Nvidia says its AI data center design runs hotter to use a lot less water

Nvidia's new Rubin generation data center design uses 100% liquid cooling and higher operating temperatures (up to 113°F) to reduce water consumption from 2.6 million gallons per megawatt annually to near zero, addressing a critical environmental concern for AI infrastructure expansion. This technological shift has significant strategic implications for CIOs planning large-scale AI deployments, as it reduces operational sustainability risks and positions organizations to better manage regulatory and community pressure against data center expansion. However, CIOs should note that the article does not address capital costs of this cooling architecture versus conventional systems, construction-phase environmental impacts, or overall power generation requirements that remain substantial challenges.

Stevie BonifieldThe VergeJune 22, 20262 min read

Public pushback against data centers has emphasized their water and energy consumption, and now Nvidia is highlighting its claim that the Rubin generation reference design for a fully liquid-cooled data center has "eliminated massive amounts of power usage and pretty much all water usage." Still, it doesn't address all of the concerns around AI data centers, including during their construction, and for the power generation requirements of the massive facilities. Also, as Gizmodo points out, Nvidia's blog post doesn't mention the cost of building this style of data center vs. one using less efficient air cooling, but claims that "every cloud … Read the full story at The Verge.