A Microsoft-Backed Startup Hitting a Milestone in the Race to the Power of AI
The race for advanced AI models with major technology trends such as meta and openai is scrambling to build new data centers to provide their programs. Now, one Microsoft-backed startup is building an important piece of that puzzle.
Theoretically, one gigawatt can power about 750,000 homes – that’s a lot of power. And getting that much power flowing through these new data centers presents its own challenges. Opelai’s planned centers are expected to host at least 7 gigawatts of computing power, while meta projects aim to add another 6 gigawatts of capacity – even if they don’t end up using it all with AI. This has led AI companies to take extreme measures, even reaching their own nuclear power plants.
The Massachusetts-based veir, which agrees with the Superconducting Power Delivery Solutions Company, announced today that its first generation technology AI racks (star) demo has successfully delivered megawatts of megawatts of success. Superconductors are materials that can conduct electricity with zero energy loss when kept sufficiently cold. Just one megawatt can power about 500 to 1000 homes.
The demo was conducted in a used data center located near Weir’s headquarters in WoBurn, Massachusetts.
“The Power Boundleneck is one big case for the growth of the AI and data center,” Deir CEO Tidel said in a press release. “This exhibition marks a major veir for the industry and the industry, proving that good energy technology can bring high levels of dynamics to the data center environment, while significantly reducing the space and weight required by traditional systems.”
Traditional systems relied on copper or aluminum coils and required high voltages to deliver power. Inefficient and ineffective, they lose energy as heat through electrical resistance, and need more cooling and safety infrastructure to manage that loss.
On the contrary, Veir says that its new technology will be able to transmit power up to 10 times with smaller cables, a foot of power line for smaller voltages of aw 20 times compared to conventional systems.
Earlier this year, Veir raised $75 million in Series B funding, with supporters including Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund, to accelerate commercialization. At that time, Heidel was told Bloomberg That the company’s cables use excellent tapes made of a special material that carries electricity without electrical resistance and is cooled by liquid nitrogen. The system also allows liquid nitrogen to evaporate, adding additional cooling in the same way sweat evaporation cools the human body.
Additionally, new tech is not limited to use in data centers; There may also be good renewable energy services and facilities.
“One of the biggest challenges in the availability of clean energy is that improved infrastructure is needed to bring renewable electricity to Microsoft’s wallet,” said the executive director of Microsoft Climate Innovation. “Veir technology can improve the efficiency and sustainability of energy systems.”
In today’s announcement, Heidel said the Tech is ready to ship, but it remains to be seen how it performs outside of the demo environment.
