A woman was shocked to realize how expensive her electricity bill had become over the winter, but when she tried to find a solution with her provider, their response wasn’t the least bit helpful. Instead of a payment plan or even suggestions for creating a more efficient home, they suggested she get a heating blanket and lower the thermostat.
In a TikTok video, a Brooklyn-based content creator named Tori McGraw insisted that AI usage was to blame not only for her high electricity bill but also for the company not seeming concerned about doing anything about it. Like many Americans, the cost of living has gotten out of hand, meaning people really can’t afford to shell out hundreds of dollars each month just for electricity in their homes, especially when the astronomical cost is out of their control.
Woman told by Con Ed to consider getting a ‘heated blanket’ after calling to complain that her bill was over $400.
“I called Con Ed to complain about how high my electricity bill was for the month of December and also January because it was over $400,” McGraw began in her video. “They told me that I should consider getting a heated blanket as their solution.”
McGraw explained that through doing her own research, she found out that the average person living in an apartment or house is subsidizing the electricity usage of AI data centers in the area. Consumers rates are ending up a lot higher while electricity companies rates are decreasing based on the fact that their customers are subsidizing them to get lower rates in the first place.
AI data centers have been consistently pushing up people’s electric bills.
Data from the Energy Information Administration found that residential retail electricity prices in September were up 7.4% to about 18 cents per kilowatt-hour. Electricity prices closely tracked inflation from 2013 to 2023 but will likely outpace it at least through 2026, according to an EIA forecast from May.
In an October study from the Lawrence Berkley National Laboratory and the Brattle Group, electricity price changes across the U.S. in recent years were driven by a combination of many factors, including infrastructure impacts from extreme weather like wildfires and hurricanes, modern grid upgrades, and fossil-fuel costs. And of course, the rise of AI data centers.
The rising electricity costs mean that many households have faced unprecedented bills. Over the winter months, households that used electricity to heat their homes were estimated to see their winter heating bills rise to $1,205 this season, up about 10% from $1,093 last winter.
McGraw shared how she and her fiancé are heating their apartment while also trying to save money.
DimaBerlin | Shutterstock
“Our apartment is heated and cooled by mini-split units. They told me over the phone that these suck a lot of energy and are not good. Basically, we keep ours at around seventy degrees, although our apartment is sitting at roughly between sixty and sixty-five most of the time,” McGraw said.
On top of the mini-split units, they have an electric radiator, which was added after receiving the $400 Con Ed bill. One of the major cons, though, is that McGraw and her fiancé are using more electricity with it, but a pro is that their bedroom is a little warmer at night.
She also learned from an employee at Con Ed that residents can apply for a discount on their next bill, though McGraw isn’t sure how much the discount is; only veterans and households below a certain income are eligible. All in all, McGraw, along with many others experiencing drastic increases in utility bills, is having to find creative ways to save money while staying warm during this particularly cold winter.
Nia Tipton is a staff writer with a bachelor’s degree in creative writing and journalism who covers news and lifestyle topics that focus on psychology, relationships, and the human experience.
Comments are closed.