Some AI data centers are generating their own electricity with converted jet engines, The New York Times reported on Tuesday, according to TechCrunch. The engines come from retired aircraft and are rebuilt to burn natural gas. According to a Rystad Energy analyst, the draw is speed: such a data center can be running within 24 months, while connecting 100 megawatts to the grid in Northern Virginia takes about seven years, according to the International Energy Agency.
Elon Musk's xAI installed eight such turbines in Mississippi to power its Colossus 2 data center in Memphis. The units come from ProEnergy, which rebuilds a GE engine common on Boeing jets. Crusoe, which is building OpenAI's Stargate site in Abilene, Texas, ordered 13 of the units in April. The delays are already costing business: last month Microsoft pulled out as anchor customer of an Nscale data center in England after the local utility said it could not deliver enough power until the early to mid-2030s.
There is a cost: converted jet engines are less efficient and pollute more than turbines designed for power plants, and more of them are needed for the same output. Experts cited in the report say it may be a short-term play, with efficiency and environmental concerns gaining weight in a year or two.