National Grid Partners released its third Utility Innovation Survey, based on responses from 134 utility innovation leaders collected between May 20 and July 7, 2026. The survey found that 83% of respondents report AI data center infrastructure costs are being passed to residential customers through higher bills, while 74% say AI-driven data center load growth is affecting grid reliability. Grid reliability rose to a top-three priority for 73% of respondents, up from 43% in 2025, while net-zero goals as a top-three priority fell sharply from 54% to 16%. National Grid Partners also announced new investments in AI-related startups Terragrit and LineVision and said its total investments have surpassed $600 million since 2018.
The finding that 83% of surveyed utility leaders are seeing data center costs passed to residential ratepayers provides specific evidence of a direct financial burden on households, a detail that is likely to intensify regulatory scrutiny of how utilities recover data center interconnection and infrastructure expenses. The sharp drop in net-zero prioritization, from 54% to 16% in a single year, reflects how data center load growth is reshaping utility planning priorities at scale.
A survey finding that 83% of respondents believe AI data centers are directly driving up household electricity costs is a compelling data point on ratepayer burden, a key community impact story. This is distinct from already-published grid reliability and cost coverage stories.