Google to invest $1 billion in Kansas City data center

Google plans to build a new $1 billion data center in Kansas City, Missouri, marking the company’s first data center in the state. 

The facility is expected to support up to 1,300 jobs and contribute to the region’s workforce and energy infrastructure. It’s one of a growing number of data centers worldwide. 

“With its available land and talented workforce, Kansas City is a great place for us to locate a data center,” Google spokesperson Chris Mussett said. 

Mussett said that AI is driving demand for data centers. “We are always planning for future capacity needs, and we want to be sure that we have options to continue to support the growing demand for our online services,” he added. 

The data center will support Google’s digital services, such as Google Docs, Maps, Search, and Gmail. To power the facility’s operations, Google has partnered with Ranger Power and D E Shaw Renewable Investments (DESRI) to provide 400 megawatts of new, carbon-free power, Missouri Governor Michael Parson’s office announced.

As market for AI heats up, cooling must improve

As data volumes continue to grow rapidly and AI drives further expansion, the data center industry faces new challenges and opportunities, said Sara Martin, associate principal at HED, an architecture and engineering design firm.

One key trend is incorporating more flexible and efficient cooling systems to accommodate higher densities and minimize environmental impact. “Data center leaders are asking engineers for designs that will accommodate higher density cabinet loads as they transition from traditional all-air cooling methods to direct-to-cabinet cooling systems in anticipation of the impact of AI,” Martin said. “As climate concerns grow, there will be continued pressure on data center companies to utilize more efficient cooling methods as a way to reduce their carbon footprint as well.”

Another significant shift in 2024 will be expanding data centers into new markets. “AI will drive the shift as data centers go in search of new locations with available power,” Martin predicted. “The challenge of meeting the power demands of the modern data center became apparent in 2023 and will only get worse in 2024 if firms don’t focus on moving to where power is available.”

Martin expects data center planners and investors to find markets like Denver, Kansas City, Nashville, and Salt Lake City attractive alternatives to power-constrained regions. “If they can’t get the power to the data center, bring the data center to the power,” she said.

Midwestern expansion

The rise of AI and the growing trend of enterprises moving to the cloud have been significant drivers of demand for data centers, said Narayana Pappu, CEO of Zendata, a San Francisco-based provider of data security and privacy compliance solutions.

“Capacity helps meet this demand and prepare for things to come without putting pressure on cost,” Pappu said, emphasizing the benefits of extra capacity in data centers.

When it comes to the best locations for data centers, Pappu noted that multiple factors come into play, including environmental risks, operational costs, and regulatory requirements. “The usual suspects from a location perspective have been northern Virginia, Silicon Valley, Singapore, and Shanghai,” he said. “However, since the pandemic, there have been more data centers breaking ground in the Midwest.”

Pappu also highlighted AI’s impact on data center workloads, saying that “the first impact is on the need for specialized hardware that AI applications need, along with increased demands on electricity and network usage.”

According to Gal Ringel, co-founder and CEO of Mine, a global data privacy management company, the data center industry is set for significant growth in the coming years. This growth will be driven by a combination of regulatory changes and the increasing demand for AI resources.

“Key benefits include the ability to capitalize on opportunity and increased data security,” Ringel said, discussing the advantages of having extra capacity in data centers. “Data localization and residency requirements are in place across Asia and Europe, with the latter due to the US long struggling to be granted an adequacy agreement for data transfers under the GDPR.”

Ringel also noted that recent executive orders by US President Joe Biden, which restrict sensitive data from being sent abroad, are likely to increase American companies’ demand for domestic data center capacity. “There will likely be an uptick in American companies looking for data center capacity domestically rather than utilizing cheaper data centers abroad, so data centers with extra capacity should be able to take advantage of these regulatory swings,” Ringel added.