Could a similar approach work in the US, where different states, regulators and grid operators often struggle to agree on who should pay for new infrastructure?

The conversation also turns to the growing backlog of energy projects waiting to connect to the grid. Adam Stern, director of market policy at independent power producer Clearway Energy, explains how uncertain connection costs and lengthy interconnection queues are preventing new electricity supply from coming online. He highlights reforms being introduced by Southwest Power Pool that could provide developers with greater cost certainty, and could provide a model for other grid operators to follow.

Finally, Ed speaks to Colin Meehan, vice president for grid campaigns at ACORE, about the policy changes needed to accelerate grid expansion. Colin argues that stronger connections between regional electricity systems could improve reliability, unlock access to lower-cost power and help keep consumer bills down. The discussion examines the potential impact of bipartisan permitting reform in Washington, and why work at the state and regional levels will remain essential regardless of what happens at the federal level.

Across the conversations, a common challenge emerges: the investment opportunities to expand grid capacity are real, but regulatory barriers, financing challenges and slow development processes continue to hold projects back. For the energy industry, the question is how to turn the general agreement on the need for a stronger grid into the action required to build one.

This is the first of two special episodes of The Energy Gang recorded at the ACORE Grid Forum (2026) in Washington, DC, exploring the strategies, policies and technologies shaping the future of America's electricity grid.

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Energy companies use sensors and AI to anticipate equipment failure. Can the same predictive approach protect the people operating that equipment, without turning safety systems into a new form of workplace surveillance? As AI moves from screens into robots, control rooms and industrial sites, that question is becoming practical, not theoretical.

Host Ed Crooks is joined by Olivier Oullier, a neuroscientist, investor and AI entrepreneur whose work focuses on how people and machines interact. Olivier argues that AI can improve operator safety and productivity at once through neuroadaptive systems that use signals such as brainwaves, facial expression, eye movement and voice to detect fatigue, stress, distraction or cognitive overload.

In energy operations, those systems could adapt control-room dashboards to foreground the information that matters, or help collaborative robots respond when an operator is tired or distracted. Olivier says pilots are already underway in energy operations in Mexico, Australia and the UAE. Drawing on lessons from surgery and transport, he describes this as an extension of predictive maintenance: moving from monitoring equipment to anticipating human needs, or what he calls predictive care.

That promise rests on a sensitive trade-off. Continuous physiological monitoring could support safer work, but it also raises concerns about consent, autonomy and employee surveillance. Olivier says programs should be voluntary, transparent and compliant with regulation; the discussion tests what responsible deployment needs to look like and whether better outcomes can justify collecting such intimate data.

The conversation also ranges from the risks of poorly supervised AI agents and the skills needed to use AI well to the next phase of physical AI. Olivier points to world models, which aim to help robots understand and act in physical environments, while cautioning against precise long-range predictions about jobs. For energy companies, the near-term challenge is to deploy systems that improve safety and performance without losing sight of the people they are meant to serve.

This episode of the Energy Gang is brought to you by ADIPEC, the world's largest energy event, taking place in Abu Dhabi from 2-5 November.

As demand rises and global energy markets evolve, ADIPEC 2026 brings together governments, industry, investors and technology leaders to accelerate investment, advance technology and build the partnerships needed to meet today's energy needs while building a more resilient system for tomorrow.

Discover more at adipec.com

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Energy security and resilience have moved to the top of the agenda after repeated supply disruptions. As the industry gathers for ADIPEC, AI is being pitched as a way to anticipate equipment failures, improve operations and respond faster to risk. But can it deliver measurable results in critical energy systems, or is the promise still running ahead of the proof?

Host Ed Crooks is joined by Saravan Penubarthi, Chief Technology Officer of AIQ, an energy-focused AI company. Saravan argues that AI creates value when it moves from pilots into day-to-day operations, with tools built around energy-sector problems and tested alongside customers.

He describes a model that spans prediction, recommendations and, in some cases, autonomous action. Examples include RoboWell, which adjusts well controls, and computer-vision systems used for safety, security and productivity. Saravan cites a 2 to 5 per cent production improvement for ADNOC, AI solutions deployed across its 148 rigs, and more than a billion camera-based predictions a day. He also outlines AIQ’s emissions-monitoring work and its expansion into international markets.

The central question is how much of that promise can be trusted at scale. Saravan distinguishes assisted AI, where people approve recommendations, from autonomous operations, which he says require extensive testing, fallback mechanisms and clear human oversight. He says AIQ is developing Genesis, an AI-native operating system for energy, for unveiling at ADIPEC.

For operators, the test is whether these systems can produce repeatable, measurable gains without compromising safety or accountability. As AI moves closer to controlling critical assets, evidence from real deployments will matter more than ambitious claims about what the technology might eventually do.

This episode of the Energy Gang is brought to you by ADIPEC, the world's largest energy event, taking place in Abu Dhabi from 2-5 November.

As demand rises and global energy markets evolve, ADIPEC 2026 brings together governments, industry, investors and technology leaders to accelerate investment, advance technology and build the partnerships needed to meet today's energy needs while building a more resilient system for tomorrow.

Discover more at adipec.com

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Energy security has surged up the policy agenda as geopolitical shocks have exposed the risks of relying on imported fuels. But replacing oil and gas with renewables, batteries and electric vehicles can create new dependencies of its own. The question running through Climate Week NYC was whether countries can strengthen energy resilience while curbing greenhouse gas emissions.

Host Ed Crooks held a series of conversations with leaders in energy policy and business about managing the trade-offs between energy security and climate action.

First, he is joined by former British Army Lieutenant General Richard Nugee, and Erin Sikorsky, a former US intelligence officer who leads climate-security work at the Council on Strategic Risks. They argue that climate change itself is a security concern: extreme heat can threaten military operations, while climate pressures can create political instability. They see adaptation to a warmer world and emissions reduction as complementary, not competing priorities. However, they acknowledge that the shift to clean energy also raises questions about reliance on Chinese supply chains. Richard and Erin discuss cyber protections, domestic innovation, and “friend-shoring”, as ways to manage those risks.

Next is Harry Mateer, US head of FIC research at Barclays. He sets out an overview of a global energy system that is mostly adding new sources of supply rather than replacing old ones. Barclays expects global energy demand to grow by 1.9% a year through 2050, with renewables growing faster, at more than 3%. Harry and Ed discuss what that means for investment in oil and gas, nuclear power, batteries and electric vehicles.

Next up are Hannah Safford, co-director of the Federation of American Scientists’ Center for Regulatory Ingenuity, and Noel Hacegaba, CEO of the Port of Long Beach. Noel says the port has cut emissions while cargo volumes grew 44%, and is targeting net zero emissions by 2050. Hannah argues that outdated rules and fragmented agency responsibilities can slow progress in decarbonizing transport systems. Both guests point to clearer long-term plans, coordinated regulation, incentives and partnerships as practical ways to move the whole supply chain towards lower-carbon systems. But the remaining steps will be harder and costlier, and some of the required technology is not yet widely available.

Long-time climate activist Bill McKibben is next. He published a book last year on renewable energy, which he sees not just as a solution to the challenge of climate change, but “a path that opens into a very new world.” He makes the case for accelerating deployment of solar, wind and batteries, and explains his latest group Third Act, which organizes people over 60 to work on climate and related issues.

Finally, we hear from Helen Clarkson, CEO of the Climate Group, which organizes Climate Week. Helen says climate work continues even as corporate announcements grow quieter: much of the focus has shifted to implementation, investment and the need for stable policy. Her view is that electrification can serve both emissions goals and energy security. The stakes are whether governments and businesses can turn that shared interest into durable infrastructure and investment without mistaking a quieter climate conversation for a reason to slow down.

This episode of Energy Gang is brought to you by ENGIE, the smarter energy supplier. ENGIE doesn't just provide the power to run your business — they supply the energy to move it forward, with reliable, flexible solutions built for what's next. Learn more at engieresources.com.

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This year’s Climate Week NYC was about much more than climate. The conversation kept being pulled back to energy security and resilience in an increasingly volatile world. The conflict in the Middle East, drone attacks on critical infrastructure, and threats to international shipping are forcing policymakers, companies and investors to confront one of the toughest questions in energy: how do you build a system that can absorb shocks without pushing costs even higher for consumers?

In this special live edition of Energy Gang, recorded in front of invited audience at NYU in New York, host Ed Crooks is joined by regular contributor Amy Myers Jaffe and three guests with very different vantage points on that question. Neil Brown is a managing director at KKR. Anna Shpitsberg is Wood Mackenzie’s head of global power and renewables research. And Dr Sarah Kapnick is global head of climate advisory at JPMorgan. Together they explore how geopolitics, technology and climate risk are colliding to reshape the energy agenda.

Neil argues that the attacks on Gulf infrastructure mark a strategic break with the past: energy systems are no longer exposed only to familiar market risks, but to cheaper, more agile weaponry that can inflict outsized damage. He makes the case that the Gulf states have shown real resilience through defence spending, sovereign capital and economic diversification, but warns that energy markets may be entering a prolonged era of instability, rather than a temporary shock.

Sarah argues that resilience now means more than access to fuel: it means the ability to keep supplying energy through geopolitical, technological and climate volatility. Anna points to Ukraine’s experience to show why distributed systems can recover faster than large centralised assets, while also stressing that resilience is not the same as self-sufficiency. Building a more secure system may require domestic capacity, strategic partnerships, and industrial policy. Those things all cost money, at a time when affordability pressures are already intense.

Volatility is endemic to the energy industry. Political, economic and technological shocks have created dramatic swings in energy markets for centuries. But the combination of a new era of international conflict with world-changing breakthroughs in AI is creating challenges that are genuinely new.

The result is a more complex energy system with fewer easy answers: decentralisation can reduce single points of failure but create new cyber risks; trade policy can support domestic manufacturing but raise prices; and climate policy becomes much harder to sustain when voters no longer feel they can afford the transition. The risks from climate change have not gone away. But they will have to be addressed along with more urgent questions about whether energy systems can stay secure and durable in a more dangerous world.

This episode of Energy Gang is brought to you by ENGIE, the smarter energy supplier. ENGIE doesn't just provide the power to run your business — they supply the energy to move it forward, with reliable, flexible solutions built for what's next. Learn more at engieresources.com.

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A fresh shock to global energy markets has pushed an old question back to the center of the climate debate: When supplies tighten and prices rise, do governments double down on the transition, or reach for the fastest fossil fix? From the Strait of Hormuz to rising demand for cooling, the pressure is no longer just about fuel availability. It is about whether power systems can stay secure and affordable while demand keeps climbing and decarbonisation deadlines get closer.

In this special Climate Week NYC episode, host Ed Crooks is joined by Damilola Ogunbiyi, CEO and Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All, Kayte O’Neill, chief executive of the UK’s National Energy System Operator (NESO), and David Calabrese, Executive Vice President at Daikin US Corporation. Together, they test whether efficiency, electrification and long-term system planning can offer a credible response to a crisis that is global, political and increasingly shaped by both AI and air-conditioning demand.

Damilola argues that the discussion cannot be reduced to a rich-world debate about prices and reliability. Nearly 600 million people still lack access to electricity, and 2.4 billion do not have access to clean cooking. In that context, the real risk is not simply a temporary return to fossil fuels in advanced economies, but a much larger lock-in of diesel and petrol generation across emerging markets. Her case is that energy access and energy transition have to move together, supported by integrated national plans, targeted finance and more support for clean distributed systems such as solar, storage and inverters.

Kayte makes the case that decarbonisation and system reliability are not competing goals if the grid is planned properly. She points to the UK’s progress in moving away from coal, its high share of renewable generation, and the growing importance of demand flexibility as new loads arrive. With data centres and cooling demand reshaping power curves, the question is not only how much new generation gets built, but how intelligently demand can respond. David brings that argument down to the appliance level, arguing that heat pumps, inverter compressors and more efficient cooling systems can cut energy use while also helping the grid by acting as flexible load rather than blunt spikes in demand.

What ties the discussion together is a shared insistence that the short term cannot be separated from the long term. Crisis management that relies only on more supply risks entrenching the very vulnerabilities the energy transition is supposed to solve. But a clean system will not build itself: it needs policy support, workforce training, flexibility, and capital that reaches the places where future demand growth will be greatest. That is the real stakes question for policymakers now, not whether to choose between security, affordability and net zero, but whether they can still design systems that deliver all three.

This episode of Energy Gang is brought to you by ENGIE, the smarter energy supplier. ENGIE doesn't just provide the power to run your business — they supply the energy to move it forward, with reliable, flexible solutions built for what's next. Learn more at engieresources.com.

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As federal support for climate action in the US is cut back, a difficult question is coming into focus: what happens to clean-energy projects that still make economic sense, but no longer have Washington behind them? For low-income communities in particular, this is not just a policy story. It is about electricity bills, resilience during storms and heatwaves, access to financing, and whether practical projects such as solar, storage, and efficiency upgrades can still get built.

Host Ed Crooks is joined by Amir Kirkwood, Chief Executive of the Justice Climate Fund, and Melanie Allen, Chief Executive of the Hive Fund for Climate and Gender Justice. Together, they explain how a network of community lenders, philanthropies, green banks and local partners is trying to keep momentum alive even as federal climate funding is frozen, litigated or wound back.

A central theme of the conversation is that the real constraint is not just ideology or even demand for clean energy, but the structure of finance. Amir argues that many community projects do not need breakthrough technology so much as access to affordable capital and better risk sharing. His case is that catalytic tools such as credit enhancements, loan-loss reserves and blended capital can still unlock much larger pools of private investment, even if they cannot fully replace the scale of federal support that the Inflation Reduction Act was meant to provide.

Melanie brings that argument down to ground level with examples of what those projects look like in practice. In Texas, local “hub homes” equipped with solar panels and batteries are giving neighbourhoods places to charge phones, run medical devices and stay cool during outages. In North Carolina, a stalled solar project for a wastewater facility was revived through a mix of local partnership and creative financing. In Georgia, a church cut its monthly energy bill sharply after installing solar, storage and EV charging. Across those examples, the point is the same: in many communities, clean energy is advancing less as an abstract climate commitment than as a practical answer to affordability, reliability and local resilience.

That tension between climate ambition and kitchen-table economics runs through the entire discussion. Both guests argue that people move first for pocketbook reasons, and that the strongest case for these investments is often lower bills, stronger community institutions and better protection against system shocks. The politics may have changed in Washington, but the local need for cheaper, more reliable energy has not. In that sense, the conversation suggests that the next phase of US climate action may be driven less by federal grants and more by the ability to assemble credible local deals that solve several problems at once.

But Melanie and Amir are also clear-eyed about the limits of that approach. Philanthropy can be catalytic, not substitutive. Tax-credit changes, direct-pay deadlines and higher supply-chain costs are all making projects harder to close. The question, then, is whether this emerging blend of community finance and private capital can keep enough projects moving to prove the model at scale. What is at stake is not only the pace of decarbonisation, but whether the benefits of the energy transition will still reach the communities that need them most.

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