- China has formally opened a 24-megawatt underwater knowledge heart with 2,000 servers.
- The Shanghai facility makes use of seawater as a pure coolant, attaining a PUE of lower than 1.15.
- US crypto miners corresponding to Core Scientific are turning their websites into AI knowledge facilities.
A brand new expertise competitors is brewing between the US and China.
On the one hand, China has launched what it claims is the world’s first business underwater knowledge heart powered by offshore wind. In the meantime, US mining large Core Scientific is accelerating its transition from Bitcoin mining to AI-centric knowledge facilities.
In keeping with current experiences, Shanghai Hailanyun Know-how, in cooperation with China Telecom and native authorities, has formally opened a 24-megawatt underwater knowledge heart situated roughly 10 kilometers from Shanghai’s Lingang Particular Space.
The venture price roughly $226 million and homes practically 2,000 servers used for AI coaching and massive knowledge.
At this time’s AI knowledge facilities eat quite a lot of energy, and cooling is commonly a giant a part of it. By putting in servers underwater, the Shanghai web site makes use of seawater as a pure coolant, attaining a Energy Utilization Effectiveness (PUE) of lower than 1.15, way more environment friendly than most conventional knowledge facilities. Greater than 95% of its electrical energy reportedly comes instantly from offshore wind farms within the area.
Chinese language builders say the design reduces cooling power by as much as 30% and land use by 90%.
From Bitcoin mining to AI infrastructure
Whereas China is constructing new infrastructure from scratch, the US is taking a special route by turning present Bitcoin mines into AI campuses.
A notable instance is Core Scientific, one of many largest Bitcoin miners in North America. In late April, it was reported that the corporate was planning to show a 300-megawatt mine in Pecos, Texas, into an enormous 1.5-gigawatt AI knowledge heart campus.
Throughout the Bitcoin mining growth, many mining firms amassed entry to huge quantities of energy and land. At this time, because the demand for AI computing explodes, these belongings have gotten prime actual property for internet hosting AI servers and GPU clusters.
Core Scientific will not be alone on this effort, as firms like CoreWeave and Crusoe are additionally shifting massive components of their enterprise to AI infrastructure.
Bitcoin mining: US vs China
For many of Bitcoin’s historical past, China dominated international mining. Earlier than the Chinese language authorities banned mining in 2021, China was estimated to regulate 60% to 75% of the worldwide Bitcoin hashrate.
However every thing modified after the crackdown, and the US turned the primary winner. From 2023 to 2025, the nation turned the world’s largest Bitcoin mining hub, processing round 35-40% of the world’s hashrate.
Main mining facilities in America emerged in Texas, Georgia, Kentucky, North Dakota, Wyoming, and Tennessee. Many U.S. firms have invested closely in massive mines powered by pure gasoline, nuclear energy, hydroelectric energy, and renewable power.
Whereas China has not fully disappeared from the mining map, the nation has shifted a lot of its focus to AI infrastructure and semiconductor growth fairly than overtly competing in Bitcoin mining.
Associated: AI knowledge heart demand will soar 220% by 2030, reshaping crypto power market
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