Bill Gates’ Nuclear Energy Startup Inks New Data Center Deal

TerraPower and Sabey Data Centers Collaborate on Advanced Nuclear Reactors

TerraPower, a nuclear energy startup founded by Bill Gates, struck a deal this week with one of the largest data center developers in the US to deploy advanced nuclear reactors. TerraPower and Sabey Data Centers (SDC) are working together on a plan to run existing and future facilities on nuclear energy from small reactors.

Why Nuclear Energy?

Tech companies are scrambling to determine where to get all the electricity they’ll need for energy-hungry AI data centers that are putting growing pressure on power grids. They’re increasingly turning to nuclear energy, including next-generation reactors that startups like TerraPower are developing.

A New Era in Nuclear Energy

“The energy sector is transforming at an unprecedented pace.”

“The energy sector is transforming at an unprecedented pace after decades of business as usual, and meaningful progress will require strategic collaboration across industries,” TerraPower President and CEO Chris Levesque said in a press release.

The Collaboration

A memorandum of understanding signed by the two companies establishes a “strategic collaboration” that’ll initially look into the potential for new nuclear power plants in Texas and the Rocky Mountain region that would power SDC’s data centers.

Challenges Ahead

There’s still a long road ahead before that can become a reality. The technology TerraPower and similar nuclear energy startups are developing still have to make it through regulatory hurdles and prove that they can be commercially viable.

Conclusion

TerraPower’s reactor design for this collaboration, Natrium, is the only advanced technology of its kind with a construction permit application for a commercial reactor pending with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, according to the company. The company just broke ground on a demonstration project in Wyoming last year, and expects it to come online in 2030.

FAQs

Q: What is TerraPower’s reactor design for this collaboration?
A: TerraPower’s reactor design for this collaboration is called Natrium.

Q: What is the goal of the collaboration between TerraPower and Sabey Data Centers?
A: The goal of the collaboration is to deploy advanced nuclear reactors to power Sabey Data Centers’ data centers.

Q: What are the challenges ahead for TerraPower and similar nuclear energy startups?
A: The challenges ahead include making it through regulatory hurdles and proving that the technology can be commercially viable.

Q: What is the timeline for TerraPower’s demonstration project in Wyoming?
A: The company expects the demonstration project to come online in 2030.