Overview
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory created the Next Generation Data Centers Institute as an internal hub uniting energy, high‑performance computing, cybersecurity, and grid capabilities to ready forthcoming Discovery and Lux systems.
- NGDCI defined six research priorities: thermal management, power system architecture, grid integration, security, integrated systems modeling, and operational load management.
- ORNL warns electricity needs for AI facilities could double or triple over the next decade, while Electric Power Research Institute analysis cited in coverage projects data centers could reach up to 17% of U.S. power use by 2030.
- Chipmakers and suppliers including AMD, Nvidia, Carrier Energy, and Chemours publicly welcomed the effort, with AMD’s Forrest Norrod highlighting challenges at the intersection of compute, power, and the grid.
- Research will target efficiency gains in cooling—which ORNL estimates accounts for 40–60% of data center energy—along with improved power delivery using direct‑current distribution and new power electronics.