NVIDIA-backed Ubitus to build new data center in Japan, nuclear energy becomes a key consideration

According to the financial news app Zhitong Finance, Ubitus K.K, a cloud service company supported by NVIDIA (NVDA.US), plans to establish a new data center in Japan, emphasizing the need for the new data center to be located near a nuclear power plant. Wesley Kuo, CEO of Ubitus, stated in an interview that the company is considering purchasing land in Kyoto, Shimane Prefecture, or Kyushu Island, as these areas have abundant nuclear energy resources. Kuo believes that despite the controversy surrounding nuclear energy, it remains the most competitive energy choice in terms of cost and supply scale, especially for the artificial intelligence field that requires continuous high-capacity power supply.

Ubitus already has two game data centers and plans to build a third one specifically for generative artificial intelligence services. Kuo pointed out that nuclear energy is more stable compared to renewable energy sources such as solar and wind power, making it crucial for industrial purposes, especially in the field of artificial intelligence. As the demand for zero-emission and stable power in artificial intelligence and data centers increases, Ubitus has joined the ranks of technology companies like NVIDIA in actively exploring the use of nuclear energy.

Despite the challenges to nuclear energy safety in Japan following the Fukushima nuclear accident in 2011, Ubitus plans to select the location for the new data center in the first quarter of next year and has visited multiple potential sites. Kuo stated that the region where the data center is established will be able to obtain cheap and stable electricity from nearby nuclear facilities. Unlike the approach of US tech giants directly purchasing nuclear power or building nuclear power plants, Ubitus prefers to utilize existing nuclear energy resources.

It is understood that regions in western Japan such as Kansai and Kyushu with nuclear power plants generally have lower electricity prices, providing cost advantages for data center operations. Ubitus's new data center is expected to have a power receiving capacity of 2-3 megawatts and plans to expand to 50 megawatts. As the power consumption of artificial intelligence models continues to increase, nuclear energy is becoming increasingly popular for its ability to provide stable and on-demand large-scale power.

In recent times, cooperation between utility companies and tech giants has become more frequent, with a series of nuclear energy agreements signed to achieve clean energy goals while advancing the ambitions of artificial intelligence (AI) technology.

Artificial intelligence models consume a huge amount of energy as they need to process massive amounts of data to generate responses. Therefore, nuclear energy has become a more favored energy option than wind or solar power, as it can provide stable and sustainable large-scale power.

In this field, Amazon recently announced a $500 million investment in the nuclear energy industry, including an agreement with Dominion Energy (D.US) to discuss the construction of a small modular nuclear reactor near the North Anna station.

Google is also not falling behind, reaching a power purchase agreement with nuclear energy startup Kairos Power to purchase electricity generated by multiple small modular reactors built by the company. Microsoft, on the other hand, is collaborating with Constellation Energy (CEG.US) to restart a unit at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania