Microsoft and Google invest in Blockchain software to make the cloud greener • Data Center Frontier

Microsoft and Google are investing in FlexiDAO, a software platform that uses blockchain technology to provide more detailed energy tracking, making it easier for these major cloud operators to achieve the goal of operating carbon-free operations around the clock.

FlexiDAO today announced a $ 6.5 million investment round led by SET Ventures, with investment from Google and the Microsoft Climate Innovation Fund, and existing investor EIT InnoEnergy.
FlexiDAO says it will use the new funding to expand its services, which use blockchain technology to certify and track electricity from production to consumption.

The technology promises to enable digital documentation of the carbon content of a company’s energy supply chain, and creates a way to validate claims that a company uses 100 percent renewable electricity. By offering granular analysis of energy sources, FlexiDAO allows customers to track carbon content on an hourly basis.

This capability is important for Google and Microsoft, which are already using FlexiDAO technology to support their goal of 100% carbon-free electricity around the clock by 2030.

“This investment is a significant milestone for FlexiDAO, but also for the broader 24/7 carbon-free energy market,” said Simone Accornero, CEO and co-founder of FlexiDAO. “If we do not act now by pushing cutting-edge technologies that decarbonize every electron, every hour of every day, we will never reach the decarbonization goals.”

Carbon accounting is an increasing priority

FlexiDAO is one of several new companies offering carbon accounting to help data center operators accelerate the transition to a carbon-free future. It uses a blockchain, an online ledger that tracks and validates assets, as well as data related to those assets. Blockchains are best known for their use in cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, but can also be customized to create platforms to track and manage assets in a supply chain – including energy and carbon.

As the world confronts the growing urgency of the climate crisis, the best cloud computing companies are stepping up their sustainability efforts. Although data center builders are already the biggest users of green energy, recent storms, heat waves and droughts have created a renewed sense of purpose with the climate.

In an effort to accelerate the technology sector’s response to climate change, the Infrastructure Masons Climate Accord (ICA) was launched in April, bringing together 70 companies to cut carbon production to the infrastructure that drives the Internet.

“The goal is global carbon accounting for digital infrastructure, which will influence market-based decisions and drive our industry to achieve carbon neutrality,” said Dean Nelson, founder and CEO of Infrastructure Masons.

But you can not do what you can not measure. Carbon accounting specialists such as FlexiDAO and nZero seek to solve this gap with software that provides 24 × 7 energy content tracking, and the data center sector is an early user of both platforms.

Free resource from Data Center Frontier White Paper Library

Distributed and centralized bypass architectures compared

When designing a power protection scheme for data centers, IT and plant managers must ask themselves whether a distributed or centralized backup strategy is more sensible. Unfortunately, there is no easy answer to that question. Download the new white paper from Vertiv that explores the principle of centralized versus distributed bypass and applies it equally to stand-alone monolithic and integrated modular UPS architectures.

We always respect your privacy, and we never sell or rent our list to third parties. By downloading this white paper, you accept our terms of use. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Get this PDF emailed to you.

Google was the first company to announce plans to be carbon-free around the clock back in 2019, and says that the relationship with FlexiDAO will help their efforts.

“As Google and others move toward carbon-free energy around the clock, we need new capabilities that enable us to track with credibility how the carbon-free electricity produced matches what is being consumed,” said Maud Texier, Global Head of Clean Energy Development. by Google. “We are very excited about the value that the partnership with FlexiDAO will release for Google and for the energy transition.”

Last year, Microsoft committed to having 100% of its power consumption equivalent to zero carbon sources 100% of the time by 2030.

“We know that to achieve this goal, we will need innovative solutions such as FlexiDAO that will help reliably track and verify carbon-free energy consumption,” said Brandon Middaugh, Director of the Microsoft Climate Innovation Fund. “Through Microsoft’s Dutch data center pilot for FlexiDAO’s granular energy certification and this new investment, we are pleased to partner with FlexiDAO to advance our zero carbon vision and to catalyze grid decarbonization.”

nZero works with data center providers

Another company that provides carbon accounting services to data centers is nZero (formerly Ledger8760), a Reno-based company that offers carbon tracking for Aligned Data Centers, Corscale Data Centers, T5 Data Centers and Ascent. nZero is led by CEO Adam Kramer, who has extensive experience with digital infrastructure from his time as head of Switch.

“Businesses and other entities are facing increasing pressure to understand and disclose their carbon footprint,” K. said.ramer. “We believe we are on track for a major shift in responsibility for climate change, and nZero will be here to help capture actionable and auditable data and create a new standard for accuracy in emissions reporting.”

nZero says that their climate management platform collects accurate, first-party, contextual data instead of relying on third-party services or averages, so that users can find energy opportunities within their operations and easily implement carbon reduction actions.

The nZero platform enables data centers to synchronize all their tool data, including water and gas usage, to provide a unified view of emissions and then link it to the center’s financial data.

“Many data centers claim to be 100% green, but before they measure carbon intensity 24/7, it’s difficult to back it up,” Kramer said. “We see that too many companies are caught up in receiving inaccurate emissions data or not capturing it often enough. We are pleased to help these data centers create a new standard for their industry and enable customers to more easily access the data they need to achieve carbon-free energy targets. “

“Aligned has been committed to addressing data center infrastructure, energy consumption and water use challenges since its inception,” he said. Andrew SchaapCEO of Aligned Data Centers, who said that the partnership with nZero “manages our platform with real-time, accurate and action-oriented data that our customers can utilize to make more informed business decisions and reduce their overall environmental impact.”

Corscale is a new player in the data center industry, with the ability to optimize for sustainability from the outset.

“The ability to now enable new operating models for hyperscaling customers and balance their workloads across different clean energy sources is an important advantage,” he said. Nic Bustamante, Senior Vice President of Corscale. “We want to ensure that we as managers of critical natural resources enable the customer’s own goals through real-time energy transparency.”