Google is to depend on small nuclear power plants to meet the increasing energy requirements to power its Artificial Intelligence centers. The company signed a contract with US-based Kairos Power, a nuclear reactor developing company. The reactor is supposed to come into effect by 2030.
The tech tycoon, Google signed the world’s first corporate agreement to purchase nuclear energy with Kairos Power. The mission is to exploit the full potential of Artificial Intelligence without worrying about the limited energy supply.
The contract was signed on October 14, 2024, marking a new era of technological exploration, however, the plan still has to be approved by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission as well as local regulatory bodies to get processed. The first reactor is expected to operate by 2030, and the expansion tends to occur by 2035.
To power the data centers that drive AI, large volts of electricity are required, making IT companies depend on nuclear energy. The carbon-free nuclear energy provides electricity 24 hours a day as well as cuts emissions, making it one of the most dependent forms of energy, especially by tech companies. According to Goldman Sachs, the power consumption by data centers will see exponential growth by the end of the decade.
Kairos Power got the first permit to build a nuclear reactor in 2023. They follow a mechanism similar to traditional nuclear plants where molten fluoride salts are used as coolant. The small power plants designed aim to reduce the cost and eliminate the chances of delay generally experienced while building bigger plants.
According to a statement from Google, the deal offers up to 500 MV of carbon-free electricity to US power grids. ‘The deal with Google commercializes the prospects of our projects and demonstrates a feasible solution for decarbonizing power grids’ said Jeff Olson, a Kairos executive.
The location of the plant and the financial expenditures have not been disclosed by Google yet, however, according to reports a demonstration reactor is being built in Tennace which is supposed to be completed by 2027.
The contract unlocks the gate to increased commercial expansion and inclination to nuclear energy. The boost in power demand to meet the AI necessities made tech firms depend on Nuclear energy.
Before Google, Microsoft signed a deal to generate nuclear energy from America’s Three Mile Island to meet the requirements of their AI centers. The plan is worth $1.6 billion and is likely to start by 2028. Amazon also purchased a nuclear-powered data center from a power producer company called Talen Energy, for a worth of $650 million.
Google hopes the contract promotes a low-carbon, reliable, and clean power supply to their data centers. The deal is subjected to regulatory permits. However, the higher cost required to set up nuclear power plants and their feasibility is a matter of apprehension, many critics argue that small nuclear reactors may not be able to achieve the same production as that of large reactors. In addition, the non-degenerating nuclear wastes still have no final repository is a concern for many social activists.
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