Energy Innovation in the US Buildings Sector: Setting the Stage and Mapping the Future: Article No. 102137

The United States (US) energy system is undergoing rapid change, spurred by improvements in technology cost and performance, new sources of load growth, and the implementation of federal, state, and local plans to meet economic and environmental goals. On the demand side of energy, electricity sales are accelerating after years of stagnation due to the emergence of new data center loads, new domestic manufacturing, and electrification of building and transportation services. On the supply side, new power generation capacity is overwhelmingly being met by variable renewable sources-primarily solar, wind, and battery storage-with generation from renewable sources surpassing that of coal-fired plants, while natural gas remains the largest overall source of generation.1 Taken together, these recent developments suggest a dynamic and uncertain outlook for the energy system across the coming decades.