Google Gives More Power to AI Within Its Data Centers, but the Biggest Opportunities Lie Ahead

C. Drake

Summary Bullets:

• A newly autonomous AI algorithm operating Google’s data center cooling systems will be scrutinized to learn how AI can be applied to other areas of data center operations.
• There are opportunities for Google to leverage its growing expertise in applying AI to internal operations by expanding the range of AI solutions it offers enterprise customers.

Google recently announced plans to give operational control over the cooling systems in its data centers to an artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm. Using this algorithm, Google has already achieved a considerable reduction in the energy consumed by its 15 globally distributed data centers, with both cost and environmental implications. However, this latest move is significant because it represents a major first application of AI to data center operational control systems on a large scale. The initiative also provides another example of how AI can be deployed in data centers in ways that improve their operational efficiency, including their consumption of energy resources. Initiatives like this are becoming more common and are often included under the ‘AIOps’ (artificial intelligence for IT operations) banner, a term that refers to the use of big data analytics, machine learning (ML), and other AI technologies to automate the management of IT systems and processes.