Pre-Conference Masterclass: Exploring New Energy Delivery Systems

Member Price: $185

Non-Member Price: $275

Artificial intelligence workloads invoke unprecedented transient power demands that traditional UPS systems and grid infrastructure cannot buffer effectively. While effective, these AI solutions highlight the need for a broader rethink of energy delivery in AI scale data centers. Supercapacitors represent a complementary path forward. Unlike lithium ion storage, they deliver ultrafast charge and discharge response with virtually unlimited cycle life and minimal degradation. Rack level or hall level supercapacitor arrays can absorb transient surges from synchronized workload ramps and discharge smoothly during deceleration, significantly reducing stress on PDUs, feeders, and upstream grid connections. Field data shows supercapacitor modules capable of mitigating ±450 kW swings, damping voltage transients that would otherwise cascade through the facility. Microgrids extend this design further. As localized energy systems that integrate distributed energy resources such as solar, wind, fuel cells, or generators, microgrids can operate in grid-connected or island mode as needed. They enhance reliability, reduce reliance on diesel backup, and support sustainability by integrating renewables and optimizing energy costs. As energy-hungry AI data centers strain existing grids, microgrids offer flexible and resilient architectural alternatives for energy delivery. When combined with advanced software orchestration such as power aware tuning, ramp rate control, and thermal scheduling, these systems evolve into intelligent energy fabrics. GPU dense clusters operate with greater predictability, improving performance per watt and delivering measurable improvements in power usage effectiveness. Integration with next generation power electronics creates a hierarchical delivery model where grid, supercapacitors, batteries, and compute interconnects collaborate seamlessly.