As utilities and grid operators face rising demand, extreme weather, aging infrastructure, and growing affordability pressures, distributed energy resources are moving from the margins of the grid to the center of reliability planning. This panel will explore how customer-sited technologies - including batteries, smart thermostats, backup generators, microgrids, rooftop solar, and flexible load - can be aggregated and operated as dependable grid assets.

Panelists will discuss what it takes to scale virtual power plants and other DER programs, including utility partnerships, market design, customer enrollment, dispatch performance, interconnection, data visibility, and compensation. The conversation will highlight practical lessons from states and utilities that are moving from pilots to implementation, with a focus on how DERs can help improve reliability, reduce peak demand, support resilience during emergencies, and lower costs for customers.