A hot potato: Data centers and server farms dedicated to training and serving AI algorithms consume vast amounts of power, and Big Tech companies are scrambling to minimize outages and rationing occurrences. Infineon is proposing its own solution to the AI power problem with new PSUs designed to adapt to both current and future servers.
German semiconductor manufacturer Infineon Technologies recently announced a new generation of power supply units, promising unprecedented power delivery capabilities for data centers focused on cloud servers and AI algorithms. Infineon’s new server PSUs can deliver up to 12 kW, integrating three different semiconductor materials into a single module.
According to Infineon, these new PSUs are the world’s first units capable of delivering up to 12 kW of power. However, the first models will have a power rating of 8 kW and will be available in the first quarter of 2025. There is no established release date for the 12 kW model according to the company’s PSU roadmap.
Infineon is integrating silicon (Si), silicon carbide (SiC), and gallium nitride (GaN) into the same module, which will significantly enhance power performance, efficiency, and reliability. The 12 kW PSUs will achieve a 97.5 percent efficiency level, while the 8 kW PSUs can support “AI racks” with an output of 300 kW and more.
Gallium nitride is a material that has helped consumer chargers shrink in recent years, while silicon carbide can provide higher efficiency at higher voltage levels. SiC is used for DC-to-DC inverters in electric vehicles, but it can also work in PSUs designed to deliver more electric energy to GPUs designed for AI algorithm acceleration.
Due to the proliferation of chatbots and AI services, data centers are experiencing rapid growth in their energy requirements. Infineon stated that the new PSUs will help these massive server farms reduce power consumption thanks to their increased efficiency, while also cutting down greenhouse emissions and lowering operating costs.
According to recent predictions, data centers could account for seven percent of global electricity consumption by 2030. Modern, high-performing server GPUs require up to 1 kW per single chip, and they will likely reach 2 kW “and beyond” by the end of the decade. Major tech and AI companies are already feeling the impact of this ever-growing demand for power, with Amazon being forced to ration resources to avoid grid outages in its Dublin data centers.
