- The (climate) case against (AI) data centers

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Volts guests have argued that data centers can be good for the grid if they’re built right. Here I hear the case against, from Ketan Joshi, a former wind-industry analyst who now tracks Big Tech’s climate claims. He sees data centers as the wrong kind of demand growth: lumpy, concentrated, unwanted by neighbors, and largely met with gas. Underneath it all is the worry that the backlash against data centers will become a backlash against electrification itself.

Chapters:

00:00 – Introduction

02:14 – How Ketan became a big tech critic

06:01 – The case against data centers

07:39 – What data centers add to emissions

11:57 – Isn’t more electricity demand good?

20:12 – Backlash and the NEXTDC power-pole protest

24:21 – AI claims 1: will AI help the climate?

27:53 – AI claims 2: machine learning vs. generative AI

33:47 – AI claims 3: inflated climate wins

36:51 – The gas rush: how much gets built?

44:49 – Would easier renewables fix it?

49:14 – Can data centers be flexible load?

55:41 – Do we actually want AI data centers?

59:39 – What should data centers do to plug in?

1:05:31 – Fake crackdowns and the risk to renewables

1:09:24 – What if AI is a bubble?