Powering the digital transition in Portugal and California
On March 20, 2026, the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability, under the leadership of Professor Inês Azevedo, and in collaboration with the Consulate-General of Portugal in San Francisco, successfully hosted the event “Powering the Digital Transition in Portugal and California.” The event convened leaders from academia, industry, government, and international organizations to examine the growing energy demands of artificial intelligence and data centers, and to explore pathways for sustainable digital infrastructure.
Held at Stanford, the by-invitation-only convening created a focused exchange on how California and Portugal can serve as complementary testbeds for designing energy systems in the age of AI. Discussions highlighted the rapid increase in electricity demand from data centers and the need to align innovation with energy reliability, economic value creation, and environmental sustainability.
The program featured keynote remarks from Stanford leadership and the Consulate of Portugal, followed by expert panels on:
- Portugal as a testbed for sustainable innovation
- Engineering solutions for sustainable and efficient data centers
- Energy and digital governance: Stability, security & growth
- Accelerating the digital transition with AI
Speakers included representatives from Stanford University, the University of California, Microsoft, Start Campus, INESC-TEC, EDP, and senior policymakers from Portugal and the European Union, including Bernardo Correia, Secretary of State for Digitalization of Portugal, among others.
A central takeaway from the event was that the expansion of AI is becoming fundamentally constrained by access to reliable, scalable power. Addressing this challenge will require not only new generation, but also faster transmission deployment, improved grid integration, and closer coordination across institutions. Participants also emphasized the need to plan under deep uncertainty, ensuring flexibility and reversibility, engaging communities and ratepayers early, and advancing sustainability across environmental, social, and energy security dimensions. The discussion also highlighted emerging opportunities, including the productive use of waste heat and the role of policy in providing greater certainty.
The event reinforced the value of transatlantic collaboration. Portugal’s emerging role in sustainable data center deployment, combined with California’s leadership in AI and innovation, offers a unique opportunity to develop and test scalable solutions for the global energy transition.
We are grateful to all speakers and participants for their contributions to a rich and forward-looking discussion. We look forward to continuing this work at the intersection of energy and digital systems, drawing on the complementary perspectives of California and Portugal. We also extend our sincere gratitude to our sponsors, the Government of Portugal through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (República Portuguesa Negócios Estrangeiros) and the Luso-American Development Foundation (Fundação Luso-Americana para o Desenvolvimento - FLAD), for their generous support in making this convening possible.