Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates revealed that he will continue to invest billions of dollars in the &#34;next generation&#34; of nuclear power plants in Wyoming, USA, to meet the country's growing electricity needs.
Gates stated in a weekend CBS program that TerraPower, a nuclear energy company he founded and chairs, broke ground last week in Wyoming to build its first commercial nuclear reactor, as a local coal-fired power plant recently closed down.
Gates mentioned that coal is being replaced by natural gas, and their goal is to effectively compete with natural gas. Gates is deeply committed to nuclear power construction, stating, &#34;I have invested over a billion dollars in TerraPower and will invest billions more.&#34;
According to public information, the TerraPower nuclear plant project was approved by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission in May this year. It is the first commercial &#34;non-light water&#34; reactor to reach this stage in the United States in over 40 years, and is considered a &#34;next generation&#34; nuclear power plant project in the US. As reported by The New York Times, the project uses liquid sodium instead of water as a coolant, theoretically resulting in shorter construction time, lower operating costs, and no carbon dioxide emissions that contribute to rapid global warming during power generation.
The TerraPower nuclear plant project has received support from the US Department of Energy and is initially expected to start operating in 2028. Gates mentioned that TerraPower plans to purchase nuclear reactor fuel from the US and its allied countries.
Carbon-free nuclear power is increasingly seen as a key solution to climate change, with many companies deploying small nuclear reactors. Bloomberg data shows that at COP28 climate change conference held in Dubai last year, 25 countries announced ambitious goals to double nuclear power generation.
<h2>AI Power Demand Surges, Microsoft Bets on Nuclear Power Generation</h2>
As Microsoft further develops in AI and supercomputing, to meet the massive power demand, Microsoft is accelerating the deployment of nuclear power. The electricity consumption of a new data center is equivalent to that of tens of thousands of households, and nuclear power can provide power around the clock.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman also told CNBC last year that to address the increasing energy demand from AI, nuclear power may be the best solution.
As early as 2008, Gates invested in founding TerraPower and has since continuously supported the company's development. In June this year, Microsoft partnered with a leading energy company in the US with the most nuclear power plants, which will provide &#34;second-precision&#34; power supply to Microsoft's Virginia data center.
The energy company estimates that with the explosion of AI, the power demand of data centers will be 5 to 6 times that of electric vehicle charging demand

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As AI is developing rapidly, Microsoft is also accelerating its layout in nuclear power. Gates said, "I have invested over a billion dollars and will invest tens of billions more."

1. Core descriptive facts:
   - Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft, is investing billions of dollars in building a new generation of nuclear power plants in Wyoming to meet the increasing electricity demand in the United States.
   - TerraPower, a nuclear energy company chaired by Gates, has started construction on its first commercial nuclear reactor in Wyoming.
   - The TerraPower nuclear plant project, approved by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in May, will use liquid sodium as a coolant instead of water, aiming for shorter construction time, lower operating costs, and zero carbon dioxide emissions during power generation.
2. Views and supporting logic:
   - Bill Gates is investing heavily in nuclear power to compete effectively with natural gas as coal is being replaced by it.
   - Nuclear power, particularly with TerraPower's innovative design, is seen as a key solution to address climate change by providing carbon-free electricity.
   - With the rapid growth of AI and data centers, Microsoft is turning to nuclear power to meet the massive electricity demands, as nuclear energy can provide power around the clock.
   - Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, also sees nuclear energy as a potential optimal solution to the increasing energy demands of AI.
   - The partnership between Microsoft and a leading energy company in the U.S. aims to provide precise and reliable power supply to data centers, anticipating a significant increase in electricity demand due to the AI boom.
Overall, the main messages conveyed by the author are the significant investments by Bill Gates in TerraPower's innovative nuclear power plant project, the shift towards nuclear energy to meet growing electricity demands driven by AI development, and the potential of nuclear power as a clean and reliable energy source to combat climate change.

AI power demand surges! Gates says will invest billions of dollars to build nuclear power plants