Singapore pushes for green data centers as growing AI demand strains energy resources

Published

2 years ago

May 30, 2024

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Erik Isakson | Digitalvision | Getty Images

SINGAPORE — Singapore is pushing for green data centers as the explosive demand for artificial intelligence puts a strain on energy resources.

The city-state launched a green data center roadmap on Thursday to support its ambitions for the digital economy as demand for AI and computing grows.

“As the demand for digital and AI compute continues to rise, the need for data center capacity will grow,” Senior Minister of State for Communications and Information Janil Puthucheary said on Thursday.

The roadmap aims to provide at least 300 megawatts of additional capacity in the near term, with more through “green energy deployments.”

Plans to provide additional data center capacity include raising energy efficiency of all data centers in Singapore, deploying energy-efficient IT equipment as well as offering incentives or grants for resource efficiency.

“Data centers here also tap on Singapore’s broader international position as a business and digital hub,” Singapore’s Infocomm Media Development Authority said in a press release. IMDA promotes and regulates Singapore’s communication and media sectors.

“As demand for AI has grown, so too has demand for energy. This has created strains on national energy networks, which need to be managed in the short term,” Tony Blair Institute for Global Change said in a report on Wednesday.

The AI boom has boosted demand for data centers which house large amounts of data required to train and deploy AI models, making them extremely energy intensive.

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While companies like Microsoft and Google are investing heavily to increase the use of clean energy, governments need to continue to create the incentives for companies to do so, said the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change.

Data centers are the “biggest indirect carbon emitter” of the information and communications sector, said Puthucheary. “They contribute to 82% of Singapore’s ICT sector emissions, and account for 7% of Singapore’s total electricity consumption.”

Singapore is the second-largest data center market in Southeast Asia and the sixth-largest in Asia-Pacific, according to data from global real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield.

Singapore houses more than 70 cloud, enterprise, and co-location data centers, which is able to host cloud platforms, digital services, and higher-intensity workloads for AI, according to IMDA.

As the global data center market hits new highs in 2023, power limitations have “pushed data center operators to further evaluate untapped and smaller markets worldwide,” said Cushman & Wakefield.

Technology

iPhone 17 will drive record Apple shipments in 2025, IDC says

Published

51 mins ago

December 3, 2025

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iPhone 17 will drive record Apple shipments in 2025, IDC says

Apple’s latest iPhone models are shown on display at its Regent Street, London store on the launch day of the iPhone 17.

Arjun Kharpal | CNBC

Apple will hit a record level of iPhone shipments this year driven by its latest models and a resurgence in its key market of China, research firm IDC has forecast.

The company will ship 247.4 million iPhones in 2025, up just over 6% year-on-year, IDC forecast in a report on Tuesday. That’s more than the 236 million it sold in 2021, when the iPhone 13 was released.

Apple’s predicted surge is “thanks to the phenomenal success of its latest iPhone 17 series,” Nabila Popal, senior research director at IDC, said in a statement, adding that in China, “massive demand for iPhone 17 has significantly accelerated Apple’s performance.”

Shipments are a term used by analysts to refer to the number of devices sent by a vendor to its sales channels like e-commerce partners or stores. They do not directly equate to sales but indicate the demand expected by a company for their products.

When it launched in September, investors saw the iPhone 17 series as a key set of devices for Apple, which was facing increased competition in China and questions about its artificial intelligence strategy, as Android rivals were powering on.

Apple’s shipments are expected to jump 17% year-on-year in China in the fourth quarter, IDC said, leading the research firm to forecast 3% growth in the market this year versus a previous projection of a 1% decline.

In China, local players like Huawei have been taking away market share from Apple.

IDC’s report follows on from Counterpoint Research last week which forecast Apple to ship more smartphones than Samsung in 2025 for the first time in 14 years.

Bloomberg reported last month that Apple could delay the release of the base model of its next device, the iPhone 18, until 2027, which would break its regular cycle of releasing all of its phones in fall each year. IDC said this could mean Apple’s shipments may drop by 4.2% next year.

Technology

Anthropic reportedly preparing for one of the largest IPOs ever in race with OpenAI: FT

Published

6 hours ago

December 3, 2025

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Anthropic reportedly preparing for one of the largest IPOs ever in race with OpenAI: FT

Nurphoto | Getty Images

Anthropic, the AI startup behind the popular Claude chatbot, is in early talks to launch one of the largest initial public offerings as early as next year, the Financial Times reported Wednesday.

For the potential IPO, Anthropic has engaged law firm Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, which has previously worked on high-profile tech IPOs such as Google, LinkedIn and Lyft, the FT said, citing two sources familiar with the matter.

The start-up, led by chief executive Dario Amodei, was also pursuing a private funding round that could value it above $300 billion, including a $15 billion combined commitment from Microsoft and Nvidia, per the report.

It added that Anthropic has also discussed a potential IPO with major investment banks, but that sources characterized the discussions as preliminary and informal.

If true, the news could position Anthropic in a race to market with rival ChatGPT-maker OpenAI, which is also reportedly laying the groundwork for a public offering. The potential listings would also test investors’ appetite for loss-making AI startups amid growing fears of a so-called AI bubble.

However, an Anthropic spokesperson told the FT: “It’s fairly standard practice for companies operating at our scale and revenue level to effectively operate as if they are publicly traded companies,” adding that no decisions have been made on timing or whether to go public.

CNBC was unable to reach Anthropic and Wilson Sonsini, which has advised Anthropic for a few years, for comment.

According to one of the FT’s sources, Anthropic has been working through internal preparations for a potential listing, though details were not provided.

The FT report follows several notable changes at the company of late, including the hiring of former Airbnb executive Krishna Rao, who played a key role in the firm’s 2020 IPO.

CNBC also reported last month that Anthropic was recently valued to the range of $350 billion after receiving investments of up to $5 billion from Microsoft and $10 billion from Nvidia.

In its race to overtake OpenAI in the AI space, the startup has also been expanding aggressively, recently announcing a $50 billion AI infrastructure build-out with data centers in Texas and New York, and tripling its international workforce.

According to the FT report, investors in the company are enthusiastic about Anthropic’s potential IPO, which could see it “seize the initiative” from OpenAI.

While OpenAI has been rumoured to be considering an IPO, its chief financial officer recently said the company is not pursuing a near-term listing, even as it closed a $6.6 billion share sale at a $500 billion valuation in October.