In Claremont, VoltFox was off and running in 19 weeks.
Meanwhile, global demand was compounding. The International Energy Agency estimated that by 2030, AI model training alone could consume more electricity annually than the entire country of Japan.⁷
Not everyone was cheering.
Environmental groups warned about emissions loopholes and the precedent of allowing unregulated nuclear micro-reactors. Labor unions raised alarms about workplace safety and grid reliability. And incumbent utilities, while outwardly cordial, were already preparing legal challenges. Regulators worried about ratepayer equity—how fixed grid maintenance costs might shift onto rural or low-income customers if high-volume commercial users defected.
But some utilities saw the writing on the transformer.
At a diner in Nashua, Ken Holbrooke, a mid-level strategist at Eversource, stirred his coffee while watching a delivery drone skim the power lines.
“If we can’t beat ’em,” he said, “maybe we build faster under a different name.”
He stared out the window. “It’s like watching your monopoly get eaten by a thousand startups with soldering irons.”
Asked what that might mean in practice, he shrugged. “We’ve got the capital. We’ve got the engineers. Nothing says we can’t play both sides—regulated and rogue.”
Back in Concord, Vose folded HB 672 into his breast pocket and stood by the window. Outside, the clouds had cracked open. Sunlight streaked through the haze and lit the rooftops in copper and gold.
New Hampshire might not save the American grid.
But it was already breaking the silence.
The hum of fluorescent lights carried a new resonance—not failure, but possibility.
And whether that future will scale—or short—may depend on how long the grid can hold its monopoly on trust.
Bibliography
1. Vose, Michael. Interview by Bill Southworth. Concord State House Office, August 2025. Discussed motivations and implications of HB 672.
2. Ayotte, Kelly. “HB 672: Off-Grid Energy Deregulation Bill.” New Hampshire Legislative Records , August 2025. One-page bill that became law, eliminating regulatory barriers for off-grid electricity projects.