In a recent collaboration between The POWER Podcast and the McCrary Institute’s Cyber Focus podcast, executive editor Aaron Larson and Frank Cilluffo, director of the McCrary Institute for Cyber and Critical Infrastructure Security, delved into the evolving power grid and the pressing cybersecurity challenges it faces. Their discussion underscored the significant shift from centralized power stations to a more distributed energy landscape, encompassing solar farms and wind turbines.
Cilluffo emphasized the critical role of a reliable power grid, stating, “From a national security standpoint, from an economic standpoint, from a public safety standpoint, if you don’t have power, all these other systems are somewhat irrelevant. There’s no infrastructure more critical than power.” This sentiment highlights the foundational importance of energy infrastructure in supporting broader societal functions.
The conversation also touched on the growing energy demands of artificial intelligence (AI), a factor that cannot be overlooked. Cilluffo noted, “If we want to be AI dominant, we can’t do that if we’re not energy dominant. The two are inextricably interwoven—hand in glove. And if we want to lead technologically, we need to continue to double down, triple down, and look at all sorts of sources of energy.”
While renewables currently lead in new generation additions to the grid, emerging technologies such as small modular reactors, fusion power, deep dry-rock geothermal, and space-based solar power are on the horizon. These innovations promise potentially transformative energy options. Cilluffo remarked, “This sounds like it is clearly an all of the above,” emphasizing the need for a diversified energy strategy.
The discussion also highlighted China’s dominance in global energy buildout, particularly in wind, solar, nuclear, coal, and energy storage projects. Cilluffo observed, “China is a primary focus of a lot of our [Cyber Focus] podcast discussion, but it’s a race we cannot afford to lose, whether it’s around AI, quantum. And, I think you’re spot on; to get there, they recognize the need to really quadruple down on energy. I still think that we [the U.S.] want to be at the vanguard driving all of this.”
Cybersecurity emerged as a critical yet often under-prioritized aspect of energy systems. Cilluffo stressed, “Everyone needs to be cyber aware, cyber informed. These are issues that we have to invest in. It can’t be an afterthought. It has to be something that everyone thinks through. And the reality is, don’t think it’s someone else’s problem: a) it’s all of our problems, and b) don’t think that it can be looked at after the balloon goes up—you need to be thinking all of this well in advance.”
This discussion raises important questions about the future of the energy sector. How will the U.S. respond to China’s aggressive energy buildout? Can emerging technologies truly deliver on their promise of transformative change? And how can the energy sector better integrate cybersecurity into its core operations? The answers to these questions will shape the trajectory of the energy landscape in the years to come.