Avangrid Joins EPRI’s Open Power AI Energy Consortium to Accelerate Responsible AI Deployment in the Energy Sector
Avangrid, Inc., a pioneering energy company and a member of the globally respected Iberdrola Group, has officially joined the Electric Power Research Institute’s (EPRI) Open Power AI Energy Consortium. This landmark partnership positions Avangrid at the forefront of global efforts to harness artificial intelligence (AI) in building a smarter, safer, more resilient, and more efficient energy future.
With a vision to revolutionize energy systems through collaborative innovation, the Open Power AI Energy Consortium unites utilities, academic researchers, and technology companies worldwide to develop responsible, practical, and scalable AI tools for the energy industry. By entering this prestigious network, Avangrid will play a crucial role in shaping the future of AI applications within critical infrastructure while upholding the highest standards for safety, ethics, and transparency.
A Strategic Commitment to Innovation and Digital Transformation
“Joining the Electric Power Research Institute’s Open Power AI Energy Consortium underscores Avangrid’s commitment to responsibly developing and deploying groundbreaking AI tools that contribute to a resilient and reliable energy grid,” stated Jose Antonio Miranda, Chief Executive Officer of Avangrid. “We will continue to partner with key leaders in innovation and technology to enhance our operations, empower our workforce, and deliver the greatest value for our customers.”
This move is aligned with Avangrid’s broader strategy to lead digital transformation efforts in the power and utility sector. As energy systems evolve in the face of climate change, distributed energy generation, and growing electricity demand, AI-driven solutions are emerging as indispensable tools to manage complexity and uncertainty. From predicting equipment failures before they happen to managing dynamic grid loads in real time, the applications of AI are increasingly becoming mission-critical.
By joining EPRI’s consortium, Avangrid is not merely investing in technology—it is reinforcing its vision of responsible innovation. This involves ensuring that the development and deployment of AI are governed by robust ethical frameworks, comprehensive risk management, and open collaboration with stakeholders from across the energy ecosystem.
The Mission of the Open Power AI Energy Consortium
EPRI launched the Open Power AI Energy Consortium to address one of the most pressing needs in the energy sector today: the development of AI technologies tailored to the unique challenges of power systems. These include the integration of renewable energy sources, aging grid infrastructure, cyber-physical risks, evolving regulatory landscapes, and heightened customer expectations for reliability and transparency.
The consortium is a global initiative that brings together energy providers, regulators, technology developers, startups, research institutions, and national laboratories. Its goal is to pool knowledge and resources to accelerate the safe, secure, and reliable application of artificial intelligence across the electricity value chain.
“The challenges facing the energy sector are more complex than ever, and no single organization can solve them alone,” said Dr. Jeremy Renshaw, Executive Director of AI and Quantum at EPRI. “By collaborating with global industry leaders through the Open Power AI Consortium, we’re accelerating the use of AI to strengthen the energy sector. EPRI is dedicated to delivering AI-driven solutions to help shape the future of energy through proven, repeatable best practices that drive innovation and impact.”
Objectives and Areas of Focus
The Open Power AI Energy Consortium is structured around three foundational pillars, each designed to promote openness, collaboration, and rapid deployment of trusted AI technologies:
1. Development of Open-Source AI and GenAI Tools for Energy Applications
The consortium is creating a suite of open-source AI and Generative AI (GenAI) tools, including domain-specific models, datasets, and software libraries tailored specifically to the power and energy sectors. These tools are designed to address challenges that are unique to utility environments—such as the complexity of transmission networks, weather-dependent generation sources, real-time load balancing, and predictive maintenance.
Rather than relying solely on commercial black-box solutions, the consortium’s approach emphasizes transparency and reproducibility, enabling utilities like Avangrid to build trust in AI systems and tailor them to their unique operational needs.
2. Creation of a Cross-Sector AI Sandbox Environment
To support experimentation and validation, the consortium is establishing a “sandbox” environment—a virtual testing ground where AI applications can be developed, tested, and refined before full-scale deployment. This environment will enable Avangrid and other members to collaborate with academia, startups, national labs, and other utilities on co-creating AI use cases.
The sandbox model offers immense value by de-risking the innovation process. Participants can simulate real-world scenarios, experiment with different models, and test integration protocols, all within a controlled, low-risk setting. This enables faster iteration and clearer benchmarking of AI tools against established utility metrics.
3. Deployment and Scaling of AI Across the Power Sector
The final pillar focuses on bridging the gap between prototype and production. EPRI’s global consortium will help scale AI deployment by facilitating knowledge transfer, sharing implementation strategies, and synthesizing lessons learned. This approach accelerates adoption while reducing barriers related to cybersecurity, regulatory compliance, and organizational change management.
As Avangrid works with EPRI and fellow members, it will contribute its own insights and challenges, helping to refine scalable strategies for AI integration into grid operations, customer engagement platforms, and long-term infrastructure planning.
AI for a Modern Grid: Real-World Use Cases
Artificial intelligence offers an unprecedented opportunity to modernize grid operations. Within the consortium, Avangrid will explore numerous promising use cases, including:
- Grid Resilience and Outage Prediction: AI models that use weather, vegetation, and sensor data to predict and mitigate outages before they occur.
- Asset Optimization: Machine learning algorithms to predict failure points, optimize maintenance schedules, and extend the life of critical infrastructure such as transformers, substations, and transmission lines.
- Customer Experience Personalization: Natural language processing (NLP) tools to improve customer service through smarter chatbots and automated service recommendations.
- Demand Forecasting and Load Balancing: AI tools to analyze consumption patterns and predict peak load periods, allowing for dynamic grid management and improved integration of distributed energy resources (DERs).
- Electrification Planning: Decision support systems to guide investment in EV charging infrastructure, heat pump installations, and grid upgrades to accommodate growing electrification demands.
Addressing Core Challenges: Ethics, Governance, and Cybersecurity
Despite the promise of AI, Avangrid and other consortium members are keenly aware of the associated risks. The Open Power AI Consortium places strong emphasis on:
- Data Governance: Ensuring that AI models are trained on secure, high-quality, and privacy-compliant data.
- Model Reliability: Establishing benchmarks for accuracy, explainability, and performance in high-stakes environments.
- Cybersecurity: Protecting AI systems and infrastructure from malicious attacks and data breaches.
- Human-AI Interaction: Ensuring human oversight remains central to decision-making, especially in critical grid operations.
By joining this initiative, Avangrid reinforces its commitment to transparent and ethical AI deployment, ensuring that emerging technologies align with public interest and regulatory requirements.
A Shared Vision for a Smarter, Sustainable Energy Future
Avangrid’s participation in the Open Power AI Energy Consortium marks a pivotal step in its journey toward becoming a digital-first, innovation-driven utility. Through this collaboration, the company gains access to a global network of experts and a growing library of validated AI tools—resources that will enhance its ability to meet future energy demands, reduce emissions, and improve service reliability.
As the energy sector continues to evolve in the face of technological, environmental, and economic pressures, AI will be a defining factor in determining which utilities lead and which fall behind. Through initiatives like this consortium, Avangrid is making a bold statement: that the future of energy lies in responsible innovation, powered by collaboration, guided by ethics, and informed by data.
