Photo via Arizona Corporation Commission
By Reagan Priest | State Affairs
The Arizona Corporation Commission wants to explore how the state’s utility companies can use artificial intelligence to improve system reliability and customer service under a new docket opened by Commissioner Lea Márquez Peterson.
Márquez Peterson sent a letter on March 24 to the state’s largest electric, gas and water utilities requesting information on how they are currently using or planning to use AI in their operations.. She told the Yellow Sheet Report she was inspired by conversations at conferences across the country about AI in the utility industry.
“Up to this point in Arizona, a lot of our discussion has been around the energy load, water load related to building infrastructure for AI or data centers,” Marquez Peterson said. “I’ve been attending a number of conferences nationally where there have been panels and discussions about the incredible load growth we’re seeing in data centers, but also how the energy industry can utilize AI to be more efficient.”
