This week in buildings, land and industry news, data centers were a dominant topic, with the Electric Power Research Institute putting out a report on how the industry can deal with their growth, which K Kaufmann covered for NetZero Insider. Artificial Intelligence is one of the key factors driving data center demand, with one AI query using 10 times as much energy as a standard internet search. EPRI argued the new demand could be met with energy efficiency and that the industry could stop using backup diesel generation with the right kind of utility offerings.

The United States Energy Association hosted an event with EEI President Dan Brouillette, who argued the industry would need natural gas for the foreseeable future to maintain reliability with growing demand and the need to balance renewables, which James Downing wrote about. NERC CEO Jim Robb said that he expects some of the expected demand will never appear, as the hardware and software for AI becomes more efficient going forward, which happened during the early days of the internet. Backing up Robb’s point, Fierce Electronics wrote about key AI hardware manufacturer (and member of the stock market’s “Magnificent Seven”) Nvidia’s plans to increase the energy efficiency of its products. 

California’s Capitol Weekly ran an op-ed from Pure Storage CEO Charles Giancarlo arguing that the Golden State should set minimum energy efficiency standards for the sector. Data center demand is expected to grow by 160% in the next six years, while existing technology could save 20% of the sector’s overall demand — but the state has no minimum requirements. Many of the data centers still in use are not using anything close to Nvidia’s latest technology, with Giancarlo saying more than 80% of digital information still sits in data centers using spinning mechanical hard disk drives, which are much more energy intensive. 

In other news, the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy and the Building Performance Association wrote a report highlighting how states can maximize the effectiveness of new federal funding for home energy retrofits by combining it with their own programs and those offered by utilities. James covered it for NetZero Insider. 

Retrofitting homes can help with electrification, as a study out of the University of Michigan recently found, which was covered by TechXplore.com. The study of 51 homes in Southeast Michigan, which includes Detroit, found switching even to advanced electric heatpumps would raise heating bills by $1,100, which can be offset by improved insulation and other upgrades. 

Home energy retrofits do not always have to involve significant spending or new technologies, with CNET highlighting that just installing the right curtains and drapes can cut summer peak demand by 20%. Windows are a small part of the outside of a home, but they can account for 50% of energy that flows into and out of the home. 

Read that and more in this week’s Intelligence Report: