“Just like railways were essential for economic integration during the industrial revolution, investments in digital public infrastructure are crucial to realize the gains of digital transformation.” Monica Ballesteros, Economist Impact
In the mid 19th Century, the railroad sparked an era of unprecedented growth and prosperity for communities that became known a Boom Towns. These settlements along the railroad lines, known as the railroad towns, prospered due to the unprecedented access to goods and services. Entire populations could be moved overnight, no longer would settlers have to endure the dangers of traveling across the country by wagon. Towns like Tacoma, Reno, Fresno, Cheyenne, Billings and Albuquerque grew overnight, becoming a hub of commerce for their regions.
However, as some communities prospered, others that initially sprouted up with westward expansion were bypassed by the rail lines and withering into what became known as Ghost Towns.
The Railroad for The Digital Age
Today, in the digital age, a similar parallel can be drawn to data access and connectivity. As high-speed internet and digital infrastructure become increasingly essential for economic growth and social connectivity, towns and regions that lack robust digital infrastructure risk falling behind. Or left out of the tech boom altogether.
Just as railroads reshaped the economic geography America’s 2nd century, access to the information superhighway will likely determine a town’s ability to attract businesses, retain residents, and foster innovation.
Towns that invest in broadband access, digital literacy programs, and data infrastructure position themselves to thrive in the modern economy.
Alone, in an increasingly interconnected world.
Conversely, those municipalities that fail to keep pace with may find themselves on the outskirts of the digital economy, struggling to compete and retain relevance in an increasingly interconnected world. As history has shown, the ability to adapt to new modes of connectivity and transportation is crucial for towns seeking to thrive in changing times.
In the post-digital age, digital itself will move into the background. Just like electricity and its impact on business and individual life, digital will also become ubiquitous. In this new digital age, the internet will be available everywhere and things like smart cars and smart homes will be the norm.
The tracks are being laid.
High Performance Computing – such as AI and Quantum Computing — is driving the demand for compute to double every two months. This insatiable hunger is taxing a data and energy infrastructure that were never designed for machine learning.
Server racks designed for 8-12kW are now stretched to 40kw… 75kW with liquid cooling. Existing data centers are maxxed out with 36-48 month timelines for new construction. Myriad edge solutions are being jerry-rigged onto this struggling infrastructure to meet short term demand, but a better holistic solution is needed.
We need something designed for the Post Digital Age.
The dizzying growth of compute (a 1,200% increase in the last decade) has spawned more than 700 hyperscale data centers – 100,000 square-foot structures with 5,000 or more servers – in the U.S. generating 100MW of capacity each.
And it’s not enough.
But if building more of these giants is not a sustainable answer, what is?
ServerDomes. Because the future is inevitable.
ServerDomes is different than almost all of the data centers out there. It sits one one acre… is able to be built in 10-12 months… and generates 5MW with a Power Density that’s triple the industry norm. Its biomimetic design uses thermal buoyancy and air flow to keep servers cool without any need for air conditioning or HVAC equipment. This hyper-efficiency results in a Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) of 1.14 and a Water Usage Effectiveness (WUE) of 0.10 — which means 92% less water than other data centers.
The small form factor and quick deployment makes ServerDomes perfect for a distributed model, rather than a centralized approach. It also provides a perfect edge complement to hyperscale centers. This flexibility and sustainability make ServerDomes a data infrastructure solutions for forward-thinking municipalities who want to benefit from the tech boom.
