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July 12, 2018

Ranking Member Veasey’s Opening Statement for AI Energy Applications Hearing

(Washington, DC) – Today, the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology’s Subcommittees on Energy and Research and Technology are holding a joint Subcommittee hearing titled, “Big Data Challenges and Advanced Computing Solutions.”

Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Energy, Rep. Marc Veasey’s (D-TX), opening statement for the record is below.

Thank you, Chairman Weber and Chairwoman Comstock for holding this hearing today, and thank you to this excellent panel of witnesses for being here this morning.

A growing number of industries today are relying on generating and interpreting large amounts of data to overcome new challenges. The energy sector in particular is making strides in leveraging these new technologies and techniques.

Today, we’ll hear more about the advancements we’ll see in the coming years. Sensor-equipped aircraft engines, locomotives, gas turbines, and wind turbines are now able to track production efficiency and the wear and tear on vital machinery. This enables significant reductions in fuel consumption as well as carbon emissions.

The technologies are also significantly improving our ability to detect failures before they occur and prevent disasters. By doing so, we save money, time, and lives. By using analytics, sensors, and operational data, we can manage and optimize systems ranging from energy storage components to power plants to the electric grid.

As digital technologies revolutionize the energy sector, we also must ensure the safe and responsible use of these processes. With our electric grid under persistent cyber threats, the security of these connected systems is of the utmost importance. Nevertheless, I am excited to learn more about valuable benefits that these technologies may be able to provide for our economy and our environment alike.

I look forward to learning about what we in Congress can do to guide and support the responsible development of these new data-driven approaches to the management of the ever-more-complex systems that our society now depends on.

Thank you, and I yield back the remainder of my time.

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