cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/20016368
Modern AI data centers consume enormous amounts of power, and it looks like they will get even more power-hungry in the coming years as companies like Google, Microsoft, Meta, and OpenAI strive towards artificial general intelligence (AGI). Oracle has already outlined plans to use nuclear power plants for its 1-gigawatt datacenters. It looks like Microsoft plans to do the same as it just inked a deal to restart a nuclear power plant to feed its data centers, reports Bloomberg.
Jesus Christ.
Look, I’m in favor of nuclear power. We have new designs that are much, much safer than the ones that failed back in the 80’s. Even so, we can get a Fukushima event; not world-ending but still pretty terrible.
The thing is, no matter how safe the design, Microsoft and other companies dialed in on greed–especially companies for whom power generation is not their core competency–can be trusted to cut corners until those safe designs become dangerous again.
And Three Mile Island WAS NOT A SAFE DESIGN.
What the fuck are we doing?
So no one reads the articles? The reactor in question was only shut down in 2019 due to economic reasons. Unit 1 had been running fine this entire time, from 1974 to 2019. It will now be run by the energy company that’s been safely running it, it will just devote all generated power to Microsoft.
I did get a chuckle out of this though:
Yeah, it’s been 45 years, I don’t think those folks were waiting around for the place to reopen.
Microsoft is not going to be running the reactor. You didn’t read the article.