Elon Musk has sparked fresh discussion about the future of artificial intelligence after warning that the rapid growth of AI could soon run into a major problem: finding enough electricity to power it.

Musk’s comments were not a prediction that the world is about to end. Instead, he was talking about the enormous amount of energy required to operate increasingly powerful AI systems and data centers.

According to Musk, the supply of advanced computer chips could eventually grow faster than the world’s ability to provide the electricity needed to run them. He has suggested that the energy problem could become increasingly difficult as AI companies continue expanding their computing infrastructure.

His solution sounds like something from science fiction: moving large-scale AI computing facilities into space.

Musk has argued that orbital data centers could eventually take advantage of continuous access to sunlight, potentially providing a more efficient source of energy than traditional facilities on Earth. He has predicted that space could become a cost-effective location for AI infrastructure within the next few years.

The idea remains highly ambitious, and turning it into reality would require overcoming enormous engineering, transportation and financial challenges.

For now, Musk’s comments highlight a very real issue surrounding the AI boom: building increasingly powerful computers is only part of the challenge. Those machines also require enormous amounts of electricity, cooling and infrastructure.

Whether AI ultimately expands into space remains uncertain. But Musk’s prediction has already raised a bigger question about where the next generation of artificial intelligence will actually be powered — and whether Earth’s existing energy infrastructure can keep up.