National Grid says "foundational technologies" like AI and quantum computing are driving power...
The boom in artificial intelligence and quantum computing will drive a spike in energy use, the National Grid has predicted.
Both rely on data centres - warehouses full of computer systems.
Chief executive John Pettigrew said the power those data centres use would increase six-fold in the next decade.
"Future growth in foundational technologies like artificial intelligence and quantum computing will mean larger scale, energy-intensive computing infrastructure," Mr Pettigrew said.
To achieve net zero emissions by 2050 in line with global targets, grid operators are under pressure to deliver upgrades to current infrastructure that can meet higher consumer demand for electricity in future and do so sustainably by connecting to renewable energy sources.
Most observers agree that whatever that future looks like, data centres will be a part of it.
Concern over their energy use and demands on infrastructure has increased in recent years.
Official data showed that in the Republic of Ireland, which is home to the European headquarters of several big tech firms such as Google and Facebook-parent Meta, data centres accounted for nearly a fifth of all electricity used in 2022.The amount of electricity being used by data centres in the country has risen by 400% since 2015 and ignited debate about capacity.
Quantum computers, which process data differently to regular computers and can complete complex calculations very quickly, are still mostly being used experimentally to see what they can do.
Future data centres may have built-in nuclear reactors.