Takeaways from AEE World 2025: AI, energy outlooks, and the race to scale
The AEE World Energy Conference, held in Atlanta, GA in September 2025, brought together industry leaders and energy professionals to share insights on how new technology, AI, and energy management are combining to shape the future of power supply and energy reliability.
Representing CLEAResult at this year’s event was Kameel Kishek, senior analyst in our Energy Transition practice, who showcased work that supports utility programs’ electrification studies through a technical session on fleet electrification. Kishek presented the Route Analysis tool, which estimates EV range more accurately when conducting fleet electrification assessments and, therefore, localized and custom charging and energy requirements. This ensures reliable operation in worst-case scenarios. The tool also estimates long-term infrastructure and load needs from EVs.
Several recurring themes emerged during the event that highlight where the industry is headed in the next five years given the expected surge in demand, supply chain, and transmission and distribution bottlenecks. Here are five main takeaways that emerged from the conference itself and the energized conversations between attendees.
Unprecedented growth is needed
Speaking on grid reliability, former U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm emphasized the unprecedented scale of demand growth. The U.S. may need over 130 GW of new power capacity by 2030, according to the Department of Energy (DoE)’s 2025 Resource Adequacy Report. Forecasts from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)’s Annual Energy Outlook 2025 reflect this surge with 100+ GW of unplanned renewable and storage generation capacity, with solar along projected to supply 30% of U.S. grid power by 2030.
Tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act remain a critical driver, especially for utility-scale projects, though developers face a deadline: projects must be under construction by June 2026 to qualify. This has created a scramble to secure financing and permits.
The coming affordability debate
As gigawatts of renewable and storage projects move forward, regulators anticipate that affordability will become the top concern for consumers. Public utility commissions (PUCs) may face pushback if rising demand leads to higher bills. New frameworks could allow utilities to share in customer savings when they invest in smarter, more efficient solutions, for example, deploying Dynamic Line Rating (DLR) software instead of building new transmission, or reconductoring existing lines to increase capacity.
Some states are experimenting with treating large energy users as grid assets. In California, aggregated demand from data centers and other large loads provided 500 MW of virtual power plant (VPP) resources during peak events. In Texas, data centers with loads greater than 75 MW are to be treated as flexible loads under SB6 to mitigate reliability risks.
AI benefits transmission planning
With 2.5 TW of interconnection backlog, automation and leveraging AI is set to speed up interconnection queues and get new generation connected faster, which would be transformative in grid planning operations. Google is partnering with PJM to develop AI-backed tools to aid grid planners in the interconnection process and automate the application review processes. Long-term, PJM and Google are planning to develop a grid model of PJM, similar to Google Maps, but aimed at grid planners to make the planning process more efficient.
On the permitting side, PermitAI – a DOE and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) collaboration to aid in environmental permitting – uses data collection and management, and AI model development to analyze relevant documents.
Policy changes still leave space for opportunities
While tax credits for solar, wind, and EVs were rolled back under The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, it still moves forward credits for geothermal, hydroelectric, nuclear, and biofuels. These incentives are less beneficial for residential projects, but they remain highly impactful at the utility scale. Importantly, credits for battery energy storage systems are still in place, creating a path for large-scale storage to play a central role in balancing the grid and supporting renewable integration.
Moreover, flexible large load management, energy efficiency, and distributed energy resources remain a valuable asset on the distribution side to maintain reliability during peak load, by reducing or shifting demand to off-peak hours. This is where CLEAResult’s Energy Transition practice has a proven track record in supporting utilities in implementation.
Energy transition momentum can continue
While political cycles may affect the pace of deployment, speakers and presenters agreed that the trajectory is set: renewables, storage, and advanced technologies will dominate the future grid. And while the growth and adoption rates may fluctuate, the technology and projects are moving along. EIA’s International Energy Outlook projects that by next year, 44% of the world’s electricity will come from renewables. The challenge now is ensuring that policy, infrastructure, and innovation keep pace with this momentum to deliver a cleaner, equitable, and reliable grid.
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Visit our Energy Transition Practice page to learn how CLEAResult is partnering with utilities and companies to navigate the supply-demand imbalance with expert guidance and innovative technology.