Show Notes
As demand for data center power skyrockets, available options to provide that power have dwindled. And cohesive frameworks for finding sustainable generation remain few and far between.
In this episode, Shayle speaks with Jake Elder, senior vice president of research and innovation at Energy Impact Partners. The two colleagues dig into the four main generation solutions — on grid, off grid, on edge, and off planet – and consider the viability of each in the years to come.
Shayle and Jake explore topics like:
A ten year forecast: Jake’s prediction for how the global "compute pie" will get split up between these four pathways
Jake’s skepticism around whether a shift towards on-device compute can scale effectively
The worsening bottleneck facing on-grid connection
Building “shock absorbers” into the infrastructure of off-grid data centers that enable them to maintain “five nines[a][b][c]” of reliability
The feasibility of making orbital data centers affordable
The logistics behind creating radiators “the size of a small town” to dissipate heat from orbital data centers
Resources:
Catalyst: PJM and ERCOT are navigating a capacity rollercoaster
Catalyst: Will inference move to the edge?
Catalyst: Who benefits from the AI power bottleneck?
Open Circuit: Are investors losing faith in the AI infrastructure frenzy?
Open Circuit: The White House AI power pledge: Political theater or policy?
Latitude Media: The data center boom is a diesel generator boom
Latitude Media: How Hitachi became a speed-to-power company
Credits: Hosted by Shayle Kann. Produced and edited by Max Savage Levenson, Anne Bailey, and Sean Marquand. Original music and engineering by Sean Marquand. Stephen Lacey is our executive editor.
Catalyst is brought to you by Uplight. Uplight activates energy customers and their connected devices to generate, shift, and save energy—improving grid resilience and energy affordability while accelerating decarbonization. Learn how Uplight is helping utilities unlock flexible load at scale at uplight.com.
Catalyst is brought to you by Antenna Group, the public relations and strategic marketing agency of choice for climate, energy, and infrastructure leaders. If you're a startup, investor, or global corporation that's looking to tell your climate story, demonstrate your impact, or accelerate your growth, Antenna Group's team of industry insiders is ready to help. Learn more at antennagroup.com.
Catalyst is brought to you by EnergyHub. EnergyHub helps utilities build next-generation virtual power plants that unlock reliable flexibility at every level of the grid. See how EnergyHub helps unlock the power of flexibility at scale, and deliver more value through cross-DER dispatch with their leading Edge DERMS platform, by visiting energyhub.com.
More from Catalyst with Shayle Kann
As data center-driven load growth continues to rise, hyperscalers are turning to natural gas – both in front of and behind the meter — to secure power. But whether the natural gas pipeline system has the bandwidth to support this surging demand remains far from certain.
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It’s been a wild few years for grid-scale batteries in Texas. At the start of the decade, the Lone Star State was home to roughly 200 megawatts of battery capacity. Today, that number has skyrocketed to seventeen gigawatts…with at least five more gigawatts expected to come online by the end of 2026.
This is a partner episode, brought to you by Bloom Energy.
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