Google and American electrical utility giant NextEra Energy announced a partnership Monday to revive Iowa’s only nuclear power plant to meet growing low-carbon energy demand from artificial intelligence
The Duane Arnold Energy Center, which closed in 2020, could begin operating in early 2029, pending regulatory approval.
“Once operational, Google will purchase power from the 615-MW plant as a 24/7 carbon-free energy source to help power Google’s growing cloud and AI infrastructure in Iowa, while also strengthening local grid reliability,” the companies said in a press release.
The Central Iowa Power Cooperative, the state’s largest energy provider, has agreed to buy surplus electricity leftover by Google.
The Duane Arnold Energy Center’s prior shutdown had come at a time when the nuclear sector was struggling to compete with natural gas and other renewable energy sources due to high operating costs and public perception challenges around safety.
However, the nuclear site’s revival marks a trend, as energy demand in the U.S. has been surging, with tech companies like Google investing billions in developing power-hungry AI data centers.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, total annual electricity consumption stateside hit a record high in 2024 — a ceiling that could continue to rise if data centers continue to expand at their current pace.
In the face of rising energy demands, Washington and the tech industry have been pushing nuclear energy as a potential way to address growing concerns about AI computing’s impacts on local energy grids.
In addition to bringing more energy online, nuclear energy provides a potential pathway for Big Tech to continue their data center rollout while also curbing carbon emissions.
“[The Google-NextEra partnership] serves as a model for the investments needed across the country to build energy capacity and deliver reliable, clean power, while protecting affordability and creating jobs that will drive the AI-driven economy,” Ruth Porat, president and chief investment officer of Alphabet and Google, said.
Media outlets had taken note when Google, in June, had quietly removed its commitment to achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2030 from the main page of its corporate sustainability website amid expansion of its AI plans.
Data center projects across the U.S. have also faced growing public pushback. In September, Google withdrew plans for a new data center in Indiana after community groups raised concerns about resource use and environmental impacts, local media reported.
On the other hand, Iowa has so far proved receptive to such projects, with Google having invested more than $6.8 billion into data centers in the state. Iowa lawmakers have praised the latest project in the joint release, saying it will support local jobs and energy grids.
“Bringing Duane Arnold back online is a big win for Linn County and the entire state of Iowa,” State Senator Charlie McClintock said, adding that the announcement shows Iowa can “keep the lights” on for residents and businesses.
Exclusively save up to 56% on Bluetti power stations for outdoor adventures starting from $209 for Halloween Sale
As part of Bluetti’s ongoing Halloween Sale, which gave us new and exclusive low prices on the Apex 300 Versatile Power Station and bundles, we wanted to shine a spotlight on the brand’s other camping-ready and appliance backup deals – all with exclusive savings! You’ll find options like the Elite 100 v2 Portable Power Station bundled with a 200W solar panel for $626.05 shipped, after using the exclusive code 9TO5TOYS5OFF at checkout for an extra 5% savings. Normally carrying a $1,299 full price tag here and going for as much as $1,399 at Amazon and other marketplaces, we’ve seen discounts since its release in June take the price as low as $659 in previous sales, including during Prime Day three weeks ago. With the exclusive code being used, you can now score it even lower at a total $673 markdown that gives you the best new price we have tracked. Head below to browse the full lineup of deals we’ve collected for you.
Mimicking much of the same upgrades we’ve seen from the Elite 200 V2 model, Bluetti’s newer Elite 100 V2 power station comes as a smaller option with a 1,024Wh LiFePO4 battery for your campsite and traveling power needs. Your devices and small appliances can receive up to 1,800W of steady power (surging as high as 2,700W) when connected to any of its 11 output ports. Those include four ACs, two USB-Cs, two USB-As, two DCs, and a car port – plus, everything is rated for up to 4,000+ charging cycles, which should last you for years and years to come.
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Plugging the station into an AC outlet can get it back to an 80% battery in 45 minutes or you can wait a little longer for 70 minutes to reach full. The bundle here gives you 200W of its max 1,000W solar input for charging in the sunlight, with options to plug into your car’s auxiliary port, a generator, and even utilizing an AC outlet and solar panels together.
***Note: None of the prices below have had the exclusive savings factored in, so be sure to use the code 9TO5TOYS5OFF at checkout to score the best prices during Bluetti’s Halloween Sale!
Bluetti’s Outdoor adventuring Halloween Sale deals:
Heybike is clearing stock of its Tyson uni-body folding e-bike with an $800 price cut to a new $999 low
Running alongside its ongoing Halloween e-bike Sale, Heybike is now offering a special clearance sale on its Tyson Uni-Body Folding e-bike for $999 shipped. This model has normally gone for $1,799 at full price, with discounts regularly dropping the costs between $1,399 and $1,599 over the year, with occasional falls to the $1,299 low. This model has been left out of many of the most recent sales, though, and now we’re seeing the brand clearing out its stock by dropping it lower than ever with the $800 markdown here, landing it at a new all-time low price.
Govee’s Matter Outdoor Garden Lights 2-pack drops $70 back to its $130 low for the second time
Through the official Govee Amazon storefront, we’re getting a return to the best pricing on the brand’s Outdoor Garden Light 2-Pack at $129.99 shipped. This new lighting device has been on the market since June and carries a full $200 price tag outside of discounts, which we saw keeping above $140 until three weeks ago when Prime Day gave us the first drop to the $130 low. Things have kept above $150 in the weeks since, with that low price returning here today. You’ll be getting a $70 markdown while the deal lasts, landing it back at the lowest price we have tracked.
This 80V Greenworks 20-inch cordless snow blower kit drops to its $250 low (Today only)
As part of its Deals of the Day, Best Buy is offering the best rate on the Greenworks 80V 20-inch Cordless Snow Blower with 4.0Ah battery and rapid charger at $249.99 shipped. Normally, this handy winter machine fetches $450 at full price here, with the closest match we could find on Amazon being the kit that gives you a 2.0Ah battery and standard charger sitting at a full rate of $499. This is only the second time this year we’ve spotted this particular package getting a discount, with February having offered this same rate and 2024 having seen the price taken as low as $300 before that. For the rest of the day, you can pick it up with a $200 markdown that lands it back at an all-time low price.
The savings this week are also continuing to a collection of other markdowns. To the same tune as the offers above, these all help you take a more energy-conscious approach to your routine. Winter means you can lock in even better off-season price cuts on electric tools for the lawn while saving on EVs and tons of other gear.
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GM is laying off a total of 3,300 workers at three separate manufacturing sites in Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee, and it directly cites government actions as the reason.
The republican party has claimed that one of its primary goals in the current political environment is to bring manufacturing jobs back to America. However, as is the case with many of its claimed goals, the policy it implements acts directly against those goals.
In this case, republicans have been in the process of an all-out assault on American manufacturing – working to reduce investment in America, slow development of new manufacturing projects, make enemies out of countries and companies that had been our former allies, and directly stop efforts to boost America’s manufacturing base and prepare the country for the future.
And today, the effects of the republican party’s recent $4 trillion giveaway to wealthy elites are being felt by one of America’s largest historical manufacturing employers: General Motors.
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GM cites “evolving regulatory environment” as it fires thousands
GM announced that it would lay off 1,200 workers in in “Factory Zero” plant in Detroit and 550 in Ohio at its Ultium battery plant, along with 850 additional temporary layoffs in Ohio and another 700 temporary layoffs at its Ultium plant in Tennessee. That’s a total of 3,300 jobs lost in today’s announcement.
Both Ultium plants will be temporarily idled at the start of 2026, resuming sometime in the middle of the year, with upgrades occurring during the pause.
GM made a statement directly tying the layoffs to “an evolving regulatory environment” which has caused “slower near-term EV adoption.”
Companies have falsely claimed for around two years now that EV demand is down, despite that it has increased for that entire time. However, there was a spike in EV demand last month as the US EV tax credit ended, causing a pull-forward of demand that is likely to result in a period of lower EV sales in the US in the coming months, even as EV sales will continue to rise globally.
While GM is one of the better-selling EV brands in the US, and has quite an extensive stable of options, it has also recently unwisely pulled back on its EV ambitions, offering an opening for its domestic and foreign rivals to fill the gap created by its intransigence. And these are not the only policy-related layoffs GM has announced – it already fired thousands of workers last month.
GM recently said it will lose $1.6 billion this quarter alone as a result of these changes in policy, including rollbacks in clean air regulation from the EPA and DoT, which GM lobbied for through its membership in the Alliance for Automotive Innovation. That’s a lot of money to lose (especially after literally asking for it), so firings were basically inevitable.
Biden brought auto jobs to the US; republicans send them to China instead
The bill also led to trade deals that would help to wrest control of raw materials from China, the country that currently has most of the world’s supply and refining capacity, such as a US-Japan free-trade deal for battery minerals.
But as soon as this unquestionably good thing happened for America, republicans had to stop it. Their huge giveaway to the rich also included provisions to reverse most of the positive reforms in the Inflation Reduction Act, with the goal of stopping the boom in American manufacturing that happened under President Biden (because, of course, it threatens their oil masters).
In total, the republicans’ efforts to harm US manufacturing and make your air dirtier will likely result in 2 million job losses for America. GM’s 3,300 today are just one small story among many others – a wider retreat in American auto and clean energy manufacturing that is a direct result of the republican party’s actions.
Already, $24 billion in clean energy investments have been lost. These investments would have driven manufacturing growth and created not just those manufacturing jobs, but associated supply and service jobs to fund American communities.
And finally, the country that is most likely to benefit from this retreat in US manufacturing is China. China is currently experiencing a boom in EV manufacturing, and recently became the largest auto exporting country in the world due to Western refusal to take high-tech manufacturing seriously. The more the US retreats from manufacturing the vehicles that the whole world wants, the more China will be happy to pick up the slack. And if we stick to this unwise direction, today’s firings will only be a fraction of the misery brought upon America by republican actions.
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The Super-ONE may be Honda’s smallest and most affordable EV, but with new features like Boost Mode, this electric hot hatch punches well above its weight.
Meet Honda’s new electric hot hatch, the Super-ONE
Honda revealed the Super-ONE prototype at the Japan Mobility Show on Wednesday, claiming it will offer a new type of driving experience.
I know, I know. We’ve heard it so many times from different brands that their latest concept will be a game-changer, but this one is real. And it will begin rolling out next year.
Honda said the electric hot hatch has already undergone “extensive testing” under various conditions in Japan, the UK, and other parts of Asia.
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We actually caught a glimpse of it in July at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. The Super EV Concept, as it was called at the time, took part in the hill climb event, debuting a funky new look.
The EV hot hatch is based on the N-One, Honda’s retro-looking electric kei car. Honda gave the compact EV a bold new look, adding a body kit that makes it look much bigger than it actually is. The Super-ONE offers much more than that the company promises.
The Honda Super-ONE (Source: Honda)
Honda said the name Super-ONE represents its aspirations to create an EV that “transcends conventional norms and standards (“super”) and delivers customer value unique only to Honda (“one and only”).
One of the coolest features is the new Boost Mode, which Honda exclusively designed for the electric hot hatch. When activated, it simulates the jerking and sounds of a gas engine with a simulated 7-speed transmission and an added Active Sound Control system.
The Honda Super-ONE (Source: Honda)
Similar to Hyundai’s N Grin Boost on the IONIQ 5 N, Honda said the Boost Mode feature unlocks the vehicle’s full power output. To top it off, Honda included dedicated features, such as a triple-gauge cluster and unique lighting, that activate during Boost Mode.
The interior of the Honda Super-ONE (Source: Honda)
Inside, the Super-ONE features sports seats exclusively designed for the model and a new horizontal instrument panel.
Starting in 2026, Honda will launch the production model in Japan, followed by other regions where demand for compact EVs is on the rise, such as the UK and Asia.
Honda has yet to reveal specific details, but given the N-One is 3,395 mm (133.7″) long, you can expect the new model to arrive roughly the same size.
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