The Download: record-breaking subsea tunnels and flexible data centers

Norway's Rogfast tunnel, set to become the world's longest and deepest subsea road tunnel, will stretch 16.6 miles and reach a depth of 1,280 feet below the North Sea. This engineering feat aims to demonstrate that ambitious infrastructure projects are still achievable. The tunnel's construction beneath the Norwegian fjords highlights significant engineering challenges and solutions for creating extensive underwater roadways. The article suggests that the unprecedented demand for power driven by the AI boom could be partially addressed by making data centers more flexible in their energy consumption. Instead of requiring immediate, large-scale infrastructure upgrades or dedicated power generation, data centers could limit their power draw during peak demand periods. This approach leverages existing transmission lines and could lead to a more intelligent and adaptable electrical grid, demonstrating that solutions to powering AI may lie in optimizing current resources rather than solely relying on new construction.