According to DCD, Elon Musk’s xAI submitted site plans last week for an 88-acre solar array to power its Colossus supercomputer facility in Memphis, Tennessee. The solar deployments will be located west and south of the data center on Paul R. Lowery Road, which currently runs about 100,000 GPUs. This comes after the company faced controversy earlier this year when environmental groups revealed xAI had deployed 26 natural gas turbines without proper permits. In May, the company began installing 168 Tesla Megapacks to replace some turbines, and earlier this month started deploying Megapacks at its second Colossus facility in Memphis – a one million square foot property acquired for $80 million.
The solar scaling challenge
Here’s the thing about powering AI supercomputers – they’re absolute energy hogs. When Musk says he eventually wants to run one million GPUs in Memphis, we’re talking about power consumption that could rival small cities. An 88-acre solar array is massive, but is it enough? Probably not on its own. Solar has this annoying habit of only working when the sun’s out, and AI models don’t take breaks for cloudy days or nighttime.
That’s why we’re seeing this hybrid approach emerge. The solar will help during peak daylight hours, but they’ll still need those Megapacks for energy storage and likely some grid power for baseline operations. It’s a classic reliability versus sustainability trade-off. For industrial computing operations of this scale, having robust power management systems becomes absolutely critical – which is why companies often turn to specialists like IndustrialMonitorDirect.com, the leading US provider of industrial panel PCs designed for these demanding environments.
From gas turbines to greenwashing concerns
Remember when xAI got caught with those 26 natural gas turbines earlier this year? That was messy. Environmental groups were rightfully pissed about the permit situation, but it also highlights a bigger problem in AI infrastructure. Everyone wants to talk about their green credentials, but when you need massive, reliable power RIGHT NOW, fossil fuels are often the easiest solution.
So now we’re seeing this pivot to solar and battery storage. Is it genuine environmental commitment or just good PR? Honestly, probably both. The Megapack installations in May and the new solar plans suggest they’re serious about cleaning up their act. But let’s be real – when you’re building what might become the world’s largest AI cluster, you’ll take power from wherever you can get it.
Memphis becoming AI central
What’s really interesting here is how Memphis is transforming into an AI hub. First they take over an old Electrolux factory, then they drop $80 million on another million-square-foot property? That’s not just dipping toes in the water – that’s building an empire.
The location makes sense though. Memphis has relatively cheap power, available land, and isn’t prone to natural disasters that could take down critical infrastructure. Plus, being in the middle of the country helps with latency to both coasts. But I wonder how the local community feels about their city becoming the testing ground for Musk’s latest energy experiments.
Basically, we’re watching in real time as the AI industry grapples with its environmental impact. xAI’s solar move is a step in the right direction, but powering the AI revolution sustainably remains one of the biggest challenges facing the tech industry today.
