Anyone who has weathered a hurricane can tell you that the oceans \u2014 which fuel the storms \u2014 contain a tremendous amount of energy. Thanks to global warming, they\u2019re holding more than ever.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A new startup wants to harness that energy to power data centers.<\/p>\n
Drogue, which has kept a low profile until now, is building a system that harvests heat from the ocean to power data centers on board floating vessels. According to co-founder and CEO Sam Sipe, the first prototype should be bobbing around the ocean, crunching bits, less than two years from now.<\/p>\n
The goal, Sipe said, is to help data center developers deploy servers in AI-friendly timelines. \u201cThe data center industry is a real estate game, and so they\u2019re playing on 8- to 10-year timelines, including interoperability with utilities and [independent system operators]\u201d that manage regional power grids, he said. \u201cAI demand has increased 10x in just the last three years. It\u2019s completely incompatible.\u201d<\/p>\n
Drogue was founded just six months ago in Washington, D.C., and the startup told TechCrunch exclusively that it has already raised $20 million, including from XYZ Venture Capital, Toyota Ventures, Tamarack Global, Dream, FDVC,<\/p>\n