Artificial Intelligence (AI) is poised to transform the global energy landscape by enhancing efficiency, accelerating the deployment of cleaner power grids, and expanding access to electricity, according to US Secretary of the Interior Douglas Burgum. Speaking at the Abu Dhabi Global AI Summit, Burgum emphasized the convergence of energy abundance and AI, highlighting the technology’s potential to overcome longstanding infrastructure and regulatory challenges. ‘The electrical grid around the world is generally quite inefficient, and we can use AI to get big increases in the efficiency and reliability of the grid,’ he stated. Burgum also underscored the opportunity to uplift developing regions, where millions still rely on wood for cooking and heating, leading to respiratory diseases. ‘We have an opportunity to lift everybody up — that’s part of this energy addition,’ he added. The discussion also addressed the massive infrastructure required to power the AI revolution, with Burgum pointing to Microsoft’s record $84 billion spending plan for building ‘AI factories’ — large-scale data and compute centers. Brad Smith, Vice Chair and President of Microsoft, echoed this sentiment, noting AI’s potential to enhance various sectors, from healthcare and education to clean energy and economic development. Burgum also highlighted the need to cut regulatory bottlenecks to speed up innovation, advocating for accelerated permitting and lower barriers for capital deployment. He tied America’s domestic energy policy to a broader strategy of ‘energy diplomacy,’ aimed at ensuring global stability and supporting allies, including in the Middle East. ‘The US energy policy is about abundance,’ Burgum concluded. ‘We want to have enough energy to be able to sell energy to our friends and allies, so that our allies don’t have to buy from their adversaries.’