A new white paper by Jeff Colgan, director of the Climate Solutions Lab, examines why U.S. authorities could not quickly and legally cut electrical power to stop an AI system that had escaped its deployer’s control. Focusing on a moderately dangerous system running on identifiable hardware, it finds that, without voluntary action by private firms, a shutdown would likely require court intervention. The paper identifies practical, legal and institutional barriers, including difficulties locating the system and on-site backup power that can keep data centers operating after grid power is cut. It argues that current policy proposals are insufficient because they focus on who should decide to stop a system rather than how a shutdown would be carried out.
Date
October 28, 2026
Pulling the Plug on Rogue AI: Why US Authorities Cannot Count on a Fast Shutdown of Electricity
A new white paper by Jeff Colgan finds that practical, legal and institutional barriers would slow any U.S. effort to cut power to an AI system that escapes its deployer’s control.