News Briefing Google has announced its plan to purchase electricity from 7 Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) being established in the U.S. by nuclear energy startup Kairos Power. This move is intended to meet the massive energy demands of its operations, including data centers. Impact analysis With the global surge in AI development, the challenge of managing significant energy consumption remains unsolved. As a result, the global demand for energy is expected to grow rapidly, especially in AI-intensive products like data centers. According to Goldman Sachs, the power demand of data centers is projected to increase by 165% by 2030 compared to 2024. By the end of this decade, data centers may consume 3% to 4% of the world’s total electricity supply. AI development is undoubtedly moving toward higher energy consumption, but this trend has intensified the demand for low-carbon energy sources, particularly nuclear power, amid global pressure to achieve net-zero carbon emissions. Although there is no global consensus on whether nuclear power should be classified as renewable energy, and countries hold divergent stances on nuclear energy policies, the fact that nuclear power is a low-emission energy source has softened the opposition of many previously anti-nuclear nations. Google’s statement demonstrates its public support for nuclear energy, and soon after, Amazon also announced three agreements to support nuclear projects, signaling a shift in the stance of cloud service providers towards embracing nuclear power. Opposition to nuclear energy persists, mainly due to the unresolved drawbacks of traditional nuclear technology. However, SMRs (Small Modular Reactors), which emphasize sustainability, economy, safety and reliability, and proliferation resistance, have become a pivotal technology in making nuclear energy more acceptable to countries and corporations. Although SMRs are still in the development phase, the level of corporate investment indicates their potential as a solution to meet both power and carbon reduction needs. With ongoing technological advancements, nuclear power may have a chance to become a primary source of electricity in the future.