Energy Demands Get Three Mile Island Nuclear Site an AI Makeover

“Attention for update!” Tom Carroll calls out.

“Ready!” the half-dozen other people in the room respond. They stop what they’re doing, raise a hand and wait.

Control room at the nuclear plant on Three Mile Island.

Photographers: Andrea Orejarena & Caleb Stein for Bloomberg Businessweek

“Now starting condensate pump Two-Charlie,” Carroll announces. “End of update.” Having told his colleagues what he’s about to do—and not heard back that he shouldn’t—Carroll goes ahead. He twists a black pistol-grip switch on the control panel in front of him. A red indicator light switches on, and then Carroll, a compact man in an oxford shirt, khakis and high-visibility running shoes, turns his attention to the thick sheaf of operating instructions in ...