A view of Oracle’s headquarters in Redwood Shores, California, on Sept. 11, 2023.
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Oracle
chairman and co-founder Larry Ellison had a “bizarre” announcement to make this week.
The electricity demand from artificial intelligence is becoming so “crazy” that Oracle is looking to secure power from next-generation nuclear technology, Ellison told investors on the company’s earnings call Monday.
“Let me say something that’s going to sound really bizarre,” Ellison told analysts. “Well, you’d probably say, well, he says bizarre things all the time, so why is he announcing this one. It must be really bizarre.”
Oracle is designing a data center that will require more than a gigawatt of electricity, the company’s chairman said. The data center would be powered by three small nuclear reactors, he added.
“The location and the power place we’ve located, they’ve already got building permits for three nuclear reactors,” Ellison said. “These are the small modular nuclear reactors to power the data center. This is how crazy it’s getting. This is what’s going on.”
Ellison did not disclose the location of the data center or the future reactors. CNBC reached out to Oracle for comment.
Small modular nuclear reactors are new designs that promise to speed the deployment of reliable, carbon-free energy as power demand rises from data centers, manufacturing and the broader electrification of the economy.
Generally, these reactors are 300 megawatts or less, about a third the size of the typical reactor in the current U.S. fleet. They would be prefabricated in several pieces and then assembled on the site, reducing the capital costs that stymie larger plants.
Right now, small modular reactors are a technology of the future, with executives in the nuclear industry generally agreeing that they won’t be commercialized in the U.S. until the 2030s.
There are currently three operational small modular reactors in the world, according to the Nuclear Energy Agency. Two are in China and Russia, the central geopolitical adversaries of the U.S. A test reactor is also operational in Japan.
Wrapping Up the Oracle Nuclear Announcement
From the unconventional plans of Larry Ellison to power Oracle’s data centers with small modular nuclear reactors to the future implications of this technology on the energy industry, the recent announcement has sparked curiosity and debate.
As the demand for electricity continues to grow, especially with the increasing reliance on artificial intelligence and data centers, innovative solutions like small modular reactors may provide a sustainable and efficient way to meet these needs.
While small modular reactors are currently considered a technology of the future, the potential benefits they offer in terms of reliability, carbon-free energy, and cost-efficiency make them a promising option for the evolving energy landscape.
Only time will tell how Oracle’s pioneering move into nuclear power will influence the industry and the broader shift towards cleaner energy sources. One thing is certain – the future of energy is looking brighter with each innovative step taken.
