Why Google Is Training 130,000 Electricians

Okay, so a lot of people love to talk about the industries that are blowing up and which jobs to try to get into that are “future-proof” and I feel like a lot of those people talking are saying a ton about AI. AI this and AI that. Well, here’s the truth you probably needed to hear today: without electricians there would be nothing to power AI.

I like to imagine that somewhere nearby, an electrician finishes rerouting a backup generator line. She wipes her forehead, glances at the terminal flickering green, and knows: without her, those models don’t run. That intelligence doesn’t exist without the things she does on a daily basis.

AI isn’t born in the cloud, like so many people seem to think, it’s born in the current.

And in the shadows of every glowing screen, there’s a worker who made the light possible.

The Age of AI Needs Wires, Not Just Code

Google is launching an initiative to train around 130,000 electricians across the U.S. Not programmers, not roboticists, electricians.

The AI boom isn’t just code and models anymore, it’s physical, and it’s about to hit the grid, hard.

You don’t power AI with magic, you power it with copper, conduit, and hands that know how to pull voltage through deadly lines. Every AI interaction (every chat, prediction, and pixel) is backed by a data center, and those things eat energy faster than I eat candy. They eat like my husband does…only more sparkly and a lot less protein.

Training GPT-3 used more electricity than 100 U.S. homes do in a year. And that’s just one model. Running these models at scale is even worse. We’re not just training AI, we’re feeding it 24/7.

And to do that, we’re going to need more than coders, we need people who know what a substation smells like. And people who know how to keep servers from catching fire, please.

Data Centers as the New Factories

Factories used to mean steel, smoke, and noise.
Today’s factories are hyperscale data centers, buzzing with GPUs and chillers.

They consume 30–100 megawatts of power each, require their own substations, run nonstop, and need it 365 days a year. Sheeeesh.

They are truly cathedrals of computation, and they only exist because someone ran wire, bolted panels, and flipped switches. AI is a feat of not only of intelligence, but of manpower. We tend to forget that.

The U.S. power grid is old, built for homes and toaster ovens, not AI. We have a ton of issues for powering these giant monsters of machines. Current issues include 1950s-era transformers are still in use, blackouts are increasing, and renewable energy can’t connect fast enough.

Now add AI, electric vehicles, and smart cities into the mix?
Boom…you hit a wall. And the only way through it is more electricians.

The Skills Gap Crisis

We don’t have enough electricians. Not even close. We’re short over 80,000 right now Google estimates in the US. Most are aging out, and it takes years to train a journeyman.

So Google’s move isn’t just hype, it’s triage.
Because no wire = no data. No data = no AI.

The new AI hubs aren’t in Silicon Valley.
They’re in Nebraska, Iowa, and North Carolina.

Basically anywhere that has cheap land, cold air, and lots of space to build thing in.

But many of these towns don’t have the workforce (or infrastructure!!) to keep up. Training electricians in these regions means local jobs that don’t outsource, new economies in post-industrial towns, and that AI that doesn’t just live in elite enclaves.

It’s a quiet revolution, and it’s already started without you and I noticing.

Infrastructure as Economic Stimulus

Electricians don’t just build servers, they build communities.

When Google invests in trade schools, unions, and certifications, it sparks home buying, local business growth, and some serious long-term economic stability.

These aren’t just jobs, they’re anchors into certain economies.

Unions like the IBEW are watching closely and getting involved already. They’ve argued for years that you can’t automate real-world experience.

Now, the tech world is finally listening (because they don’t have a choice anymore). And as apprenticeships return to the spotlight, electricians might become the most important tech workers of the decade.

We’ve told generations of kids that smart means coding. But smart is also reading a breaker box, knowing the difference between amps and volts, and running emergency power to a failing NICU in a blackout. Things that my highschool guidance councilor frowned upon, now might hold all the power. Shout out to all the Boomers who told their children to go to college instead of trade schools.

This shift could start to redefine intelligence, and give trades the cultural status they deserve. It’s long overdue in my opinion.

What This Means for Tech Culture

Tech culture worships digital gods: apps, founders, stock prices.

But this, this is humbling.

Because the truth is all your dreams live inside a box someone else wired.

You might remember Japan’s space-based solar energy plan. Beaming solar energy from orbit to Earth sounds wild, but it’s becoming real. That kind of power could fuel AI data centers day and night.

But to plug that power in?
Yeah, you guessed it. You’ll need an electrician.

It’s not just data centers, either. Hospitals need clean backup power for AI diagnostics, farms need smart grid charging for irrigation drones, disaster zones need temporary microgrids, and schools need stronger infrastructure for AI-enabled classrooms.

In every place AI is going, electricians go first. If we can get them there.

The Global Ripple Effect

This isn’t just a U.S. issue. China, Germany, India…every AI superpower is facing the same problems with power grid limits, not enough skilled labor, and the need to scale fast to catch up in this race to build the most powerful AI.

Whoever solves this first doesn’t just win at AI, they win at building the AI world.

The race of electricity and electricians is on.

Want to Become One of the 130,000?

Thinking about becoming an electrician? Here’s the path:

Finish high school or get a GED
Apply to trade school or union apprenticeship
Train 4–5 years with classroom + hands-on work
Pass your state’s licensing exam
Specialize in high-tech or renewable infrastructure

Top-Rated Electrician Exam Study Guide on Amazon

You don’t need a tech job, you need a job that makes tech work. Talk about job security!

A Word from the Wires

The smartest machines in the world don’t hum without us, the brightest minds still need a switch to flip.
Every bit of artificial intelligence ever created still leans on something deeply real and needs us to actually work.

This future may be powered by AI, but it’s built by people.

So if you’re holding a wrench, a wire, a pair of voltage-rated glove, you’re actually carrying the world forward yourself.

The world needs builders and dreamers, and I hope electricians get their moment to shine, because after all this time, they deserve it.