spectrum.ieee.org

Last week’s Nvidia GTC conference highlighted new chip architectures to power AI. But as the chips become faster and more powerful, the remainder of data center infrastructure is playing catchup. The power delivery community is responding: Announcements from Delta,

The undying thirst for smarter (historically, that means larger) AI models and greater adoption of the ones we already have has led to an explosion in data-center construction projects, unparalleled both in number and scale. Chief among them is Meta’s planned 5-gigawatt data center in Louisiana, called Hyperion, announced in June of 2025. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Hyperion will “cover a significant part of the footprint of Manhattan,” and the first phase—a 2-GW version—will be completed by 2030.Though the project’s stated 5-GW scale is the largest among its peers, it’s just one of several dozen similar projects now underway. According to Michael Guckes, ch

WHEN KYIV-BORN ENGINEER Yaroslav Azhnyuk thinks about the future, his mind conjures up dystopian images. He talks about “swarms of autonomous drones carrying other autonomous drones to protect them against autonomous drones, which are trying to intercept them, controlled by AI agents overseen by a human general somewhere.” He also imagines flotillas of autonomous submarines, each carrying hundreds of drones, suddenly emerging off the coast of California o

Mel OlkenFormer executive director of the IEEE Power & Energy SocietyFellow, 92; died 9 JanuaryOlken became the first executive director of the IEEE Power & Energy Society (PES) in 1995. In 2002 he left the position to serve as founding editor in chief of the society’s Power & Energy Magazine. Olken led the publication until 2016, when he retired.After receiving a bachelor’s degree in engineering from the

This is a sponsored article brought to you by PNY Technologies.In today’s data-driven world, data scientists face mounting challenges in preparing, scaling, and processing massive datasets. Traditional CPU-based systems are no longer sufficient to meet the demands of modern AI and analytics workflows. NVIDIA RTX PROTM 6000 Blackwell Workstation Edition offers a transformative solution, delivering accelerated computing pe

An in-depth examination of how rising power density, 3D integration, and novel materials are outpacing legacy thermal measurement — and what advanced metrology must deliver.What Attendees will LearnWhy heat is now the dominant constraint on semiconductor scaling — Explore how heterogeneous integration, 3D stacking, and AI-driven power density have shifted the primary bottleneck from lithography to thermal management, with heat flux projections exceeding 1,000 W/cm² for next-generation accelerators.How extreme material properties are redefining thermal design requirements —Understand the measurement challenges posed by nanoscale thin films where bulk assumptions fail, engineered ultra-high-conductivity materials (diamond, BAs, BNNTs), and devices op

Most people who regularly use AI tools would say they’re making their lives easier. The technology promises to streamline and take over tasks both professionally and personally—whether that’s summarizing documents, drafting deliverables, generating code, or even offering emotional support. But researchers are concerned AI is making some tasks too easy, and that this will come with unexpected costs.In a commentary titled Against Frictionless AI, published in Communications Psychology on 24 February, psychologists from the University of Toronto discuss what might be lost when AI

Video Friday is your weekly selection of awesome robotics videos, collected by your friends at IEEE Spectrum robotics. We also post a weekly calendar of upcoming robotics events for the next few months. Please send us your events for inclusion.ICRA 2026: 1–5 June 2026, VIENNASummer School on Multi-Robot Systems: 29 July–4 August 2026, PRAGUEEnjoy today’s videos! Human athletes demonstrate versatile and

Wheelchair users with severe disabilities can often navigate tight spaces better than most robotic systems can. A wave of new smart-wheelchair research, including findings presented in Anaheim, Calif., earlier this month, is now testing whether AI-powered systems can, or should, fully close this gap.Christian Mandel—senior researcher at the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI) in Bremen, Germany—co-led a research team together with his colleague Serge Au

The rapid ascent of artificial intelligence and semiconductor manufacturing has created a paradox: Industries are booming yet they face a critical shortage of skilled workers. Demand for data center technicians, fabrication facility workers, and similar positions is growing. There aren’t enough candidates with the right skill sets to fill the in-demand jobs.Although those technical roles are