America’s Ai Future Rests On Nuclear Power

The United States is on the verge of two revolutions: Both are driven by artificial intelligence.

AI is driving a revolution in business, where companies are learning the new AI economics that promises to establish new market leaders in almost every industry.

The other revolution is in energy. As AI companies race to build data centers, they are consuming electricity in volumes never seen before. Manufacturing, electric vehicles, and advanced computing are also increasing demand for power.

The challenge is simple to see: None of these ambitions will succeed without abundant electricity.

That reality explains why some of the world’s largest technology companies are suddenly embracing nuclear power. Microsoft has agreed to purchase power from a restarted Three Mile Island. Google is working with NextEra to utilize nuclear power from the Duane Arnold Energy Center. For companies whose businesses depend on hyperscale computing power, uninterrupted electricity is not a luxury. It is the foundation of their future.

Yet while the need for nuclear energy is surging, the United States has been slow to act. More than 80 reactors are currently under construction around the world. Not one is being built in America.

This is not because nuclear technology has failed. Rather, as speakers at our AEI event on unleashing nuclear power explained, it is because America has made nuclear power unnecessarily expensive.

The most important lesson from countries such as France, South Korea, and increasingly, China is that nuclear power becomes economical when nations build the same designs repeatedly with little delay. Standardization creates learning, lowers costs, and allows supply chains and workforces to align with the new needs. America, by contrast, has treated each reactor as a unique project.

The experience at Georgia’s Vogtle nuclear plants demonstrates both the problem and the solution. The Vogtle 3 reactor suffered delays, cost overruns, and supply-chain disruptions. Vogtle 4 benefited from experience gained by number 3 and dramatically lowered costs. The lesson is not that nuclear construction is doomed to be expensive. It is that repetition builds expertise.

America must also rebuild the industrial ecosystem needed to support nuclear power. Advanced reactors require fuel, specialized manufacturing, and skilled workers. The country has the engineering talent and the investment capital. What it lacks is coordination among buyers and the stability that encourages companies to invest in reactors, supply chains, and employees.

Regulation is another obstacle. Safety must remain paramount, but lengthy and uncertain approval processes do not improve safety but instead become a hidden tax on nuclear energy. When projects take years longer than necessary, financing costs alone can account for a substantial share of total project expenses.

Fortunately, there are signs of progress. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has begun modernizing some of its processes. The Trump administration has made nuclear expansion a priority. Venture capital is flowing into advanced reactor companies. Technology firms and others are creating predictable sources of demand.

But presidential priorities are not enough. The lifespan of a nuclear power plant is measured in decades, not election cycles. Investors making billion-dollar commitments need confidence that policies will remain stable regardless of who occupies the White House. Congress must provide that certainty through durable legislation that supports licensing reform, strengthens fuel supply chains, maintains research and demonstration programs, and creates a predictable framework for private investment.

Public concerns deserve attention as well. Americans understandably ask whether nuclear power is safe and what happens to nuclear waste. Those questions can be answered directly rather than dismissed.

The good news is that modern nuclear energy has one of the strongest safety records of any major energy source. Communities that live near nuclear plants overwhelmingly support them because they experience firsthand the jobs, economic opportunities, and reliable electricity these facilities provide. Spent fuel, meanwhile, has been safely managed for decades.

Ultimately, the debate over nuclear power is not really about nuclear power. It is about whether America intends to have enough energy to power the future without carbon emissions.

The nation that leads in AI, advanced manufacturing, and innovation will be the nation that can supply abundant, reliable, economical electricity. America pioneered commercial nuclear energy. It should not watch from the sidelines while others build the future.

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