Nuclear power is back. And this time, AI can help manage the reactors.
A revival in nuclear power—partly fed by ravenous demand from data centers for artificial intelligence—is leading to greater interest in harnessing AI to make those nuclear plants more efficient. The Energy Department’s Argonne National Laboratory, based in Lemont, Ill. and known for its work on nuclear reactors, has developed an AI-based tool that can assist with reactor design and help operators run nuclear plants, according to Richard Vilim, a senior nuclear engineer within the lab’s nuclear science and engineering division. “The nuclear plants were built over 30 years ago," Vilim said, “so they’re kind of dinosaurs when it comes to technology." Argonne’s plan is to offer PRO-AID to new, tech-forward nuclear builds, but it’s also eyeing the so-called dinosaurs, some of which are being resurrected by companies like Amazon and Microsoft to help power their AI data centers. For legacy nuclear plants, however, it’s not always obvious that the technology is worth the cost, said Vilim.
AI is giving us a nuclear renaissance: Can it help solve the climate crisis too?
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