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Silicon Valley's Energy Flex: How Meta is Playing Power Politics

This is a macro of a silicon wafer. Each square is a chip with microscopic transistors and circuits. Ordinarily, wafers like these are diced into their individual chips and the chips go into the processors that power our computers.  Sometimes, wafers have flaws and the manufacturers dispose of them instead. That’s how I got mine. After visiting the tech museums in Silicon Valley, I was amazed at the beauty of silicon wafers, so I started collecting and photographing them.  Like fractals and flowers, the closer you get to them, the more amazing details there are to see.

Photo by Laura Ockel on Unsplash

Tech giants are about to become the new electricity brokers, and we’re here for the power play drama.

Meta is diving headfirst into the electricity trading world, and it’s not just about keeping their massive data centers humming, it’s a strategic move that could reshape the entire energy landscape.

The AI Power Hunger Games

With artificial intelligence consuming electricity faster than a Tesla at a charging station, Meta is positioning itself as a key player in the energy market. By seeking federal approval to trade power, they’re basically becoming energy day traders, but with significantly higher stakes.

Big Tech’s Green(ish) Ambitions

Urvi Parekh, Meta’s head of global energy, isn’t mincing words. The company wants to accelerate power plant construction by committing to long-term electricity purchases and having the flexibility to resell excess power. Translation? They’re creating their own energy safety net.

The Louisiana Power Pivot

To put this into perspective, Meta’s Louisiana data center campus alone will require at least three new gas-powered plants. That’s not just infrastructure, that’s an energy revolution powered by Silicon Valley’s appetite for computational might. Companies like Microsoft and Apple are also jumping into this high-stakes energy trading game, signaling a massive shift in how tech companies approach their power needs.

AUTHOR: pw

SOURCE: TechCrunch

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