Ask HN: Why would Stargate build data centers in a hot location like Texas? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: Why would Stargate build data centers in a hot location like Texas?

7 pointshbarka12 comments

The operational cost for cooling would be enormous.

Cooling is a single DC factor with costs derived from electrical costs.

In most DC build outs you're looking for favorable network peering (ie pipe size, latency, or both) and low electricity costs.

If peering is the highest priority, then you build in hot climates and reduce your cooling costs as much as possible with outside air when temperatures are cool (is at night). They've been doing this in Las Vegas for decades.

Las Vegas is low humidity so temperatures vary a lot between day and night. Houston is not low humidity, I’m sure they wouldn’t figure something else out though.

If real estate were not so expensive, people wouldn't have to pack electronics so tightly into such a small space.

Then they wouldn't need nearly as much artificial cooling.

I don't think they are going to do it in the hottest part of Texas, or the part that doesn't cool off fairly early most nights.

I know I could do it without any artificial cooling at all, and not far from Houston which is hotter than Austin and lots more humid too.

All I need is a couple spare ranches somewhere between the two cities :)

> and reduce your cooling costs as much as possible with outside air when temperatures are cool

To add to this: University of Texas' supercomputers have used a variation of this for a while. I don't recall which cluster was the first, but they chilled and stored water at night when electricity was cheaper, then circulated the water during the day. This substantially cut cooling costs and increased cooling efficiency.

Ellison has operations in Montana, and helped the current Governor in his early business career by buying a startup he was part of, as well as one of the Montana Senate seats. Montana is completely red republican now. There is abundant hydro electricity, and growing solar/wind market. Geothermal and Nuclear are coming. The real problem is latency, network connectivity. Prior to Covid, attracting talent to Montana was hard as well. Now everyone wants to live here.

Given that "Stargate" seems to be "OpenAI + Promises of money that don't exist" I wouldn't spend too much time speculating about decisions involving it. No part of the thing seem well-considered or serious, it's just the kind of talk you expect from people who are high on their own supply. In so many ways AI reeks of "bubble", and "Lets throw $500bn that doesn't exist at the problem" isn't helping.

Usual reasons: tax breaks, cheap power, cronyism, bribery, possibly all of the above.

Crypto miners in Texas get paid big money to shut down operations to prevent blackouts.

Maybe that is also the reason for Stargate building there.

Here are the reasons:

- Electricity in Texas is extremely cheap;

- The legal framework and current ruling Texas government is supportive of it;

- Cronyism: The AI companies/execs are in bed with Texas' red neck government;

- The US doesn't care about destroying the environment by the impact of the cooling necessary to run this;

Would you risk doing this in Michigan/Washington or a colder state? Or in California where taxes are hella high and 'woke'?

Texas is the best place you could do this.

Kenosha, Wisconsin.

The technobros don't live there. Imagine hiring for people there :-)

isn't texas very good to wind and solar though?

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