Google goes nuclear in new deal to power AI

> Google announced a deal on Monday to purchase energy from small nuclear reactors that the startup Kairos Power plans to start bringing online in the U.S. by 2030.

> The structure of the deal — an “order book” of reactors rather than a project-by-project approach — will help lower costs and commercialize the tech faster for everyone, Google argues. –
“This agreement helps accelerate a new technology to meet energy needs cleanly and reliably, and unlock the full potential of AI for everyone”.

> It adds to Google’s **more than 115 existing agreements** for power from renewables and storage, which total over 14 gigawatts of capacity.

> California-based Kairos has Energy Department backing, and has begun constructing a demonstration reactor in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The firm is using a “pebble” fuel system combined with molten salt coolant — a process backers call safe and relatively simple, enabling lower costs. Kairos envisions commercial-scale SMRs in the 75 megawatt range.

> Tech companies are increasingly looking at nuclear energy — in various forms — as they face pressure to prevent the AI surge from worsening climate change. Microsoft has a 20-year power purchase deal for the envisioned 835 megawatts that project would send to the regional grid.