Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge
Meta is turning to nuclear energy to power its AI ambitions with the release a request for proposals to partner with nuclear energy developers.
It’s the latest announcement in a string of recent deals Big Tech companies have made to secure nuclear energy for their data centers. Developing new AI tools is an energy-intensive endeavor that risks derailing Silicon Valley’s sustainability goals unless it can find less polluting sources of electricity. Meta now joins Amazon, Microsoft, and Google in efforts to get more nuclear reactors up and running.
That’s much easier said than done. The first all-new nuclear reactor to be built in the US in decades started running in 2023 — seven years overdue and $17 billion over budget. Developers are now designing next-generation technology called small modular reactors (SMRs) that are supposed to make it easier to build and site a project, ostensibly cutting down costs. Those advanced reactors aren’t expected to become commercially viable until the 2030s.
Meta says it’s interested in both SMRs and larger reactors, and is searching for partners…
