Tesla cofounder: ‘We should be really worried’ about the U.S. grid as China speeds ahead in the power race

China is building new power generation at an unprecedented pace to power the AI boom as the U.S. grid struggles to keep pace with the development of data centers, triggering more delays and project cancellations.

“I think we should be really worried,” said Tesla cofounder JB Straubel at Fortune’s Brainstorm Tech conference in Aspen on Monday.

“I think the grid can’t handle it,” said Straubel, who left Tesla in 2019 to build the Redwood Materials battery recycling firm as its founder and CEO. “The pace of growth and demand of energy is unprecedented.”

Straubel and Redwood are increasingly interested in the grid. Originally focused on electric-vehicle battery recycling, Redwood is now growing even more on using battery recycling to build battery energy storage for hyperscalers and the grid.

With U.S. electricity demand expected to surge anywhere from 50% to 80% between 2024 and 2050, depending on projections, the need for more sources of energy is critical.

Redwood just announced this week a new partnership with General Motors to use recycled EV batteries to power GM’s plant operations—just as GM invests in the next wave of battery technologies for EVs.

Straubel said the industry requires a mix of rapid...