Data Center and Power Grid Interactions: Challenges and Opportunities – Hosted by Ajay Joshi

As AI-driven systems and data center infrastructure continue to expand at unprecedented rates, their energy demands and environmental impacts pose critical challenges for sustainability, efficiency, and grid reliability. This symposium will explore emerging frameworks for privacy-preserving, collaborative energy analytics that enable data centers to optimize electricity use and participate in demand response without compromising sensitive operational data. A central focus will be on advancing secure and effective data sharing practices that foster deeper collaboration among data center operators, grid stakeholders, and researchers—essential for building accurate models, forecasting energy demands, and designing fair and informed sustainability standards. Drawing on interdisciplinary advances across computing systems, power systems, optimization, and cybersecurity, this event will highlight new methods for coordination that support scalable, AI-enhanced solutions. Through expert talks, panels, and collaborative discussions, the symposium aims to catalyze cross-sector partnerships among academia, industry, and government, and to chart a path toward transparent, equitable, and energy-efficient digital infrastructure.