Onsemi Launches Energy Saving Chips For AI Data Center

Onsemi, launched a suite of chips designed to make the data center more energy efficient. (photo: x @onsemi)

JAKARTA - Onsemi on Wednesday, June 5, launched a series of chips designed to create data centers that support artificial intelligence services more energy efficient by leveraging the technology they already sell for electric vehicles.

Onsemi is one of the few chip suppliers made of silicon carbide, a standard silicon alternative that is more expensive to produce but more efficient in terms of converting power from one form to another. In recent years, carbide silicon has been widely used in electric vehicles, where replacing chips between battery and motor vehicles can increase the range of the car.

Simon Keeton, president of the power solutions group at Onsemi, said that in a typical data center, electricity was converted at least four times from when it entered the building until it was finally used by chips to work. "During the conversion process, about 12% of the electricity was lost as heat," said Keeton.

"Companies that use this - Amazon, Google, and Microsoft - get double penalties for this loss," said Keeton. "First, they pay for the electricity that goes missing as heat. Then, as it goes away as heat, they also pay for the electricity to cool the data center," added Keeton.

Onsemi believes they can reduce the power loss by one full percentage point. Although one percentage point may sound small, the estimated power consumption of the AI data center is huge, with some groups estimating up to 1,000 terawatt hours in less than two years.

One percent of the total, according to Keeton, is enough to provide power for one million homes over a year. So it gives a context on how to think about power levels.