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injections from DERs and distributed generation customers. Blockchain can
help to increase fidelity and control of utility data, which can help settle and
secure bulk energy system transactions as well as to negotiate future
contracts.

12.10 CONCLUSION AND FUTURE RESEARCH

AI blockchain enabled distributed autonomous energy organizations may
help to increase the energy efficiency, cyber security, and resilience of the
electricity infrastructure. These are timely goals as we modernize the US
power grid—a complex system of systems that requires secure and reliable
communications and a more trustworthy global supply chain. While block-
chain, AI, and IoT are creating a buzz right now, many challenges remain to
be overcome to realize the full potential of these innovative technological
solutions. A lot of news and media coverage of blockchain today falsely sug-
gests that it is a panacea for all that ails us—climate change, cyber security,
and volatile financial systems. There is similar hysteria around AI, with arti-
cles suggesting that the robots are coming, and that AI will take all of our
jobs. While these new technologies are disruptive in their own way and cre-
ate some exciting new opportunities, many challenges remain. Several fun-
damental policy, regulatory, and scientific challenges exist before blockchain
realizes its full disruptive potential.
Future research should continue to explore the challenges related to
blockchain and distributed ledger technology. Applying AI blockchain to
modernizing the electricity infrastructure also requires speed, agility, and
affordable technology. AI-enhanced algorithms are expensive and often
require prodigious data sets that must be broken down into a code that
makes sense. However, a lot of noise (distracting data) is being collected
and exchanged in the electricity infrastructure, making it difficult to identify
cyber anomalies. When there is a lot of disparate data being exchanged at
subzero-second speeds, it is difficult to determine the cause of the anomaly,
such as a software glitch, cyber-attack, weather event, or hybrid cyber-
physical event. It can be very difficult to determine what normal looks like
and set the accurate baseline that is needed to detect anomalies. Developing
an AI blockchain–enhanced grid requires that the data be broken into
observable patterns, which is very challenging from a cyber perspective
when threats are complex, nonlinear, and evolving.
Applying blockchain to modernizing and securing the electricity infra-
structure presents several cyber-security challenges that should be further