Asger Risom
Elon Musk says the explosive growth of AI and electric vehicles is pushing global energy systems toward a breaking point — and he’s not convinced current infrastructure can cope.
The global push toward artificial intelligence and electric vehicles is accelerating faster than expected.
According to Elon Musk, that pace is now colliding with a hard physical limit: how much energy the world can actually produce and move.
A familiar voice
Musk has a reputation for dramatic predictions, many of which draw skepticism. But when it comes to energy and computing, he sits at the centre of both trends, running Tesla in electric vehicles and xAI in artificial intelligence.
Speaking at the Bosch Connected World conference in Berlin, Musk delivered a warning he said was grounded in what he is seeing firsthand. He told the audience the world is approaching a major energy crisis driven by the rapid expansion of AI and electrification.
Speed and strain
“I’ve never seen technology advance as fast as this,” Musk said, referring to artificial intelligence.
That speed comes with heavy costs. AI systems require vast data centres that consume enormous amounts of electricity around the clock. At the same time, electric vehicles are pushing demand higher as charging networks expand and adoption grows.
Musk argued that these two forces together are placing unprecedented strain on energy grids that were not designed for such rapid scaling.
Demand keeps rising
Global energy consumption has been climbing for decades as homes, workplaces and cities fill with connected devices. AI and electric transport, Musk said, are accelerating that trend sharply.
The concern is not just generation, but infrastructure. Musk questioned whether existing grids, transformers and storage systems can keep up with the surge in demand without significant upgrades.
Without intervention, he suggested, shortages and instability could follow.
What comes next
Musk urged governments and companies to act quickly. He called for faster investment in renewable energy, expanded manufacturing of electrical transformers, improved energy storage, and better systems to reduce waste.
While he did not offer a specific timeline for when a crisis might hit, he made clear he believes the risk is no longer theoretical.
The warning adds to a growing debate among policymakers and energy experts over whether the world’s electrification ambitions are moving faster than the infrastructure needed to support them.
Sources: Bosch Connected World conference, reporting via international media
