May The Fourth. Be with you. (Yes, I still have never watched Star Wars)
Everyone Loves Data Centers. At least they used to and I am guessing it’s much more nuanced now. I think that most people like using their AI but consumer use of AI isn’t really what is driving the need for the amount of compute we are seeing in the gold rush of building data centers. The problem that you’re seeing is that energy use is through the roof, construction is bother neighbors and inflation of energy prices can be tied back to their build outs. That’s why you’re seeing some moratoriums, community opposition and some political angst about how to communicate this growth.
Profits Of Powering Them. No big point to make here except that I found the headline regarding First Solar’s quarter (positive) and the AI Nuclear failure (negative) to be a sharp contrast when you think about how all of this new power will get to the data centers.
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- Politico: Data centers used to be a prize. States are having second thoughts.
- UTility Dive: Southern Co. electricity sales soar on 42% data center growth
- PV-Magazine: First Solar reaffirms 2026 guidance as CuRe launch and record India sales drive Q1 margin expansion
- Bloomberg: Nuclear AI Startup Fermi Promised Land and Ample Power. But It Couldn’t Sign a Single Client
- Axios: Exclusive: Energy deal shaped by rising demand and costs
- PV-Tech: Tata Power targets 10GW ingot-wafer capacity with US$685 million investment
- Energy Storage News: Data centres’ speed-to-power need driving US LDES commercialisation
- Canary Media: Used EVs are on the upswing in America
Opinion
Best, Yann