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The race to dominate artificial intelligence is forcing Asia and the Pacific into an infrastructure buildout unlike any in its history, with electricity grids emerging as the next strategic battleground.
The Asian Development Bank is betting that the region cannot sustain the coming wave of AI data centers, semiconductor manufacturing, and digital economies without fundamentally changing how electricity moves across borders. Instead of countries building isolated power systems, the bank wants a continent-wide network capable of delivering renewable electricity wherever demand is highest.
That vision comes with a price tag of $70 billion by 2035, including $50 billion for a Pan-Asia Power Grid Initiative and another $20 billion for an Asia-Pacific Digital Highway. Together, the two programs seek to create the physical backbone for an AI-driven economy powered increasingly by renewable energy rather than imported fossil fuels.
