Energy for AI Will Require An All-Source Approach, McCormick Says
‘This is happening across the world, we don't have a choice of opting out,’ said the Pennsylvania Republican
WASHINGTON, Feb 4, 2026 – AI will be the biggest thing to ever happen to humanity.
At least that’s what Sen. Dave McCormick, R-Penn., said he believes, speaking at at fireside chat at the INCOMPAS Policy Summit Wednesday.
And, to take it a step further, you can’t say AI without saying energy - lots and lots of it.
While acknowledging the fears that many have around the potential disruption AI will have on jobs, McCormick suggested that the potential upsides vastly outweigh the risks, especially if the U.S. were to cede leadership to China.
“This is happening across the world, we don't have a choice of opting out,” McCormick said about AI. “So the question is how do we opt in in a way that demonstrates leadership, creates the right guardrails and creates the best chance of being a benefit to our communities.”
McCormick said that permitting reform will be the key to building the energy infrastructure necessary to power AI systems that will require energy generated by nuclear, renewable and fossil fuel sources.
This all-in approach to energy could yield bipartisan support for permitting reform.
While McCormick said he envisioned a future in which manufacturing is brought back to the United States, mostly operated by robots, he believed that there would be such high demand for welders, construction workers and other trade professionals that it may require a total rethinking of our education system.
That could boost sectors of the economy in areas where data centers and the energy systems to power them are placed.
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