The SMR Gamble: Betting on Nuclear to Fuel the Data Center Boom
by Sonal Patel at powermag.com
Data center power demand is accelerating, pushing the grid to its limits and prompting tech giants to bet on next-generation nuclear reactors. But given steep costs, regulatory hurdles, and uncertain scalability, is nuclear the future of data center energy—or just another high-stakes gamble?
Trump’s NRC chair takes center stage for nuclear’s star turn
By Francisco "A.J." Camacho | 01/22/2025 06:33 AM EST
David Wright, the new chair of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, inherits a pivotal moment for the nuclear industry, which is navigating an era of advanced reactor development and grappling with long-standing challenges like waste management.
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“A lot of people thought … the renaissance was coming a few years back and didn’t quite materialize,” he said at a 2023 meeting of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners. “But I believe this one’s going to be real.”
11 Big Wins for Nuclear Energy in 2024
The biggest wins for the U.S. nuclear sector.
December 31, 2024
8 minute readDid nuclear power just have its best year ever?
From welcoming a new reactor online for a second straight year to seeing two retired units pursuing historic restarts, nuclear power is definitely making a comeback in the United States.
Here are 11 BIG wins in 2024 that the U.S. nuclear sector can build upon in the new year.
This startup is getting closer to bringing next-generation nuclear to the grid
Kairos Power signed a big deal with a tech giant and got approval to build its next test facility.
This article is from The Spark, MIT Technology Review’s weekly climate newsletter.
This is a busy time of year for all of us, and that’s certainly true in the advanced nuclear industry.
MIT Technology Review released our list of 15 Climate Tech Companies to Watch less than two months ago. Since then, awardee Kairos Power has had three big announcements about its progress toward building next-generation nuclear reactors.
Last week, the company (Kairos) announced it received a construction permit for the next iteration of its system, Hermes 2. This plant will share a location with Hermes, and it will include the infrastructure to transform heat to electricity. That makes it the first electricity-producing next-generation nuclear plant to get this approval in the US.
Click here to read the entire article at MIT Technology Review
We've recently added two dynamic individuals to our SCGI advisory group: Van Snyder and Robert Hargraves. Both of them have been producing thought-provoking articles on energy systems—particularly nuclear power—for years. And both have recently published books on the subject.
A world of good
By Dr. Robert Hargraves
Amazon, Google, and Microsoft just committed billions of dollars to power their data centers with ample, reliable electricity from nuclear power. These competitors realize they must provide more energy-intensive computing for artificial intelligence and information search services. Each, with over $100 billion cash on hand, can afford whatever it costs in this competition. Will this make nuclear power globally affordable?
Beyond such services industries, energy is an essential component of the $40 trillion global production sector — agriculture, industry and manufacturing. These activities have achieved low costs through decades of improvements in uses and costs of energy from burning fossil fuels. People in rich nations benefit from the inexpensive food, affordable transportation, and powerful smartphones.
Only LOW COST nuclear power will impact our future.
- Spent fuel isn't nuclear waste
- Amazon signs agreements for innovative nuclear energy projects to address growing energy demands
- Google Bets Big on Nuclear: Inks Deal with Kairos Power for 500-MW SMR Fleet to Power Data Centers
- Nuclear Resurgence
- 14 Major Global Banks and Financial Institutions Express Their Support for Effort to Triple Nuclear Energy by 2050
- Why we need Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant
- Desperate for power, AI hosts turn to nuclear industry
- Federal push to add nuclear power begins
- Bill Gates says nuclear power is the only way to fully decarbonize grids
- How a nuclear bill became this Congress’ first big energy win
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