AMARILLO, Texas (KVII) — Amarillo is set to host what could become the largest AI data center in the world, raising questions and concerns within the community about the facility’s operations.
Dr. Asanga Ranasinghe, a professor at Amarillo College, explained that these data centers house powerful computers designed to run artificial intelligence systems.
“A center that can produce so much information, data using their supercomputing power,” he said. “So, people can get answers for their questions, in scientific-related or any other subject matter-related, answers in a very short time.”
Dr. Ranasinghe noted that these computers require significant electricity and water for cooling.
“When you have supercomputing powers, that means they will process in a very high rate of turnover in their data processing,” he said. “So that requires advanced GPUs in the computer. So that will actually heat up. So when they heat up, you need to have efficient cooling systems.”
Fermi representatives announced on Tuesday that the data center will employ new technology and air cooling systems to reduce water consumption.
Dr. Ranasinghe suggested using alternative water sources, such as greywater or seawater, for cooling.
“We called greywater, which is actually not for human consumption. But then these are for like industrial irrigation,” he said.
The Amarillo City Council is currently deciding whether to sell water to Fermi America for the data center, with a final vote scheduled for a week from Tuesday.
The city has launched a webpage for updates on the Fermi project.