Abstract
This Article examines the structure and regulation of the United States electricity industry in light of accelerating electricity demand driven by Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) and digitalization. It argues that the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and related executive actions have exacerbated existing structural weaknesses within the nation’s energy governance framework by repealing renewable energy incentives, privileging nonrenewable generation, and reinforcing the instability of an executive dominated regulatory model. Through a comparative analysis, the Article contrasts the United States’ fragmented, market-based approach with China’s centralized, statute-based framework, which integrates renewable energy development, grid expansion, and AI infrastructure into a cohesive national strategy.
While acknowledging the constitutional and institutional limits of United States energy federalism, the Article contends that meaningful reform remains possible through measures that promote reliability and long-term planning. It concludes that the United States economic and technological leadership in the AI era requires a durable, whole-of-government energy policy that supports all forms of energy generation and unites generation, transmission, and distribution within a coherent framework capable of supporting both innovation and sustainability.
Citation
Kayla Landeros, Fossil-Fueled Failure: How Nonrenewable Energy Policy Will Cost the United States the AI Race, 26 Duke Law & Technology Review 127-185 (2026)
Available at: https://scholarship.law.duke.edu/dltr/vol26/iss1/6