In today's rapidly advancing world of artificial intelligence (AI) technology, Microsoft and BlackRock have taken a significant step forward. The two giants announced the joint launch of a fund exceeding $30 billion, focusing on AI infrastructure investment, primarily covering data centers and energy projects. This major announcement was made on Tuesday and immediately generated a tremendous response in the global tech and finance circles. With the continuous advancement of AI technology, particularly the widespread application of deep learning and large-scale data processing models, the demand for computing power has shown explosive growth.

Amazon's cloud computing division - Amazon Web Services (AWS) recently announced that they will invest $10 billion over the next five years to build, operate, and maintain data centers in the UK. Image source note: The image is AI generated and authorized by the provider Midjourney. This decision marks Amazon's further expansion in the UK, where the company established its first AWS region back in 2016, which includes centralized data centers. Additionally, AWS has three availability zones and two Waves in the UK.

With the rapid development of artificial intelligence technology, the power consumption of data centers has received widespread attention, but their water consumption has also surged dramatically, posing a challenge to the sustainability goals of tech companies. Taking Virginia as an example, since 2019, water usage in data centers has skyrocketed by nearly 64%, with consumption exceeding 7 billion liters in 2023, handling approximately 70% of global internet traffic. High water consumption mainly stems from cooling systems and equipment maintenance needs. The expansion of AI technology has intensified pressure on water resources, prompting tech companies to optimize water usage strategies for sustainable development.

Nvidia's latest earnings report shows revenue reaching $30.4 billion, a 122% increase compared to the same period last year, exceeding analysts' expectations. Data center revenue grew by 154%, reaching $26.3 billion, becoming a focal point. Nvidia expects to set a new record for shipments next year, with founder and CEO Jensen Huang mentioning that the company's development is closely tied to the increasing complexity of AI models, aiming to drive an industrial revolution by reducing costs and expanding AI model scales. The significant growth in data center revenue reflects strong demand for AI.

The water consumption of data centers has skyrocketed, especially in Virginia, where it has nearly doubled from 2019 to 2023, reflecting a significant global demand for water resources. The water usage by tech giants Microsoft and Google indicates that substantial amounts of water are being consumed in areas facing water scarcity and extreme shortages. However, data centers struggle to implement closed-loop water recycling systems mainly because the water used for humidity control evaporates, particularly in dry regions, which may increase static electricity risks and be detrimental to equipment. As artificial intelligence becomes more widespread, the number of data centers and the demand for water resources continues to grow.

A study commissioned by Amazon Web Services (AWS) reveals that using AWS data centers for compute-intensive or artificial intelligence (AI) workloads results in a significant 98% reduction in carbon emissions compared to on-premises data centers. Accenture's research indicates that migrating IT workloads to cloud data centers is an effective strategy to minimize environmental footprints. AWS's global infrastructure is 4.1 times more efficient than on-premises data centers, and Indian organizations have the potential to achieve a 99% reduction in carbon emissions by optimizing AI workloads on AWS. This is attributed to AWS's hardware utilization.

金融巨头高盛的一份研究通讯警告称，大型科技公司已加大资本支出以推动生成式人工智能的发展，但尚未展示可持续的商业模式。该投行估计，在未来几年将有约1万亿美元用于数据中心、半导体、电网升级和其他人工智能基础设施。

["A recent report by the International Energy Agency highlights that by 2026, the contributions of data centers, artificial intelligence, and cryptocurrencies to global power demand may double, causing a significant impact on global energy reserves.", "The IEA estimates that these three sectors consumed approximately 460 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity globally in 2022, accounting for 2% of total global demand.", "The report also notes that the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence in large existing applications could significantly increase electricity consumption."]

Sapeon, an AI chip startup supported by South Korea's SK Group, announced on Thursday that its latest model, the SapeonX330, is now available for data centers, joining the global race for AI chip development against major competitors such as Nvidia.

China's SDS market grew by 7.7% year-on-year, with a compound annual growth rate of 8.3% over the next five years. The market size is expected to approach $3.8 billion by 2027. AI technology is driving users to actively deploy edge data centers. By 2027, the market for edge computing servers in China is expected to reach $11.1 billion. The capabilities of AIGC determine that it requires a large amount of unstructured data for applications, and inference demands will place higher requirements on the performance of data infrastructure.

Fujitsu is developing the next-generation AI, HPC, and data center processor Monaka, which features 150 Armv9 cores. Monaka is expected to utilize 2nm technology and be released in 2027. It is equipped with the SVE2 instruction set, supporting DDR5 memory and PCIe 6.0 interfaces. Monaka employs a 3D chip design for scalability through its separated architecture. Positioned as an AI and data center processor, enhancing energy efficiency is one of its key features.