Data centers news and discussion

[weatheriscool]

This right here is why china will win the A.i race. They build things in their own country and because of it rule in tech and industry. America is a dying country because of its people don't.

[firestar464]

I do find that all this "win/lose race" talk overshadows the need for an international agreement to eliminate this unhealthy race dynamic and allow for controlled advances in the field to ensure success in alignment. See AI 2040 (Plan A) for more details.

https://ai-2040.com/?choices=plan-a-root

[firestar464]

Space datacenters proposed by Musk and Bezos ‘catastrophic’ for planet, experts warn

https://www.theguardian.com/science/202 ... lue-origin

[caltrek]

Who Benefits Most from AI Data Centers?
July 23, 2026

Introduction:

(Futurity) As data centers expand across the US, new research reveals that their economic benefits are real but uneven, shaped largely by local economic conditions and geography.

Artificial intelligence is reshaping how businesses operate and driving a historic surge in data center construction across the United States. These sprawling facilities, which can span hundreds of acres, represent one of the largest waves of capital investment in American history.

For communities across the country, this growth hits close to home, and not without controversy. What do data centers actually deliver for the local economies that host them?

New research from Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business Information Technology Management faculty member Daniel Yue and postdoctoral fellow Yiyang Zeng, examines how data center openings affect local jobs, wages, business activity, and electricity prices. Their findings suggest that geography plays a central role in whether communities see meaningful economic gains.

“Enormous amounts of capital are flowing into specific communities, much of it tied to new construction, while rigorous evidence on the local benefits of these facilities has been thin,” Zeng says.

Read more here: https://www.futurity.org/ai-data-cente ... -334102/

[wjfox]

[firestar464]

Not in residential areas please

[Cyber_Rebel]

I do find that all this "win/lose race" talk overshadows the need for an international agreement to eliminate this unhealthy race dynamic and allow for controlled advances in the field to ensure success in alignment. See AI 2040 (Plan A) for more details.

https://ai-2040.com/?choices=plan-a-root

"Plan A" and this entire 2040 scenario in general is fear-based nonsense. No one is saying that alignment isn't an issue, but not to the point of the apocalyptic hyperbole some might frame it as. People who seek to halt advances or development tend to have reasons other than safety in retaining the status quo.

Moratorium on datacenters is also a foolish move, though pairing it with economic incentives/benefits would help in alleviating some pushback.

[firestar464]

I don't think it's "foolish" to want to be more careful, especially as the negative impacts of irresponsible construction have been widely documented.

I'm also not sure how you've come to the conclusion that alignment is not a huge issue, or that the people behind AI 2040 have ulterior motives.

[caltrek]

Five Things to Know as Data Centers Spread Across Rural America
By Juan Vassallo
July 27, 2026

Extract:

(Investigate Midwest)
1. They use enormous amounts of water…
2. Researchers know little about water pollution…
3. Rezoning battles are becoming more common…
4. Most projects are planned for rural areas…
5. AI is expanding faster than regulations.

Read more here: https://investigatemidwest.org/2026/07 ... america/

[firestar464]

[wjfox]

[Lilymoon]

So my understanding they want AI to get smarter but AI can’t get smarter unless they build really big building the bigger the building the smarter AI is? All because they need hundreds and thousands of TB of data’s so they need big warehouse full of billions of hard drives.

So yes China has been investing in automation, surveillance and other more practical uses for AI. They aren't trying to pump ungodly amounts of energy/money into LLM's in the hopes of reaching superintelligence (aka scaling).

Also, kids in China start learning about algorithms and AI detection in school, so they're practically lapping us if this were a race.

What do they want to with this superintelligence?

[wjfox]

Amazon’s new 7.65GW Texas AI data center power plant could become the largest source of CO₂ pollution in the US — custom 35-turbine gas plant authorized to emit 33 million tons of annual greenhouse gases

Published yesterday

A new Amazon data center is set to become the single largest source of environmental pollution in the U.S., according to a New York Times report on August 8. The tech giant — which already operates the most data centers worldwide — is reportedly building a natural gas power plant in Pecos County, Texas, to power its new data center at the same site. According to project permits, the plant would generate up to 7.65 gigawatts of power using 35 natural gas turbines. The new plant — which burns natural gas to generate electricity — has been authorized to release 33 million tons of CO₂ annually, more planet-warming gases than any other power plant in the country, says the NY Times report.

Conversely, Amazon had pledged to achieve net-zero carbon emissions across all its global business operations by 2040. The company made the promise in 2019 when it initiated and co-founded The Climate Pledge — a voluntary coalition of over 700 companies and partners — aimed at addressing its own corporate footprint and rallying global supply chains. However, the company has seen its emissions rise each year for the past several years, something analysts attribute to a spike in data centers to support the AI boom. The company is currently building several additional AI data centers globally, including the one that the new gas plant would power in Texas.

https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-indus ... ouse-gases

[wjfox]

[weatheriscool]

New 'Zero-Impact' Data Center Announced in Italy Promises Clean Processing
Combining an 84MW solar plant and waste heat utilization, it could prove a strong model for future developments.
By Jon Martindale August 14, 2026

A new data center project in Florence, Italy, could provide a blueprint for how other data center developments could be structured, eliminating many of the environmental problems people associate with these enormous compute projects. Promising to be "zero-impact," the large-scale facility is being built alongside renewable energy infrastructure to ensure it doesn't drive enormous greenhouse gas emissions or strain local power supplies.

Data centers are swiftly becoming one of the major installations people would do anything to keep away from. They can lead to skyrocketing power prices, contaminated water sources, and an ever-present droning noise. To help alleviate at least the environmental and utility effects of such a facility, this new one set to be built in Florence is doing so hand in hand with a new renewable energy complex.

IT service provider Comtel is developing the project, and though it hasn't detailed the size of the compute installation, its precise size, or eventual cost, it has shared how the center will be powered. Designed to form part of a new renewable energy complex, the data center will rely on solar panels for power, while waste heat from its servers is set to be siphoned for use in food production elsewhere on the campus.

https://www.extremetech.com/energy/new- ... processing

[firestar464]

This sound promising if it also resolves the noise and infrasound issues.

[firestar464]

The Real Reason Data Center Gas Power Plants Are So Dirty

https://www.wired.com/story/real-reason ... -so-dirty/

[weatheriscool]

Awesome news! Datacenters make our society better and allow us to advance a.i and shop online.

[firestar464]

More on all that by the NYT:

https://periscope.corsfix.com/?https:// ... ginia.html

Again, while Loudoun may have been better positioned to benefit from this than a lot of communities, it cannot be said that the harms posed by these data centers are not present in this county.

The amount of benefit received by this county is hardly the norm, and it is absurd to suggest that this aggressive, environmentally-damaging buildout is beneficial to society because "ai and shopping" (the latter was already a thing prior to the current wave of aggressive expansion).

[weatheriscool]