Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s Post

Nine months ago, Sarah Sclarsic and Sierra Peterson and I set out to write a bit about data center power demand (and its discontents in the age of cloud computing and AI). Those discontents are louder now than they have been in two decades, or maybe ever, and for good reason. Energy is data, and data is energy, and we will need intensive planning and intensive innovation to square the growth in both in the next decades. The Voyager Ventures essay we wrote is called "Decarbonizing Data". I think it holds up well today. https://lnkd.in/errHB4JP

It's great to see the exciting partnership between PNNL (Pacific Northwest National Laboratory) and Microsoft to advance energy storage technology. This collaboration brings together PNNL's expertise in materials science, engineering, and computational analysis with Microsoft's cutting-edge data analytics and cloud computing capabilities. This partnership represents a significant step towards addressing the pressing need for efficient and cost-effective energy storage solutions. By leveraging PNNL's deep understanding of materials and Microsoft's advanced analytics and machine learning tools, this collaboration has the potential to unlock new opportunities for renewable energy integration and grid stability. The research and development efforts resulting from this partnership are expected to have a lasting impact on the energy industry and contribute to a cleaner, more resilient energy infrastructure. #EnergyInnovation #Sustainability #RenewableEnergy

Microsoft made the biggest investment to date in France to accelerate the adoption of AI Microsoft announced its largest investment in France to date during the Choose France summit, committing 4 billion euros to cloud and AI infrastructure, skilling initiatives, and support for French startups. The investment aims to train 1 million people and assist 2,500 AI startups by 2027, aligning with France's National Strategy for AI and the French Commission for Artificial Intelligence's recommendations. The investment includes expanding Microsoft's cloud and AI infrastructure across France, focusing on the Grand Est Region, and investing in renewable energy. Additionally, Microsoft plans to support skilling initiatives for 1 million French citizens and accelerate 2,500 French startups through its GenAI Studio program. Likewise in Malaysia, they announced their commitment of USD2.2 billion and skilling initiatives for 200,000 Malaysians (govt upped it to 300,000). I suppose the key beneficiaries will be a) the governments who look good bringing in big, high profile FDIs b) Microsoft of course c) the vendors and contractors for the data farms, server infra etc. and d) Telcos, tech players and corporates who will have access to more capacity at hopefully lower prices. I do wonder what will happen to the thousands or millions who's jobs will be displaced or replaced with AI - what will they be re-skilled / upskilled to and what portion of these high impact investments will be allocated to education on a broad level.

Microsoft to deploy 20,000 GPUs in #Sweden. Company to #invest in expanding Swedish #datacenter capacity. Microsoft is to invest billions of dollars into AI #infrastructure in Sweden. The company this week announced it would invest 33.7 billion kronor ($3.2 billion) over two years in cloud and #artificialintelligence infrastructure in Sweden. The company will expand its three data centers in Sweden and train 250,000 people by 2027 to boost AI skills. #Microsoft said it will place more than 20,000 graphic processing units (GPUs) at its data centers in Sandviken, Gävle, and Staffanstorp. Further details weren't disclosed. "Microsoft's largest investment in our history in Sweden" would enable the Scandinavian country "to build world-leading AI data center infrastructure," the company's president and vice chair Brad Smith said at a press conference with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson. "A big part of the reason we're able to do this is because of Sweden's forward-looking #energy policy, the plentiful access to #green energy, whether it's carbon-free energy or #renewable energy," Smith said. Microsoft opened its Sweden Central Azure cloud region in late 2021. It has deployed a #battery #storage system in lieu of backup generators. Plans to expand the Staffanstorp data center were dropped in 2022, with Microsoft said to be looking for alternative #expansion sites, claiming the site’s permitted capacity would not be enough. The company recently signed a large #carbon capture deal with Stockholm Exergi to remove carbon from an upcoming biomass plant in Sweden. Microsoft has been touring the world of late, announcing major AI investments in the likes of France, Wisconsin, Malaysia, Indonesia, Japan, and others.

Excessive carbon emissions and skyrocketing cloud costs are serious consequences of the demands put on our compute infrastructures. What if you could reduce your cloud compute resource utilization by as much as 30-40% immediately? SimTheory’s technology can help you do just that. Contact us to find out how! Google’s emissions climb nearly 50% in five years due to AI energy demand https://lnkd.in/gD-dS9Cc #cloudwaste #carbonfootprint #optimization

If you’re not at the Dataiku & Amazon Web Services (AWS) Energy Forum talking about how you can use GenAI across the Energy/O&G space - you are missing out! Ping me if you want to hear what all you missed!

The popularity of AI computing is pushing back Google's advancements in its net-zero targets. #Google #GreenhouseGas #Emissions #DataCenter #EnergyDemand #ClimateChange #TechIndustry #Sustainability #EnvironmentalImpact #CarbonFootprint #GreenTech #EnergyEfficiency #RenewableEnergy #TechNews #DataCenterEmissions #SustainableTech #CarbonEmissions #GoogleSustainability #EnergyConsumption #GreenInitiatives #TechResponsibility #EnvironmentalResponsibility #ClimateAction #TechSustainability #tomshardware https://lnkd.in/gYe4gqMi

#AI and #CloudComputing will be pivotal in the energy transition, however the true challenge lies in discovering the true problems and how these digital technologies can solve them Watch DNV - Digital Solutions' latest episode of Decoding the Energy Transition where Kurt Swakhoven and Cathrine Johansen delve into these critical questions. They unravel the role of AI, Cloud Computing, and other digital tools, guiding companies toward a sustainable future. #DNVDecodes #EnergyTransition #TechnologyTrends

#AI and #CloudComputing will be pivotal in the energy transition, however the true challenge lies in discovering the true problems and how these digital technologies can solve them Watch DNV - Digital Solutions' latest episode of Decoding the Energy Transition where Kurt Swakhoven and Cathrine Johansen delve into these critical questions. They unravel the role of AI, Cloud Computing, and other digital tools, guiding companies toward a sustainable future. #DNVDecodes #EnergyTransition #TechnologyTrends