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Here’s what you should know today:

• COOLING, TECH, AND POWER: Off-grid, satellite-connected edge provider gets millions from Microsoft, and CoreWeave is looking to fuel cells in Illinois

• 🎥WATCH THIS: AWS and Nvidia are building the world’s largest supercomputer

• BIG DEALS: A 2.1 million sqft campus outside Atlanta, the University of Dallas is adding a data center, and another one announced by Stream

- Cooling, tech, and power -

Satelite-Connected Portable DC Startup Scores Microsoft Millions

Armada, a provider of satellite-connected, off-grid, modular data centers, announced last year that they had raised over $55 million.
Its latest funding round, with $40 million from Microsoft, brings its total to over $100 million.

The company says its portable Galleon data centers would give oil rigs, battlefields, and other off-the-grid sites real-time data processing capabilities usually confined to areas with terrestrial connectivity, including generative artificial intelligence platforms such as ChatGPT.

According to DataCenterDynamics, “The California-based company offers ruggedized and self-contained satellite-connected data center modules (in 3-rack 20ft and 6-rack 40ft models) known as Galleons that use SpaceX’s Starlink network, and an Edge device and computing management platform. It also offers Edge/AI applications.”

The deal also brings a number of Armada’s one-of-a-kind services to the Azure platform, such as:

• Commander Edge: Includes the Galleon rapidly deployable, portable data centers

• Commander Connect: Starlink monitoring program tailored for edge computing.

• Edge AI: Support for custom applications for compute-intensive, latency-sensitive edge applications.

To further extend its capabilities, Armada plans to integrate its Galleon data centers with low-earth orbit satellites.

Armada represents the spearpoint of a larger trend: startups trying to push the “edge” of local, low-latency computing further and further from computing hubs like cities.

The company currently has customers and pilot programs in 43 countries.

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CoreWeave Taps Bloom Fuel Cells for Illinois Data Center

CoreWeave’s strategic partnership with Bloom Energy will utilize its proprietary solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) to power its high-performance data center in Volo, Illinois.

The fuel cells are set to be commissioned in Q3 2025, though the size of the deployment wasn’t shared.

“We are seeing a lot of microgrid providers of natural gas solutions or fuel cells offering a 24/7 solution for these larger loads to address utility constraints,” Elham Akhavan, senior microgrid research analyst at Wood Mackenzie, told Microgrid Knowledge back in April.
“Up until recently, large load facilities have had a backup solution and have been grid connected. But because of grid constraints, they are choosing to be off-grid.”

Fuel-cell technology uses an electrochemical process to convert a fuel, such as natural gas or hydrogen, into electricity with only water vapor and heat as the emissions.
SOFC systems like Bloom’s have slower startup times than less efficient PEMFC cells, but still start up faster than traditional energy supply systems.

Earlier this year, Intel’s Santa Clara data center became the largest fuel cell-powered data center in California, with the help of its partnership with Bloom Energy.

Bloom Energy’s other customers include Equinix, JPMorgan Chase, Nxtra and AWS.

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More in Cooling, Tech, and Power

1. Schneider Electric has released its data center cooling guidelines.

   22% of data centers are currently using liquid cooling, according to IDC numbers. Schneider Electric’s new report offers guidelines for both direct-to-chip and immersion cooling.

2. LightReading: Energy efficiency isn’t enough to achieve data center sustainability. HPE's Hannah Brier highlights that besides energy efficiency, optimizing software and hardware can reduce energy use, and AI isn't always the best solution. AI's high emissions are a growing concern, necessitating innovations like HPE's liquid cooling and partnerships for heat reuse.

🔎 Watch This:

AWS and Nvdia have teamed up to create the world’s largest supercomputer. Check out the video on Project Ceiba:

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- Big Deals -

Data Center Coming to University of Dallas Campus

The Irving City Council has approved the rezoning of over 67 acres owned by the University of Dallas for a new data center, expected to be completed by 2027.

Partnering with Dallas developer KDC, the university aims to meet regional big data and AI demands. Originally intended for office or multifamily use, the land along State Highway 114 was deemed economically unfeasible for such developments.

The planned data center will encompass about 770,000 square feet, but has been designed to blend with the adjacent Cistercian Abbey and Preparatory School, the low-rise center will not disrupt the area’s aesthetics.

“The University of Dallas greatly appreciates the council’s fair consideration and ultimate support of our recent zoning application,” said University of Dallas President Jonathan J. Stanford in a statement.
“The university is proud of our association with KDC with its extensive experience in the city of Irving, and the company’s national portfolio of data centers. It is heartening to witness the mutual trust amongst the university, KDC and the city.”

Dallas-based architecture firm Corgan will lead the design, with Telios as the engineer and Kimley-Horn as the civil engineer. The project is currently in the design phase.

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More Big Deals

• Speaking of TX: Stream Announces 1.5 million sqft coming to San Antonio: The new campus (Stream’s third in SA) breaks ground with a $400M investment. At full build-out, the five-building facility will support 200MWc and will feature zero water cooling systems and an on-site dual-fed breaker and a half CPS substation.

• Thread: Data center spending out of control:

  

• Atlanta to get another 2.1 million sqft: Burr Computer Environments, Inc. has filed a Developments of Regional Impact application with the Georgia Department of Community Affairs for a data center development known as ATL11. The project is set to start in June 2026.

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- Taylor