Google will turn to nuclear energy for powering its data centers. This may come as something of a surprise because nuclear power is not commonly associated with companies that are famous for search engines and cloud services. The reason for this interest lies in the gigantic amounts of energy required by AI technology. A lot of electricity is used in self-driving cars, virtual assistants, and more. Google has teamed up with a company called Kairos Power to utilize small nuclear reactors to meet the demand.

Google signed a deal with Kairos Power to begin using small nuclear reactors to power its AI data centers. The first reactor, under the plan, will come on stream by 2030, and more reactors would be going live by 2035. How much that is going to cost and where the reactors are going to sit remains unknown for now, but this deal marks a wide shift in how the energy game gets thought about by tech companies.

Unlike the huge reactors you’re familiar with, the small reactors that Kairos Power is developing use a different kind of coolant, called molten fluoride salt instead of the ordinary water. So, it is safer and more efficient.

Why Nuclear Power?

You might wonder, why is Google embracing nuclear power? Well, it’s nearly carbon-free. This means that it does not release harmful carbon dioxide in the air, unlike a power plant from coal or gas. The other significant advantage is that nuclear power can be provided 24/7, unlike solar or wind power, which follow the movements of the sun or the wind. As AI technology spreads further into more lines of service and use, the demand for electricity that runs constantly and unceasingly is escalating exponentially.

Google’s head of energy and climate policy, Michael Terrell, said the grid will need new sources of energy if AI’s power appetite continues to grow. “This agreement helps accelerate a new technology to meet energy needs cleanly and reliably and unlock the full potential of AI for everyone,” he said.
Future Solution

This deal, for example, is a significant step forward for the company, demonstrating to the world that the small nuclear reactors might help fulfill the energy needed for the future. According to Jeff Olson, executive at Kairos Power, this collaboration with Google will enable it to prove that advanced nuclear energy can be a key solution in reducing carbon emissions and even decarbonizing power grids.

The US government is also backing this move into nuclear energy. For example, just last year, U.S. regulators had approved permission for Kairos Power to begin the construction of a new type of nuclear reactor after nearly five decades. They have already begun constructing a demonstration reactor in Tennessee on how these reactors can safely and efficiently produce power.

Nuclear Power in the Tech Industry

Google is certainly not alone in the latter regard. Microsoft and Amazon, among others of the industry giants, buy nuclear power to fuel rising dozens of data centers devoted to processing such information. Data centers house vast arrays of computers used for the storage, processing, and management of information. It takes an enormous amount of electricity to run one. They also produce an enormous amount of heat, requiring power to cool.

Industry editors such as John Moore pointed out that AI data centers use much more energy than even a recommended amount, primarily because of their usage of special hardware. All that might be packed into such specialized hardware is highly powerful; on the other hand, it generates a lot of heat and needs additional energy to keep cool.

The tech sector is making a great effort to find clean sources of energy because it will only consume more and more energy in the future. “According to report from Goldman Sachs, data centers already take up worldwide energy consumption and is expected to more than double by the end of this decade,” according to the company representative. This is the reason why companies like Google look into alternative sources of energy and increase supply while simultaneously reducing their carbon footprint in the process.

A Growing Trend

Recently, the U.S. along with several other countries announced plans to triple nuclear energy capacity by 2050 during the United Nations Climate Change Conference. This shows that not only is nuclear energy getting attention in the tech world but also at the global level. Countries are looking for ways out from those fossil fuels like coal and oil that create climate change. Nuclear energy, as nearly a carbon-free fuel source, is part of the solution.

Not everyone is in favour of nuclear power, though. Some people argue that nuclear energy has its downsides: the danger of accidents or the production of long-lasting radioactive waste. But tech companies are ready to embrace nuclear power as clean and reliable energy.

What’s next for Google?

Of course, Google’s recent partnership with Kairos Power is but one illustration of the tech industry’s desire to look to nuclear power for the future. Microsoft recently reached an agreement to resume operations at the Three Mile Island energy plant, once home to America’s worst nuclear accident in 1979. Meanwhile, just last week Amazon unveiled plans to purchase a nuclear-powered data center in Pennsylvania.

By embracing nuclear, Google and other tech giants are insuring their energy future but also going the right way to contribute less to carbon emissions. “Google and Kairos power is a huge milestone in tech embracing nuclear,” Somnath Kansabanik, an analyst with Rystad Energy, said.

The future of AI and technology increasingly looks to be tied up with this clean, reliable, and powerful source of energy as Google and other companies continue investing in nuclear power.