Google Partners With Kairos Power To Purchase Nuclear Energy For AI

In a move towards sustainable energy, Google has announced the world’s first corporate agreement to purchase nuclear energy from multiple small modular reactors being developed by Kairos Power. This initiative aims to accelerate the clean energy transition across the United States and is poised to redefine the role of nuclear power in the renewable energy landscape, Google announced in a blog post.

The new partnership with Kairos Power marks a significant expansion into advanced nuclear technology, with plans to bring the first SMR online by 2030 and additional reactors operational by 2035.

Collectively, these reactors could provide up to 500 megawatts of continuous, carbon-free power to the US electricity grid. The company intends to onboard seven nuclear reactors in total.

This agreement is particularly vital as the demand for electricity grows, driven by advancements in artificial intelligence and other technologies. This agreement helps accelerate a new technology to meet energy needs cleanly and reliably, and unlock the full potential of AI for everyone, Google said in the blog post.

"This agreement is part of our efforts to develop and commercialise a broad portfolio of advanced clean electricity technologies to power our global data centers and offices. This approach will complement our use of variable renewables, like solar and wind, and help us reach our ambitious 24/7 carbon-free energy and net-zero goals," the post said.

The small modular reactors designed by Kairos Power utilise a molten-salt cooling system, paired with ceramic pebble-type fuel, facilitating efficient heat transport to steam turbines for power generation. This approach enables safer and more cost-effective reactor designs, with lower pressure operations allowing for simplified construction and deployment in diverse locations.

By fostering the development of advanced nuclear reactors, Google is also contributing to job creation and economic benefits for US communities. The US Department of Energy notes that nuclear power has the highest economic impact of any power generation source, with a projected need for 3,75,000 additional workers to support the deployment of 200 gigawatts of advanced nuclear capacity by 2050, Google said in the post.

Through this partnership, Google aims to create an “orderbook” of reactors that will facilitate rapid deployment and cost reduction, ultimately bringing advanced nuclear technology to market more swiftly.