Baker

Colorado Climate Week – RASEI Fellows Discuss AI, Data Centers, and the Future of Clean Energy

Daniel Morton — Thu, 02 Apr 2026 23:56:10 +0000

Colorado Climate Week – RASEI Fellows Discuss AI, Data Centers, and the Future of Clean Energy Daniel Morton Thu, 04/02/2026 - 17:56

Daniel Morton

During Colorado Climate Week 2026, leaders from across academia, industry, and policy came together to explore some of the most pressing challenges and opportunities in the energy transition. The week’s events highlighted the value of collaboration across sectors, bringing together researchers, entrepreneurs, utilities, and students to exchange ideas and share emerging solutions.

Among the many themes discussed, one area that drew particular attention was the intersection of artificial intelligence (AI), data centers, and clean energy. As AI technologies continue to scale rapidly, so too does the energy demand required to support them. This growing demand raises important questions about how to power digital infrastructure sustainably, and how these same technologies might also accelerate the transition to a cleaner, more resilient energy grid system.

��ӽ紫ý researchers and faculty played an active role in these conversations throughout the week. Panel discussions featuring RASEI Fellows Kyri Baker and Bri-Mathias Hodge offered different perspectives around the impact of integrating datacenters into the grid.

The discussion centered on a key tension: while AI and data centers are driving significant increases in electricity demand, they also present new opportunities to improve how energy systems are planned, operated, and optimized. Rather than viewing data centers solely as a challenge for the grid, the panel explored how they could become more flexible and responsive participants in the energy system.

One area of focus was the potential for better alignment between data center operations and the availability of renewable energy. As more wind and solar resources come online, managing variability becomes an ongoing challenge. Panelists discussed different ways in which the combination of renewable energy and the rise of demand with datacenters can be considered as complimentary in approaches for balancing the grid.

Throughout the discussions, Baker and Hodge emphasized the importance of interdisciplinary approaches. Addressing the energy impacts of AI is not only a technical problem, it also involves community engagement, policy frameworks, and collaboration between traditionally separate sectors. Their insights reflected a broader theme of Colorado Climate Week: that complex climate and energy challenges require integrated solutions.

For attendees, the session provided a great opportunity to learn more, dispel some myths, and gain insights into the concerns and areas of growth that those in the industry are considering.

More broadly, Colorado Climate Week provided a valuable forum for connecting these kinds of conversations across disciplines and organizations. Events throughout the week underscored the importance of continued dialogue and partnership in advancing climate solutions, particularly as new technologies reshape the energy landscape.

As AI continues to evolve and energy systems become more complex, discussions like these will play an important role in shaping how the two intersect.

April 2026

Off

Traditional

White

RASEI Fellow Kyri Baker Interviewed on PBS

Daniel Morton — Tue, 16 Dec 2025 17:38:22 +0000

RASEI Fellow Kyri Baker Interviewed on PBS Daniel Morton Tue, 12/16/2025 - 10:38

December 2025

Off

Traditional

White

From Cyborb Jellyfish to Weed Labels: 10 ��ӽ紫ý research stories you may have missed in 2025

Daniel Morton — Wed, 10 Dec 2025 17:59:04 +0000

From Cyborb Jellyfish to Weed Labels: 10 ��ӽ紫ý research stories you may have missed in 2025 Daniel Morton Wed, 12/10/2025 - 10:59

December 2025

Off

Traditional

White

Kyri Baker featured on Marketplace: Power demand of data centers keeps exceeding expectations

Daniel Morton — Tue, 02 Dec 2025 19:20:54 +0000

Kyri Baker featured on Marketplace: Power demand of data centers keeps exceeding expectations Daniel Morton Tue, 12/02/2025 - 12:20

December 2025

Off

Traditional

White

Distribution grids may be a barrier to residential electrification

Daniel Morton — Fri, 21 Nov 2025 18:57:51 +0000

Distribution grids may be a barrier to residential electrification Daniel Morton Fri, 11/21/2025 - 11:57

CELL REPORTS SUSTAINABILITY, 2025, 2, 11, 100518

Off

Traditional

White

Supply-chain delays, rising equipment prices threaten electricity grid

Daniel Morton — Fri, 14 Nov 2025 17:13:23 +0000

Supply-chain delays, rising equipment prices threaten electricity grid Daniel Morton Fri, 11/14/2025 - 10:13

Daniel Morton

Find out more

Article in The Conversation

��ӽ紫ý Today Highlight

Renewable Energy World

The Invading Sea

RASEI Fellow Kyri Baker co-authored an article in The Conversation exploring how supply-chain delays and rising costs are impacting the United States Electricity Grid

There are many factors that are causing price increases and delays in supply-chains, that are impacting industries across the nation. As the largest ‘machine’ ever built, the United States power grid is particularly sensitive to this. RASEI Fellow Kyri Baker teamed up with Morgan Bazilian from the School of Economics and Business and the Payne Institute at the Colorado School of Mines to take a deeper dive into this topics, provide insights into the factors contributing to this, and better understand the impacts for customers.

This article has been broadly picked up by a wide range of news outlets. Use the links to the right to check out the article and some of the different news outlets that have joined this discussion.

November 2025

Off

Traditional

White

2025 BEaRS Workshop

Daniel Morton — Mon, 21 Jul 2025 22:38:29 +0000

2025 BEaRS Workshop Daniel Morton Mon, 07/21/2025 - 16:38

Daniel Morton

The 2025 BEaRS Workshop brought together researchers from across the front range (and beyond, with our guests from Japan) to participate in cross-cutting interdisciplinary discussion focused on energy and resilience.

This inaugural Boulder Energy and Resilient Sustainability (BEaRS) workshop brought together scientists from across a range of disciplines, from the social sciences to fundamental physics, from buildings and control to electronics and computing, all discussing how we can better use energy to develop a more resilient future.

The program for the three-day workshop was made up from seven session, with topics including sustainability and the built environment, active matter and chiral materials, building energy technologies, energy systems and the economics of renewable integration, energy policy, grid optimization and energy efficient computing. We welcomed guests from across the Front Range, from Golden to Fort Collins, and further afield, with collaborators from the WPI-SKCM2, based at Hiroshima University.

The program was designed to include a range of speakers, from invited plenary speakers to student researchers, the aim was to provide opportunities for connection and discussion and to seed cross-disciplinary ideas. The plenary speakers really set the tone for each of the days, striking notes of optimism and encouragement, while also instilling urgency and impatience for change.

Amory Lovins, a co-founder of the Rocky Mountain Institute, joined us from Stanford to present on how integrative design can be used to enhance efficiencies and drive down costs in buildings, everything from the house Amory lives in, to factories for Intel. Using this design principles for today’s technologies can have significant lasting impact in reducing energy use. We have the technology, and we know how to design for it.

Chuck Kutscher, who has spent decades at the cutting-edge of renewable energy research at NREL and now as a RASEI Fellow, gave an overview talk on the clean energy transition with a focus on air pollution and human health. Chuck highlighted all the ways in which we can drive down air pollution as we move to cleaner energy and the impacts, both on human health and societal economics that these changes would make. Central to this change is the drive toward electrification, it will provide cheaper electricity that will significantly reduce the impact on human health.

Ian Lange, an economist from the Colorado School of Mines, an expert in global mineral policy, gave an insightful overview of the status of the global mineral market and provided perspectives on how to think about and understand this industry. The knowledge imparted, both on how to think about the minerals in the soil, and some of the factors that are real drivers in this discussion provided a great way to better understand this important market for technology.

Thank you to everyone who was able to attend and participate in the lively questions, panels, and discussion. The opportunity to spend time with experts from a wide range of fields and approach current ideas from new perspectives is extremely valuable and a great opportunity to explore some of the intersectional ways in which disparate fields can work together.

The workshop was capped off with some of the workshop participants, after a busy three days, finding the motivation to hike up Bear Peak on Saturday morning,

July 2025

Off

Traditional

White

Exploring the importance of Environmental Justice variables for predicting Energy Burden in the Contiguous United States

Daniel Morton — Tue, 06 May 2025 19:30:45 +0000

Exploring the importance of Environmental Justice variables for predicting Energy Burden in the Contiguous United States Daniel Morton Tue, 05/06/2025 - 13:30

ISCIENCE, 2025, 112559

Off

Traditional

White

RASEI Fellows develop sustainable solutions to address AI increases in energy demand

Daniel Morton — Wed, 16 Apr 2025 20:18:56 +0000

RASEI Fellows develop sustainable solutions to address AI increases in energy demand Daniel Morton Wed, 04/16/2025 - 14:18

April 2025

Off

Traditional

White

Climate Innovation Collaboratory awards $1M to tackle key sustainability challenges

Daniel Morton — Tue, 15 Apr 2025 16:19:12 +0000

Climate Innovation Collaboratory awards $1M to tackle key sustainability challenges Daniel Morton Tue, 04/15/2025 - 10:19

April 2025

Off

Traditional

White

Baker

Colorado Climate Week – RASEI Fellows Discuss AI, Data Centers, and the Future of Clean Energy

Off

RASEI Fellow Kyri Baker Interviewed on PBS

Off

From Cyborb Jellyfish to Weed Labels: 10 ���ӽ紫ý research stories you may have missed in 2025

Off

Kyri Baker featured on Marketplace: Power demand of data centers keeps exceeding expectations

Off

Distribution grids may be a barrier to residential electrification

Off

Supply-chain delays, rising equipment prices threaten electricity grid

Off

2025 BEaRS Workshop

Off

Exploring the importance of Environmental Justice variables for predicting Energy Burden in the Contiguous United States

Off

RASEI Fellows develop sustainable solutions to address AI increases in energy demand

Off

Climate Innovation Collaboratory awards $1M to tackle key sustainability challenges

Off

From Cyborb Jellyfish to Weed Labels: 10 ��ӽ紫ý research stories you may have missed in 2025