How 6G and AI Can Reshape the Future of Electric Systems

Electric systems are transitioning to higher utilization of renewable and distributed energy resources, propelled by the quick progress of the underlying information technology. The latter empowered smart grids, enabling communities to establish their own energy provisioning systems. Remarkably, even more disruptive technological impact on the energy sector is expected due to the upcoming 6G paradigm and disruptive advancements in artificial intelligence (AI). 6G supersedes its successor, 5G, in the sense that it goes far beyond being just a communication network. 6G is envisioned to be a fabric that empowers almost every aspect of the future smart society by bringing together AI, edge computing, distributed trust, and 99.99999% reliable communication with a delay on the order of microseconds. In this paper, we conceptualize the future development of electric power systems in the advent of the 6G introduction. We show that 6G will have the potential for a transformative effect not only on most aspects of energy production and distribution but also on societal aspects. The technological paradigm of 6G will drive energy systems' evolution towards self-sustainability, meaning that they will optimize, heal, govern, and, eventu-ally, develop themselves to meet the needs of society, better achieving the target key performance and value indicators. For such systems, we will define a conceptual architecture, review both existing and future enabling technologies, and identify key challenges. Importantly, we pinpoint the social interaction challenges hindering the emergence of energy prosumer commu-nities and present the new approach of empowering distributed autonomous organizations with AI that will facilitate the process of self-organization, -governance, and -regulation.