The explosive intensity (dare I say ‘panic installation’?) of data centers has had me scratching my head.
On the one hand, it’s possible that there’s a benign explanation, but the near-complete lack of business justifications leaves me with the uncomfortable conclusion that it’s all about something other than free-market capitalism.
On the other hand, it seems likely that there’s a hidden explanation for the massive buildouts that are happening so fast that the limiting factors are water for chilling and electricity.
On that last front, we puzzle over the energy secretary suddenly throwing down for small modular nuclear reactors because, you know, AI needs them!
So I have to ask; are we using AI or is AI using us? (more…)
