Can we recall what the news headlines from the fall of 2021 were? Can we even remember them? Here are a few from then:

• The US military withdrew from Afghanistan.
• Former secretary of state Colin Powell passed away.
• The Milwaukee Bucks had won their first NBA title in 50 years over the summer.
• The Atlanta Braves were on their way to winning the World Series over the Houston Astros in four games to two.
• “Bad Habits” by Ed Sheeran was dominating radio play.

A lot changes in five years. Data center owners and end users are experiencing a very similar phenomenon but this time our industry is at the center of headlines.

Data centers are not the ‘death star’

Some of today’s news media topics for data centers include “not in my backyard”, the potential of rising electricity rates, fear of water scarcity, lack of available power, reliability of electrical grid infrastructure, noisy data centers, noisy generators, mass societal unemployment and the potential end of humanity as we know it.

Data center end users today face unprecedented shifts from 5 years ago in community acceptance, permitting requirements, resource allocation and doses of misinformation along the way. These factors are driving changes in design priorities, client expectations, and ongoing operational requirements.

Industry advocacy – may the force be with us

In these articles, I typically write about practical, ground-level design and engineering topics that can be useful tools for our data center end users and their project team members to implement into their systems. Technologies and strategies already exist that can address the following key design priorities and contribute to long-term sustainable operation, including:

• Reduced water usage for closed-loop systems.
• Liquid cooled AI systems with energy and water efficient cooling equipment.
• Sustainable, behind-the-meter, onsite power generation solutions.
• Electrical generation, backup, and distribution system solutions.
• Integrated high-density rack infrastructure solutions.

All of these are highly useful and will lend to addressing legitimate concerns in the design and permitting process for newly built data centers. But I perceive our industry is at an inflection point.

As an industry, we have reached a point in time where we have a responsibility to educate stakeholders with facts, engineering data, and transparent analysis while working to eradicate misinformation about the long-term societal impacts of data centers. We can’t simply respond to criticism after it arises; we need to help educate and be part of the conversation.

Electrical equipment manufacturers, industry partners, system designers, cooling equipment manufacturers, IT providers, clean energy onsite generation providers and all players involved can provide engineering-level system analyses clearly demonstrating system efficiencies, long-term sustainability, and thoughtful consumption of natural resources.

Our engineering staff, application engineers and technical application experts are available to provide detailed, meaningful analyses that address general stakeholder concerns. Additionally, as an industry, we can work to highlight the benefits and advances that large language models and AI are beginning to provide.

A recent book that I am recommending is AI for good – how real people are using Artificial Intelligence to fix things that matter by Josh Tyrangiel. I used to joke in our organization that we aren’t launching space shuttles or saving lives around here in what we do day to day. I might have to challenge that age-old assumption.

Much of the conversation around AI today focuses on its energy, water and infrastructure impacts, but there is another side of the story. AI has the potential to produce societal benefits that aren't always visible when the conversation focuses exclusively on those impacts.

A large language model somewhere might be crunching through human genome sequences and data sets to help find cures for a myriad of diseases, cancers and other human afflictions that, to date, have not had a cure. On the other end of the spectrum, if AI can help organize data and system processes so your and my experience at the DOT/DMV is markedly improved, I’ll take that win as well.

Closing perspective - ain’t no party like an Ewok party

The Ewok party at the end of Return of the Jedi is loaded with themes of conflict resolved and a new chapter beginning. The Luke and Leia brother-sister thing is finally figured out, thankfully for Han Solo. Luke also gets some closure with Darth Vader, with Anakin reappearing alongside Obi-Wan and Yoda.

So where does the road of public debate and acceptance around data centers and AI lead us? While today’s media often focuses on fear and potential societal-level doom, I prefer to find the good in humanity and our ability to move forward as a society over the long term.

We have an opportunity as an industry to address the concerns being raised with facts, transparency and sound engineering while also demonstrating the tremendous potential of technology to solve problems, improve lives and create a better future. The path forward won’t always be simple, but I believe we have the knowledge, technology, and people to address these challenges and continue moving the industry forward.

Who knew Luke Skywalker and Yoda would be helping us build AI data centers?

At Data Power Technology Group, we partner with data center stakeholders to deliver scalable, high-performance infrastructure solutions that keep pace with accelerating demand. If you would like to continue the conversation, I welcome you to reach out to me directly at [email protected]