This month Cleantech Council and Telecom Council invite non-members to join their Innovation Review on Green Data Centers. AI is a transformative technology that comes with a hefty environmental price: the vast energy consumption of data centers. Corporations, telecoms, investors, and environmentalists are looking to the startup community to come up with solutions. Join us in this joint meeting to brainstorm ideas and meet some of these cutting edge startups.
Silicon Valley, California, September 13, 2024/Meeting Recap/ On September 11, 2024, the Telecom Council and Cleantech Council convened a joint meeting at SRI International in Menlo Park, CA, with approximately 45 attendees. The gathering focused on the critical topic of Greener Datacenters and Sustainability, emphasizing the intersection of the telecom and clean energy sectors. Key contributors to the day’s agenda included Nino Lazariia (Policy & Innovation Lead, STP Consulting) who gave a great kick-off market overview. A panel discussion on the Impact of AI on the Data Center was led by Derek DiGiacomo (Senior Director, Energy Management Programs & Business Continuity, SCTE), Savitha Sridharan (CEO and Founder, Orora Global), and Bob Thronson (VP Marketing & Business Development, Vigilent).
The meeting underscored the growing importance of sustainable data centers in an era of escalating data demands driven by AI, crypto, 5G, and IoT. AI, while transformative, is dramatically increasing the share of total national energy used by data centers, demanding innovative solutions to mitigate environmental impacts. Cooling innovations, particularly immersion cooling, are promising, but the sheer scale of growing demand necessitates further action. The meeting highlighted the need for data centers to relocate closer to renewable energy sources and abundant water. Moreover, it emphasized Mr. DiGiacomo’s concept of "Click to chip thinking", encouraging corporations and individuals to consider the environmental cost of AI usage.
As ever, our meeting featured our trademark Raid Fire presentations, where startups and scaleups had a brief window to present the best parts of their solutions, all in order to stimulate and find interest from the audience. That initial spark of interest is the source of important deals a few months into the future. In these pitches, the innovators addressed topics such as:
The startup presentations were well-received, sparking productive business engagements during breaks and lunch. The meeting successfully brought together key players from both sectors, driving progress toward a greener, more sustainable digital future. Although we left aware that the challenge at hand is growing so fast, it’s outpacing the solutions at hand today. Nevertheless, these solutions can drastically improve our sustainability right now. In fact, as the total energy consumed by datacenters grows, every 10%, or 50% reduction has a greater and greater value.
We extend our gratitude to SRI International for hosting this event, and to all the presenters and panelists for sharing their valuable insights. All presentations will be available in the Telecom Council and Cleantech Council's Member Library.