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US tech firms pledge at White House to bear costs of energy for datacenters

theguardian.com

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Re: US tech firms pledge at White House to bear costs of energy for datacenters

#131

Post by veryemartguy »

thegreatpeter wrote: post #94
throwaw12 wrote: post #88

> The agreement is meant to help mitigate concerns that big tech’s datacenters are driving up US electricity costs for homes and small businesses Exactly opposite will happen. Reason is, when Big Tech is paying huge amounts of money to contractors to build those power generation facilities and service companies to service it, they will abandon servicing other facilities (remember how Micron dropped consumer RAMs last…

So what’s the solution? No data center? Let the current landscape of power companies operate as is?

[flagged]

Re: US tech firms pledge at White House to bear costs of energy for datacenters

#132

Post by SamuelAdams »

dathinab wrote: post #96

which means nothing because no one believes there are legal consequences if they don't and there are a lot of ways to doge it even if there where a reliable government in place like especially if they do what they have been doing recently (run their own generator, build their own power planes) a lot of this cost is implicit and as such very dogeable. E.g. higher cost for gas power planes for other due to major increa…

Similar to the “carbon neutral by X date” promises, this was common around 2016 or so. Notice how companies have mostly cancelled or redefined those promises several years later, once the issue is out of the limelight.

If it is not legally required, it will not be done.

Re: US tech firms pledge at White House to bear costs of energy for datacenters

#134

Post by randusername »

We are creating the final boss of tragedy of the commons.

I used to think we were progressing up an exciting tech tree. That seems naive now.

Water, land, energy, the soundscape, intellectual property that incentivizes the dissemination of good ideas, digital networks of information and self-expression, perhaps even the economic value of expertise itself are all being sacrificed in the now for promises of utopia in the future.

Precious eggs to give to those promising a utopian omelet, eventually.

Re: US tech firms pledge at White House to bear costs of energy for datacenters

#136

Post by kanddle »

dathinab wrote: post #96

which means nothing because no one believes there are legal consequences if they don't and there are a lot of ways to doge it even if there where a reliable government in place like especially if they do what they have been doing recently (run their own generator, build their own power planes) a lot of this cost is implicit and as such very dogeable. E.g. higher cost for gas power planes for other due to major increa…

There are definitely social consequences if they don't. So far, if you were to look at it, a lot of Not In My Backyard groups have decided to reject data centers within their area because of sound complaints that were never fixed, environmental complaints that were never taken care of, as well as the fact that the electric bill would likely go up.

There's a lot of data centers that are not being built because they're not fixing it. The trend is going to continue. The hate for AI is going to grow. You basically have a lot of people that will vote a lot of people into office to take down all AI progress inside the United States if they don't fix their problems.

It'll be cool to shit on big tech as a politician.

Re: US tech firms pledge at White House to bear costs of energy for datacenters

#138

Post by blitzar »

cucumber3732842 wrote: post #113
dathinab wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The current US government is systematically attacking anything which tries to "reduce the effects of climate change" and claims it's mostly all a scam. So no. But what probably also isn't included but should is environmental damage. Running low quality "temp." gas turbines non stop isn't without filters etc. isn't just bad for the climate, it's a air pollution which can directly affect anyone in it's path with not on…

Look in the mirror. No MBA pencil pusher wants to run an inefficient local turbine. It's just that the timeline and upper cost bound of doing that is less crap than having a "real utility" build more power at "real utility scale" and run you a wire because the latter is subject to all manner of delay and cost overrun. And there's no inherent physical or economic reason for it to be that way. We made it that way. The…

The MBA pencil pusher would pay a billion for 1 unit of electricity if it increased their market cap by a trillion. The margin is so fat and the percieved upside so great that 9 figure signing bonuses have been thrown around.

Of course this will all change, but I doubt we will see tech companies opening power plants anytime soon with their associated balance sheet dragging 1% return on equity.

Re: US tech firms pledge at White House to bear costs of energy for datacenters

#139

Post by blitzar »

nDRDY wrote: post #79
adrianN wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The only realistic way to "bear the cost" of CO2 emissions is paying for getting atmospheric carbon back into the ground. Right now that seems difficult to do at scale. The best way I know is making charcoal and burying it. Offsetting 1kWh needs on the order of 200g of wood turned into charcoal and buried.

Are you suggesting we cut down trees and bury them to save the planet? For me, this idea marks the departure from reason and into crazytown. When our civilisation is excavated in 500 years, they are going to say we were as crazy as all of the others.

my read was ... we should cut down trees, burn them and bury the ashes to save the planet

Re: US tech firms pledge at White House to bear costs of energy for datacenters

#140

Post by mikkupikku »

Propelloni wrote: post #97
throwaw12 wrote: post #88

> The agreement is meant to help mitigate concerns that big tech’s datacenters are driving up US electricity costs for homes and small businesses Exactly opposite will happen. Reason is, when Big Tech is paying huge amounts of money to contractors to build those power generation facilities and service companies to service it, they will abandon servicing other facilities (remember how Micron dropped consumer RAMs last…

LOL, they just introduced QoS into the electricity grid.

Always has been.
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