Nvidia is collaborating with data center equipment firms to develop new power systems to support incoming 1MW+ racks.
Using 800V high-voltage direct current (HVDC), this new architecture will centralize power distribution in AI data centers, allowing power to be converted from AC to DC at the GPU level, within the server board, minimizing energy losses.
Partners for the project include Infineon, STMicroelectronics, and Texas Instruments for the silicon; Delta and Flex Power for the power system components; and Eaton, Schneider Electric, and Vertiv for the data center power systems.
“Today’s racks in AI factories rely on 54V DC power distribution, where bulky copper busbars shuttle electricity from rack-mounted power shelves to compute trays. As racks exceed 200 kilowatts, this approach begins to hit physical limits,” read a blog post from Nvidia, highlighting issues around space constraints, copper overload, and inefficient conversions.
The company said its 800V HVDC architecture addresses these challenges through a “holistic redesign,” removing the need for the multiple voltage conversions that take place at various stages between the grid and rack and freeing up “valuable space for more compute resources, allowing for higher-density configurations and improved cooling efficiency.”
According to Nvidia, its approach could result in up to five percent improvement in end-to-end power efficiency and reduce maintenance costs by up to 70 percent, power supply unit failures, and lower labor costs for component upkeep.
Cooling costs could also be reduced by removing AC/DC power supply units from inside racks.
“800V HVDC isn’t just about today’s racks—it’s about future-proofing AI infrastructure,” the blog post said. “Full-scale production of 800V HVDC data centers will coincide with Nvidia Kyber rack-scale systems in 2027, ensuring seamless scalability for increasingly demanding AI models.“
Microsoft, Meta, and Google are all actively working towards supporting 1MW racks. The three are working on a power rack side pod known as Mount Diablo, with the specs set to be released to the OCP community.
