Google’s escalating electricity demand for data centers has pushed the company to back one of the most ambitious bets in the U.S. energy sector: advanced nuclear power.
The company announced that a 50-megawatt small modular reactor (SMR) developed by California-based Kairos Power will be built in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, with the aim of supplying carbon-free electricity to Google’s regional data centers by 2030.
The project is part of Google’s broader commitment to secure 500 MW of advanced nuclear capacity under corporate power purchase agreements (PPAs). At scale, that capacity could power around 350,000 homes—although its primary role here is to sustain data infrastructure driving artificial intelligence and cloud services. U.S. data center energy demand is projected to nearly double by 2030, according to the Electric Power Research Institute, and tech companies are increasingly confronting a widening gap between corporate decarbonization goals and grid realities.
For Kairos Power, the Oak Ridge project represents a high-stakes proving ground. Its design is part of the so-called Generation IV class of nuclear technologies, which rely on alternative coolants—such as molten salt or helium—instead of conventional water systems. Advocates argue these designs offer inherent safety advantages and lower waste generation compared to existing reactor fleets. Yet, none of these designs have yet been commercialized in the U.S., underscoring the risks Google is taking in aligning its energy supply strategy with early-stage nuclear deployment.
The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), a major regional utility and federal corporation, has signed a long-term PPA to deliver the plant’s output to Google’s facilities in Tennessee and Alabama. The agreement marks the first instance of a U.S. utility contracting for Generation IV nuclear power, highlighting a potential new model for aligning large corporate buyers, public utilities, and advanced nuclear developers.
Policy support has been critical to moving the project forward. The Department of Energy has included Kairos Power in its Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program, providing both funding and technical assistance to help navigate regulatory and operational challenges. U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright positioned the project as central to maintaining “U.S. AI dominance and energy leadership,” directly linking reliable carbon-free electricity to the competitiveness of digital industries.
The choice of Oak Ridge is itself symbolic. The region has deep historical ties to U.S. nuclear research dating back to the Manhattan Project, and its existing technical ecosystem makes it a natural testbed for new reactor technologies. But the leap from demonstration-scale designs to a commercially reliable plant remains uncertain. While SMRs have long been touted as a potential cornerstone of a decarbonized grid, rising costs and licensing delays have slowed earlier projects in the U.S. and abroad.
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