– A test server hall tucked inside America's "data center alley" offers a rare firsthand look inside the AI boom.Why it matters: Seeing how AI is physically made helps sharpen our understanding of the unprecedented data center buildout that is becoming increasingly unpopular around the country.Behind the scenes: I recently toured an innovation lab by Digital Realty in Northern Virginia, home to the world's largest concentration of data centers.Digital Realty is one of the world's oldest and most established data center operators.The lab, which opened in September, allows the company to test new technologies and show visitors — like customers, lawmakers and journalists — what it's like to be inside.A similar one opened in London in June.Inside the room: I was immediately hit with what I can only describe as "demented white noise."The sound comes from fans cooling racks of AI chips that generate enormous amounts of heat.It felt like standing inside one giant computer. Even beneath my feet, a glass floor revealed pipes and other infrastructure helping keep the servers cool.Zoom in: At the bottom of one of the closet-sized racks sat a gold-colored Nvidia AI system packed with multiple AI chips. The gold is intentional — but not real.
"Gold is associated with high value and performance," Nvidia spokesperson Kira Sarkisian said by email."That's about $1 million right there," said my tour guide, Digital Realty engineer Tor Nyström, referring to the entire rack. From L to R: Inside the lab with a glass floor exposing the closed-loop cooling system of pipes and the server racks on either side; A close-up of the golden Nvidia AI system; A full rack of AI infrastructure one engineer estimated costs about $1 million. I came away convinced companies can show the public how these facilities work without revealing propri…
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