The Download: Google DeepMind’s plans for robots, and Eastern Europe’s changing tech sector

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The Download: Google DeepMind’s plans for robots, and Eastern Europe’s changing tech sector

This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology. Gemini Robotics uses Google’s top language model to make robots more useful The news: Google DeepMind has released a new model, Gemini Robotics, that combines its best large language model with robotics. Plugging in the LLM seems to give robots the ability to be more dexterous, work from natural-language commands, and generalize across tasks. All three are things that robots have struggled to do until now.Why it matters: The team hopes their work could usher in an era of robots that are far more useful and require less detailed training for each task. Incorporating LLMs into robotics is part of a growing trend, and this may be the most impressive example yet. Read the full story. —Scott J Mulligan If you’re interested in how researchers are making robots more useful, why not take a look at these stories: + The robot race is fueling a fight for training data. AI is upending the way robots learn, leaving companies and researchers with a need for more data. Read the full story. + It’s becoming easier to train robots with sound, which helps them adapt to tasks and environments where visibility is limited. Read the full story.+ To be more useful, robots need to become lazier. Smarter data processing could make machines more helpful and energy-efficient in the real world. A good way to test this principle is to make robots play soccer.+ Gen AI models aren’t just good for creating pictures—they can be fine-tuned to generate useful robot training data, too. Read the full story. MIT Technology Review Narrated: How the Ukraine-Russia war is reshaping the tech sector in Eastern Europe Startups in Latvia and other nearby countries see the mobilization of Ukraine as a warning and as inspiration. They are now changing consumer products—from scooters to recreational drones—for use on the battlefield. This is our latest story to be turned into a MIT Technology Review Narrated podcast, which we’re publishing each week on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Just navigate to MIT Technology Review Narrated on either platform, and follow us to get all our new content as it’s released. The must-reads I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology. 1 The European Union is pushing back against Donald Trump’s tariffsBy slapping the US with its own levies. (WP $)+ Its measure could affect up to €26bn of American-made goods. (FT $) 2 What does ‘waste’ mean to Elon Musk?DOGE’s crude calculation of what is—and isn’t—valuable doesn’t make sense. (The Atlantic $)+ Musk seems to be testing the limits of Trump’s patience. (FT $)+ He’s admitted he’s struggling to balance his DOGE commitments with his work. (Insider $)+ Can AI help DOGE slash government budgets? It’s complex. (MIT Technology Review) 3 Big Tech is calling for new nuclear power stations With the notable exception of Microsoft. (FT $)+ Interest in nuclear power is surging. Is it enough to build new reactors? (MIT Technology Review) 4 BYD is rapidly gaining on Tesla 🚗It’s undercutting the EV maker in 10 major non-Western markets. (Rest of World)+ Mercedes-Benz is turning its attention to solid-state batteries. (IEEE Spectrum)+ Where it all went wrong for Europe’s EV battery darling. (Bloomberg $)+ BYD is one of MIT Technology Review’s 15 climate tech companies to watch. (MIT Technology Review) 5 Intel’s future is hanging in the balanceShares are down, jobs are being cut, and competition is heating up. (The Guardian) 6 North Korean hackers snuck spyware onto the Google Play app storeThe malicious software can take control of a device’s audio and camera systems. (TechCrunch) 7 Things aren’t looking good for iRobotIts future seems increasingly precarious. (The Verge)+ The company is undergoing a strategic review to see if it can be salvaged. (Bloomberg $)+ A Roomba recorded a woman on the toilet. How did screenshots end up on Facebook? (MIT Technology Review) 8 Spotify has removed Andrew Tate’s misogynistic coursesFollowing complaints from its own employees. (404 Media) 9 An arbitrator has instructed a former Meta employee to stop promoting her new bookThe new memoir details alleged claims of misconduct at the company. (The Verge)10 How to decide where to hunt for alien lifeTop tip: search for the cosmic shoreline. (Quanta Magazine) Quote of the day “The President is basically a car salesman now.” —Democratic strategist Julie Roginsky accuses Donald Trump of acting like a showroom salesman after he urged Americans to buy Tesla electric cars, MSNBC reports. The big story What the future holds for those born today August 2024Happy birthday, baby.You have been born into an era of intelligent machines. They have watched over you almost since your conception. They let your parents listen in on your tiny heartbeat, track your gestation on an app, and post your sonogram on social media. Well before you were born, you were known to the algorithm.Your arrival coincided with the 125th anniversary of this magazine. With a bit of luck and the right genes, you might see the next 125 years. How will you and the next generation of machines grow up together? We asked more than a dozen experts to imagine your future. Read what they prophesied. —Kara Platoni We can still have nice things A place for comfort, fun and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas? Drop me a line or skeet ’em at me.) + These indigenous heavy metal bands are tackling climate change, one devastating riff at a time.+ Eating asparagus raw is a thing, apparently.+ How our culture’s monsters have evolved over time, and what they tell us about ourselves.+ There are few animals more fascinating than the Greenland shark.

This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology.

Gemini Robotics uses Google’s top language model to make robots more useful

The news: Google DeepMind has released a new model, Gemini Robotics, that combines its best large language model with robotics. Plugging in the LLM seems to give robots the ability to be more dexterous, work from natural-language commands, and generalize across tasks. All three are things that robots have struggled to do until now.

Why it matters: The team hopes their work could usher in an era of robots that are far more useful and require less detailed training for each task. Incorporating LLMs into robotics is part of a growing trend, and this may be the most impressive example yet. Read the full story.

—Scott J Mulligan

If you’re interested in how researchers are making robots more useful, why not take a look at these stories:

+ The robot race is fueling a fight for training data. AI is upending the way robots learn, leaving companies and researchers with a need for more data. Read the full story.

+ It’s becoming easier to train robots with sound, which helps them adapt to tasks and environments where visibility is limited. Read the full story.

+ To be more useful, robots need to become lazier. Smarter data processing could make machines more helpful and energy-efficient in the real world. A good way to test this principle is to make robots play soccer.

+ Gen AI models aren’t just good for creating pictures—they can be fine-tuned to generate useful robot training data, too. Read the full story.

MIT Technology Review Narrated: How the Ukraine-Russia war is reshaping the tech sector in Eastern Europe

Startups in Latvia and other nearby countries see the mobilization of Ukraine as a warning and as inspiration. They are now changing consumer products—from scooters to recreational drones—for use on the battlefield.

This is our latest story to be turned into a MIT Technology Review Narrated podcast, which
we’re publishing each week on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Just navigate to MIT Technology Review Narrated on either platform, and follow us to get all our new content as it’s released.

The must-reads

I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology.

1 The European Union is pushing back against Donald Trump’s tariffs
By slapping the US with its own levies. (WP $)
+ Its measure could affect up to €26bn of American-made goods. (FT $)

2 What does ‘waste’ mean to Elon Musk?
DOGE’s crude calculation of what is—and isn’t—valuable doesn’t make sense. (The Atlantic $)
+ Musk seems to be testing the limits of Trump’s patience. (FT $)
+ He’s admitted he’s struggling to balance his DOGE commitments with his work. (Insider $)
+ Can AI help DOGE slash government budgets? It’s complex. (MIT Technology Review)

3 Big Tech is calling for new nuclear power stations
With the notable exception of Microsoft. (FT $)
+ Interest in nuclear power is surging. Is it enough to build new reactors? (MIT Technology Review)

4 BYD is rapidly gaining on Tesla 🚗
It’s undercutting the EV maker in 10 major non-Western markets. (Rest of World)
+ Mercedes-Benz is turning its attention to solid-state batteries. (IEEE Spectrum)
+ Where it all went wrong for Europe’s EV battery darling. (Bloomberg $)
+ BYD is one of MIT Technology Review’s 15 climate tech companies to watch. (MIT Technology Review)

5 Intel’s future is hanging in the balance
Shares are down, jobs are being cut, and competition is heating up. (The Guardian)

6 North Korean hackers snuck spyware onto the Google Play app store
The malicious software can take control of a device’s audio and camera systems. (TechCrunch)

7 Things aren’t looking good for iRobot
Its future seems increasingly precarious. (The Verge)
+ The company is undergoing a strategic review to see if it can be salvaged. (Bloomberg $)
+ A Roomba recorded a woman on the toilet. How did screenshots end up on Facebook? (MIT Technology Review)

8 Spotify has removed Andrew Tate’s misogynistic courses
Following complaints from its own employees. (404 Media)

9 An arbitrator has instructed a former Meta employee to stop promoting her new book
The new memoir details alleged claims of misconduct at the company. (The Verge)

10 How to decide where to hunt for alien life
Top tip: search for the cosmic shoreline. (Quanta Magazine)

Quote of the day

“The President is basically a car salesman now.”

—Democratic strategist Julie Roginsky accuses Donald Trump of acting like a showroom salesman after he urged Americans to buy Tesla electric cars, MSNBC reports.

The big story

What the future holds for those born today

August 2024

Happy birthday, baby.

You have been born into an era of intelligent machines. They have watched over you almost since your conception. They let your parents listen in on your tiny heartbeat, track your gestation on an app, and post your sonogram on social media. Well before you were born, you were known to the algorithm.

Your arrival coincided with the 125th anniversary of this magazine. With a bit of luck and the right genes, you might see the next 125 years. How will you and the next generation of machines grow up together? We asked more than a dozen experts to imagine your future. Read what they prophesied.

—Kara Platoni

We can still have nice things

A place for comfort, fun and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas? Drop me a line or skeet ’em at me.)

+ These indigenous heavy metal bands are tackling climate change, one devastating riff at a time.
+ Eating asparagus raw is a thing, apparently.
+ How our culture’s monsters have evolved over time, and what they tell us about ourselves.
+ There are few animals more fascinating than the Greenland shark.

Stay Ahead

Explore More Insights

Stay ahead with more perspectives on cutting-edge power, infrastructure, energy, bitcoin and AI solutions. Explore these articles to uncover strategies and insights shaping the future of industries.

SUSE expands AI tools to control workloads, LLM usage

“And every few weeks we’ll continue to add to the library,” Puri says. SUSE also announced a partnership with Infosys today. The system integrator has the Topaz AI platform, which includes a set of services and solutions to help enterprises build and deploy AI applications. SUSE is also integrating the

D-Wave uses quantum to solve real-world problem

D-Wave published its results today, peer-reviewed in the journal Science. The classical supercomputer that D-Wave benchmarked against was the Frontier supercomputer at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory. It was, until recently, the most powerful supercomputer in the world but moved to second place in November. Two different

Realizing the Internet of Everything

“Big brother is watching you” is a catchphrase for the risk of large-scale surveillance. We could identify criminals walking on the street with widespread deployment of video, and the same technology could warn us against stepping into traffic. But the same stuff could help people stalk others, spy on people,

Huawei at center of European Parliament bribery investigation

Although Huawei successfully introduced its wares into the heart of the UK’s telecommunications infrastructure, it faced an uphill struggle elsewhere in Europe, where authorities were concerned that it unfairly benefited from preferential financing by the Chinese government. Its effort to win European hearts and minds prompted Huawei to employ more

IRA credits and energy demand continue to drive renewables investments

Dive Brief: The financial case for renewable energy projects is still strong, say industry leaders and analysts, even as President Trump introduces uncertainty into the market with new tariffs, policies that prioritize fossil fuel development, and his pledge to work with Congress to claw back funds from the Inflation Reduction Act. The IRA’s investment tax credit, or ITC, “should survive pretty much unscathed,” said Brad Molotsky, a partner at law firm Duane Harris. In addition, data center growth along with surging building and vehicle electrification will keep electricity demand high, said Paul DeCotis, a senior partner and head of East Coast energy and utilities at West Monroe. “In light of that [demand], politicians on both sides of the aisle agree that we need more power infrastructure, and 95% of the interconnection queue currently is clean energy,” said Crux CEO Alfred Johnson. “That is the fastest to deploy, and in many cases, the most affordable choice for new power.” Dive Insight: Earlier this month, Crux — a finance technology company that connects tax credit buyers and sellers — launched a debt capital marketplace for clean energy developers and manufacturers to more easily access financing. Johnson said he hasn’t yet seen investors or lenders pulling back from the clean energy sector in response to recent uncertainty. “The levelized cost of energy from clean sources is as competitive, or more competitive than others,” he said. “And so companies are making corporate business decisions to solve the needs of more energy demand and the need for domestic components — they’re making those decisions irrespective of any views that they may have, politically or otherwise.” Those decisions require capital, Johnson said, and “we’re seeing more of it flow than we’ve ever seen before.” Lenders in Crux’s network have already issued more than a billion dollars worth

EPA aims to roll back power sector regulations in broad deregulatory push

The Environmental Protect Agency on Wednesday said it would begin a sweeping rollback of environmental regulations, including air, water and waste rules that affect the power sector. “Today is the greatest day of deregulation our nation has seen,” EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in a press release. “We are driving a dagger straight into the heart of the climate change religion to drive down cost of living for American families, unleash American energy [and] bring auto jobs back to the U.S.” Industry observers expected the EPA under the Trump administration would seek to revise regulations affecting the power sector, especially rules that have contributed to making it uneconomic to keep coal-fired power plants operating. Revising or eliminating the rules will require rulemaking processes that can take several years to complete, Capstone said in a client note Wednesday. “With EPA also making significant cuts to its staff, the agency faces serious logistical challenges to releasing final rules that do not run afoul of the [Administrative Procedure Act] in any of these areas,” the research firm said. Litigation would add at least a year to the process of revising the regulations, so some of the planned deregulatory actions would likely not be finished before the next presidential administration begins, Capstone analysts said. Also, many of the power sector-related regulations that could be revised are being litigated in court, extending the timeline for any new regulation to take effect, the analysts noted. However, the EPA said it aims to take interim measures that would reduce regulatory burdens from some of its rules. For example, the agency said it is considering granting a two-year exemption to power plants affected by its mercury and air toxics standards rule while the agency conducts a rulemaking process to revise the regulation. Deregulating the power sector would “substantially” reduce

Renewables cannot scale without oil and gas – Hitachi Energy

Continued collaboration with the oil and gas sector is essential for renewables to scale to meet the UK’s clean power ambitions, according to Hitachi country managing director for UK and Ireland Laura Fleming. In an exclusive interview with Energy Voice, Fleming said the energy transition would not mean an immediate severing of ties with hydrocarbons: “Instead, it’s about evolving and aligning both sectors towards shared decarbonisation goals”. “The oil and gas supply chains are still deeply intertwined with renewables, particularly in areas like offshore wind where the expertise in subsea engineering, logistics and heavy lifting that oil and gas companies have developed is essential,” she said. “The oil and gas industry has been very successful and the renewable industry can still learn a lot how to develop from an emerging industry to a mature industry, this goes for matters related to engineering but also to finance and investment.” In the UK, Hitachi is focused heavily on the wind sector and enabling the movement of electricity from wind farms to where it can find end users. Hitachi provides the connection for Dogger Bank Wind Farm and the Shetland Grid, among others. To that end, Fleming said the main priority for the UK right now is “to ensure that each GW of renewable energy is matched by investment in the grid”. “Growth in grid capacity is the key to unlocking growth in renewables. Grid capacity must move in lockstep with the growth of renewables,” she said. “Investment in grid capacity will allow the UK to capture the enormous growth opportunity from a Net Zero grid. To deliver this, the priority should be on delivering the Transmission Acceleration Action Plan and the Clean Power 2030 Action Plan with rapid unblocking of grid connections that risk holding back renewable energy projects.” Zombie projects Grid congestion

Tidal and the UK supply chain ‘conundrum’

The green energy industry “has yet to crack the conundrum of how to drive investment” to the supply chain – but tidal offers opportunities for UK firms, an Aberdeen event has heard. Developers and suppliers from across the Scottish energy industry gathered at the Granite City’s Chester Hotel on Thursday to discuss the opportunities that the transition to renewables offers. Orbital Marine Power chief financial officer Chris Milne was quick to highlight the local content that went into delivering his firm’s O2 turbine, located off the Orkney coast, which began operating in 2021. He claimed that 80% of the work involved in bringing the asset online came from UK businesses, with the remaining 20% coming from overseas drive train and gearbox manufacturers. However, even these components offer opportunities for businesses – not in manufacturing but in assembly. “One of the things that we wanted to speak to you about today was the opportunity that the technical sector, as an emerging sector in Scotland and the UK, can offer to you all,” Milne told the Renewable Energy Supply Chain Conference. ‘We are yet to crack the conundrum’ The chief executive of host organisation Scottish Renewables, Claire Mack, kicked off proceedings by highlighting the emphasis the current Labour government has placed on green energy and the opportunities that offers for suppliers across the country. Mack added: “None of this is easy, we are yet to crack the conundrum of how to drive investment to you in the supply chain at a point in time early enough to ensure that we are ready to go. “The pipeline of projects, while plentiful, is still not providing certainty or bankable contracts and commitments to allow you to call off and reserve capacity to make firm plans on staffing and training to build capability, or to

Aberdeen’s Peterson Energy Logistics strikes support deal with Spirit Energy

Aberdeen-based Peterson Energy Logistics has been brought on to support Spirit Energy’s operations across the North Sea and East Irish Sea. Under a new contract, Peterson will deliver a range of work to Spirit, including technology, cargo operations, warehousing, quayside services and road transport until end of field life. The company will also provide warehousing and materials management services specifically tailored to meet Spirit Energy’s operational needs at the Barrow Gas Terminal and its offshore operations. Peterson, part of the Netherlands-based Royal Peterson and Control Union (RPCU), will deliver work from its supply bases located at Heysham and Aberdeen. Peterson Energy Logistics joint managing director UK Jason Hendry said: “We are committed to leading the way in sustainable logistics to address environmental targets, enhance operational efficiency and control costs for our customers. “Our extensive experience as an integrated logistics provider with a market-leading suite of software applications enables us to add real value to our customers’ operations.” The two companies have worked together for the past decade, with the new contract building on their partnership. Peterson business manager for Heysham Elaine Dawson added: “As the energy transition progresses, we are proud to work alongside our oil and gas customers to provide flexible, high-quality, and innovative logistics services which lead to efficiencies and improvements.” Peterson has seen growth in its footprint in the renewable energy and nuclear sectors, including at its operations in Edzell and Shetland, where it struck a contract supporting Vestas in the onshore development of the Viking wind farm. The company also won a contract to provide logistics support for RWE’s Sofia offshore wind farm, providing project logistics and the provision of key personnel to support installing the offshore converter platform. Amongst Spirit Energy’s portfolio is the Morecambe Net Zero (MNZ) project, a carbon capture and storage development

USA Crude Oil Inventories Rise 1.4MM Barrels WoW

U.S. commercial crude oil inventories, excluding those in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), increased by 1.4 million barrels from the week ending February 28 to the week ending March 7, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) highlighted in its latest weekly petroleum status report. That report was released on March 12 and included data for the week ending March 7. The report showed that crude oil stocks, not including the SPR, stood at 435.2 million barrels on March 7, 433.8 million barrels on February 28, and 447.0 million barrels on March 8, 2024. Crude oil in the SPR stood at 395.6 million barrels on March 7, 395.3 million barrels on February 28, and 361.6 million barrels on March 8, 2024, the report outlined. Total petroleum stocks – including crude oil, total motor gasoline, fuel ethanol, kerosene type jet fuel, distillate fuel oil, residual fuel oil, propane/propylene, and other oils – stood at 1.594 billion barrels on March 7, the report showed. Total petroleum stocks were down 5.7 million barrels week on week and up 15.2 million barrels year on year, the report revealed. “At 435.2 million barrels, U.S. crude oil inventories are about five percent below the five year average for this time of year,” the EIA said in the report. “Total motor gasoline inventories decreased by 5.7 million barrels from last week and are one percent above the five year average for this time of year. Finished gasoline inventories and blending components inventories both decreased last week,” it added. “Distillate fuel inventories decreased by 1.6 million barrels last week and are about five percent below the five year average for this time of year. Propane/propylene inventories decreased by 3.4 million barrels from last week and are 10 percent below the five year average for this time of year,” it

VergeIO enhances VergeFabric network virtualization offering

VergeIO is not, however, using an off-the-shelf version of KVM. Rather, it is using what Crump referred to as a heavily modified KVM hypervisor base, with significant proprietary enhancements while still maintaining connections to the open-source community. VergeIO’s deployment profile is currently 70% on premises and about 30% via bare-metal service providers, with a particularly strong following among cloud service providers that host applications for their customers. The software requires direct hardware access due to its low-level integration with physical resources. “Since November of 2023, the normal number one customer we’re attracting right now is guys that have had a heart attack when they got their VMware renewal license,” Crump said. “The more of the stack you own, the better our story becomes.” A 2024 report from Data Center Intelligence Group (DCIG) identified VergeOS as one of the top 5 alternatives to VMware. “VergeIO starts by installing VergeOS on bare metal servers,” the report stated. “It then brings the servers’ hardware resources under its management, catalogs these resources, and makes them available to VMs. By directly accessing and managing the server’s hardware resources, it optimizes them in ways other hypervisors often cannot.” Advanced networking features in VergeFabric VergeFabric is the networking component within the VergeOS ecosystem, providing software-defined networking capabilities as an integrated service rather than as a separate virtual machine or application.

Podcast: On the Frontier of Modular Edge AI Data Centers with Flexnode’s Andrew Lindsey

The modular data center industry is undergoing a seismic shift in the age of AI, and few are as deeply embedded in this transformation as Andrew Lindsey, Co-Founder and CEO of Flexnode. In a recent episode of the Data Center Frontier Show podcast, Lindsey joined Editor-in-Chief Matt Vincent and Senior Editor David Chernicoff to discuss the evolution of modular data centers, the growing demand for high-density liquid-cooled solutions, and the industry factors driving this momentum. A Background Rooted in Innovation Lindsey’s career has been defined by the intersection of technology and the built environment. Prior to launching Flexnode, he worked at Alpha Corporation, a top 100 engineering and construction management firm founded by his father in 1979. His early career involved spearheading technology adoption within the firm, with a focus on high-security infrastructure for both government and private clients. Recognizing a massive opportunity in the data center space, Lindsey saw a need for an innovative approach to infrastructure deployment. “The construction industry is relatively uninnovative,” he explained, citing a McKinsey study that ranked construction as the second least-digitized industry—just above fishing and wildlife, which remains deliberately undigitized. Given the billions of square feet of data center infrastructure required in a relatively short timeframe, Lindsey set out to streamline and modernize the process. Founded four years ago, Flexnode delivers modular data centers with a fully integrated approach, handling everything from site selection to design, engineering, manufacturing, deployment, operations, and even end-of-life decommissioning. Their core mission is to provide an “easy button” for high-density computing solutions, including cloud and dedicated GPU infrastructure, allowing faster and more efficient deployment of modular data centers. The Rising Momentum for Modular Data Centers As Vincent noted, Data Center Frontier has closely tracked the increasing traction of modular infrastructure. Lindsey has been at the forefront of this

Last Energy to Deploy 30 Microreactors in Texas for Data Centers

As the demand for data center power surges in Texas, nuclear startup Last Energy has now announced plans to build 30 microreactors in the state’s Haskell County near the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. The reactors will serve a growing customer base of data center operators in the region looking for reliable, carbon-free energy. The plan marks Last Energy’s largest project to date and a significant step in advancing modular nuclear power as a viable solution for high-density computing infrastructure. Meeting the Looming Power Demands of Texas Data Centers Texas is already home to over 340 data centers, with significant expansion underway. Google is increasing its data center footprint in Dallas, while OpenAI’s Stargate has announced plans for a new facility in Abilene, just an hour south of Last Energy’s planned site. The company notes the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area alone is projected to require an additional 43 gigawatts of power in the coming years, far surpassing current grid capacity. To help remediate, Last Energy has secured a 200+ acre site in Haskell County, approximately three and a half hours west of Dallas. The company has also filed for a grid connection with ERCOT, with plans to deliver power via a mix of private wire and grid transmission. Additionally, Last Energy has begun pre-application engagement with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for an Early Site Permit, a key step in securing regulatory approval. According to Last Energy CEO Bret Kugelmass, the company’s modular approach is designed to bring nuclear energy online faster than traditional projects. “Nuclear power is the most effective way to meet Texas’ growing energy demand, but it needs to be deployed faster and at scale,” Kugelmass said. “Our microreactors are designed to be plug-and-play, enabling data center operators to bypass the constraints of an overloaded grid.” Scaling Nuclear for

Data Center Jobs: Engineering and Technician Jobs Available in Major Markets

Each month Data Center Frontier, in partnership with Pkaza, posts some of the hottest data center career opportunities in the market. Here’s a look at some of the latest data center jobs posted on the Data Center Frontier jobs board, powered by Pkaza Critical Facilities Recruiting. Data Center Facility Engineer (Night Shift Available) Ashburn, VAThis position is also available in: Tacoma, WA (Nights), Days/Nights: Needham, MA and New York City, NY. This opportunity is working directly with a leading mission-critical data center developer / wholesaler / colo provider. This firm provides data center solutions custom-fit to the requirements of their client’s mission-critical operational facilities. They provide reliability of mission-critical facilities for many of the world’s largest organizations facilities supporting enterprise clients and hyperscale companies. This opportunity provides a career-growth minded role with exciting projects with leading-edge technology and innovation as well as competitive salaries and benefits. Electrical Commissioning Engineer New Albany, OHThis traveling position is also available in: Somerset, NJ; Boydton, VA; Richmond, VA; Ashburn, VA; Charlotte, NC; Atlanta, GA; Hampton, GA; Fayetteville, GA; Des Moines, IA; San Jose, CA; Portland, OR; St Louis, MO; Phoenix, AZ; Dallas, TX; Chicago, IL; or Toronto, ON. *** ALSO looking for a LEAD EE and ME CxA agents.*** Our client is an engineering design and commissioning company that has a national footprint and specializes in MEP critical facilities design. They provide design, commissioning, consulting and management expertise in the critical facilities space. They have a mindset to provide reliability, energy efficiency, sustainable design and LEED expertise when providing these consulting services for enterprise, colocation and hyperscale companies. This career-growth minded opportunity offers exciting projects with leading-edge technology and innovation as well as competitive salaries and benefits. Switchgear Field Service Technician – Critical Facilities Nationwide TravelThis position is also available in: Charlotte, NC; Atlanta, GA; Dallas,

Amid Shifting Regional Data Center Policies, Iron Mountain and DC Blox Both Expand in Virginia’s Henrico County

The dynamic landscape of data center developments in Maryland and Virginia exemplify the intricate balance between fostering technological growth and addressing community and environmental concerns. Data center developers in this region find themselves both in the crosshairs of groups worried about the environment and other groups looking to drive economic growth. In some cases, the groups are different components of the same organizations, such as local governments. For data center development, meeting the needs of these competing interests often means walking a none-too-stable tightrope. Rapid Government Action Encourages Growth In May 2024, Maryland demonstrated its commitment to attracting data center investments by enacting the Critical Infrastructure Streamlining Act. This legislation provides a clear framework for the use of emergency backup power generation, addressing previous regulatory challenges that a few months earlier had hindered projects like Aligned Data Centers’ proposed 264-megawatt campus in Frederick County, causing Aligned to pull out of the project. However, just days after the Act was signed by the governor, Aligned reiterated its plans to move forward with development in Maryland. With the Quantum Loop and the related data center development making Frederick County a focal point for a balanced approach, the industry is paying careful attention to the pace of development and the relations between developers, communities and the government. In September of 2024, Frederick County Executive Jessica Fitzwater revealed draft legislation that would potentially restrict where in the county data centers could be built. The legislation was based on information found in the Frederick County Data Centers Workgroup’s final report. Those bills would update existing regulations and create a floating zone for Critical Digital Infrastructure and place specific requirements on siting data centers. Statewide, a cautious approach to environmental and community impacts statewide has been deemed important. In January 2025, legislators introduced SB116, a bill

New Reports Show How AI, Power, and Investment Trends Are Reshaping the Data Center Landscape

Today we provide a comprehensive roundup of the latest industry analyst reports from CBRE, PwC, and Synergy Research, offering a data-driven perspective on the state of the North American data center market. To wit, CBRE’s latest findings highlight record-breaking growth in supply, soaring colocation pricing, and mounting power constraints shaping site selection. For its part, PwC’s analysis underscores the sector’s broader economic impact, quantifying its trillion-dollar contribution to GDP, rapid job growth, and surging tax revenues. Meanwhile, the latest industry analysis from Synergy Research details the acceleration of cloud spending, AI’s role in fueling infrastructure demand, and an unprecedented surge in data center mergers and acquisitions. Together, these reports paint a picture of an industry at an inflection point—balancing explosive expansion with evolving challenges in power availability, cost pressures, and infrastructure investment. Let’s examine them. CBRE: Surging Demand Fuels Record Data Center Expansion CBRE says the North American data center sector is scaling at an unprecedented pace, driven by unrelenting demand from artificial intelligence (AI), hyperscale, and cloud service providers. The latest North America Data Center Trends H2 2024 report from CBRE reveals that total supply across primary markets surged by 34% year-over-year to 6,922.6 megawatts (MW), outpacing the 26% growth recorded in 2023. This accelerating expansion has triggered record-breaking construction activity and intensified competition for available capacity. Market Momentum: Scaling Amid Power Constraints According to CBRE, data center construction activity reached historic levels, with 6,350 MW under development at the close of 2024—more than doubling the 3,077.8 MW recorded a year prior. Yet, the report finds the surge in development is being met with significant hurdles, including power constraints and supply chain challenges affecting critical electrical infrastructure. As a result, the vacancy rate across primary markets has plummeted to an all-time low of 1.9%, with only a handful of sites

Microsoft will invest $80B in AI data centers in fiscal 2025

And Microsoft isn’t the only one that is ramping up its investments into AI-enabled data centers. Rival cloud service providers are all investing in either upgrading or opening new data centers to capture a larger chunk of business from developers and users of large language models (LLMs). In a report published in October 2024, Bloomberg Intelligence estimated that demand for generative AI would push Microsoft, AWS, Google, Oracle, Meta, and Apple would between them devote $200 billion to capex in 2025, up from $110 billion in 2023. Microsoft is one of the biggest spenders, followed closely by Google and AWS, Bloomberg Intelligence said. Its estimate of Microsoft’s capital spending on AI, at $62.4 billion for calendar 2025, is lower than Smith’s claim that the company will invest $80 billion in the fiscal year to June 30, 2025. Both figures, though, are way higher than Microsoft’s 2020 capital expenditure of “just” $17.6 billion. The majority of the increased spending is tied to cloud services and the expansion of AI infrastructure needed to provide compute capacity for OpenAI workloads. Separately, last October Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said his company planned total capex spend of $75 billion in 2024 and even more in 2025, with much of it going to AWS, its cloud computing division.

John Deere unveils more autonomous farm machines to address skill labor shortage

Join our daily and weekly newsletters for the latest updates and exclusive content on industry-leading AI coverage. Learn More Self-driving tractors might be the path to self-driving cars. John Deere has revealed a new line of autonomous machines and tech across agriculture, construction and commercial landscaping. The Moline, Illinois-based John Deere has been in business for 187 years, yet it’s been a regular as a non-tech company showing off technology at the big tech trade show in Las Vegas and is back at CES 2025 with more autonomous tractors and other vehicles. This is not something we usually cover, but John Deere has a lot of data that is interesting in the big picture of tech. The message from the company is that there aren’t enough skilled farm laborers to do the work that its customers need. It’s been a challenge for most of the last two decades, said Jahmy Hindman, CTO at John Deere, in a briefing. Much of the tech will come this fall and after that. He noted that the average farmer in the U.S. is over 58 and works 12 to 18 hours a day to grow food for us. And he said the American Farm Bureau Federation estimates there are roughly 2.4 million farm jobs that need to be filled annually; and the agricultural work force continues to shrink. (This is my hint to the anti-immigration crowd). John Deere’s autonomous 9RX Tractor. Farmers can oversee it using an app. While each of these industries experiences their own set of challenges, a commonality across all is skilled labor availability. In construction, about 80% percent of contractors struggle to find skilled labor. And in commercial landscaping, 86% of landscaping business owners can’t find labor to fill open positions, he said. “They have to figure out how to do

2025 playbook for enterprise AI success, from agents to evals

Join our daily and weekly newsletters for the latest updates and exclusive content on industry-leading AI coverage. Learn More 2025 is poised to be a pivotal year for enterprise AI. The past year has seen rapid innovation, and this year will see the same. This has made it more critical than ever to revisit your AI strategy to stay competitive and create value for your customers. From scaling AI agents to optimizing costs, here are the five critical areas enterprises should prioritize for their AI strategy this year. 1. Agents: the next generation of automation AI agents are no longer theoretical. In 2025, they’re indispensable tools for enterprises looking to streamline operations and enhance customer interactions. Unlike traditional software, agents powered by large language models (LLMs) can make nuanced decisions, navigate complex multi-step tasks, and integrate seamlessly with tools and APIs. At the start of 2024, agents were not ready for prime time, making frustrating mistakes like hallucinating URLs. They started getting better as frontier large language models themselves improved. “Let me put it this way,” said Sam Witteveen, cofounder of Red Dragon, a company that develops agents for companies, and that recently reviewed the 48 agents it built last year. “Interestingly, the ones that we built at the start of the year, a lot of those worked way better at the end of the year just because the models got better.” Witteveen shared this in the video podcast we filmed to discuss these five big trends in detail. Models are getting better and hallucinating less, and they’re also being trained to do agentic tasks. Another feature that the model providers are researching is a way to use the LLM as a judge, and as models get cheaper (something we’ll cover below), companies can use three or more models to

OpenAI’s red teaming innovations define new essentials for security leaders in the AI era

Join our daily and weekly newsletters for the latest updates and exclusive content on industry-leading AI coverage. Learn More OpenAI has taken a more aggressive approach to red teaming than its AI competitors, demonstrating its security teams’ advanced capabilities in two areas: multi-step reinforcement and external red teaming. OpenAI recently released two papers that set a new competitive standard for improving the quality, reliability and safety of AI models in these two techniques and more. The first paper, “OpenAI’s Approach to External Red Teaming for AI Models and Systems,” reports that specialized teams outside the company have proven effective in uncovering vulnerabilities that might otherwise have made it into a released model because in-house testing techniques may have missed them. In the second paper, “Diverse and Effective Red Teaming with Auto-Generated Rewards and Multi-Step Reinforcement Learning,” OpenAI introduces an automated framework that relies on iterative reinforcement learning to generate a broad spectrum of novel, wide-ranging attacks. Going all-in on red teaming pays practical, competitive dividends It’s encouraging to see competitive intensity in red teaming growing among AI companies. When Anthropic released its AI red team guidelines in June of last year, it joined AI providers including Google, Microsoft, Nvidia, OpenAI, and even the U.S.’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), which all had released red teaming frameworks. Investing heavily in red teaming yields tangible benefits for security leaders in any organization. OpenAI’s paper on external red teaming provides a detailed analysis of how the company strives to create specialized external teams that include cybersecurity and subject matter experts. The goal is to see if knowledgeable external teams can defeat models’ security perimeters and find gaps in their security, biases and controls that prompt-based testing couldn’t find. What makes OpenAI’s recent papers noteworthy is how well they define using human-in-the-middle

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