Startup's nuclear-inspired cooling system could make data centers more sustainable
Ferveret, a startup founded by two MIT nuclear engineering researchers, has built a liquid cooling system for AI data center chips that uses zero water and reports a 15% gain in computational power efficiency over current liquid cooling. The company borrows a heat-transfer method called subcooled boiling from inside nuclear reactors, submerging servers in a special liquid to pull heat off chips far faster than air. Paired with its power-control software, the setup lets AI models generate 35% more tokens from the same amount of power.
Key Takeaways
- The startup Ferveret, founded by MIT Associate Professor Matteo Bucci and former MIT postdoc Reza Azizian, reduces the energy required to cool chips in data centers that power AI.
Founded by two researchers from MIT, Ferveret reduces the amount of energy and water required to cool the chips that power AI.
- Credits : Credit: Courtesy of Ferveret *Terms of Use: Images for download on the MIT News office website are made available to non-commercial entities, press and the general public under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives license .
You may not alter the images provided, other than to crop them to size.
- Credits : Credit: Courtesy of Ferveret Previous image Next image The rise of artificial intelligence is riding on the back of an enormous data center expansion.
Data centers are projected to account for anywhere from 9 to 17 percent of total electricity usage in the U.S. by the end of the decade.
- Edgerton Associate Professor in the Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering, is adapting an approach from nuclear reactors to cool chips using no water and significantly less electricity.
The company's cooling system submerges computer servers in a specialized liquid that absorbs heat much more efficiently than air from a fan.
- "Our system enables the operation of more powerful chips, it helps data centers waste a lot less energy, and it accomplishes all that with zero water consumption."
Stats & Key Facts
- #Ferveret, a startup founded by two MIT nuclear engineering researchers, has built a liquid cooling system for AI data center chips that uses zero water and reports a 15% gain in computational power efficiency over current liquid cooling.
- #Paired with its power-control software, the setup lets AI models generate 35% more tokens from the same amount of power.
- #Zach Winn | MIT News Publication Date : June 10, 2026 Press Inquiries Press Contact : Abby Abazorius Email: abbya@mit.edu MIT News Office Media Download ↓ Download Image Caption : Ferveret's cooling system submerges computer servers in a specialized liquid that absorbs heat much more efficiently than air from a fan.
- #By combining those savings with Ferveret's power control system to optimize operating conditions, the company says it allows data centers to get 35 percent more tokens - small pieces of text or data - from their AI models with the same amount of power.
The startup Ferveret, founded by MIT Associate Professor Matteo Bucci and former MIT postdoc Reza Azizian, reduces the energy required to cool chips in data centers that power AI. Founded by two researchers from MIT, Ferveret reduces the amount of energy and water required to cool the chips that power AI. Zach Winn | MIT News Publication Date : June 10, 2026 Press Inquiries Press Contact : Abby Abazorius Email: abbya@mit.edu MIT News Office Media Download ↓ Download Image Caption : Ferveret's cooling system submerges computer servers in a specialized liquid that absorbs heat much more efficiently than air from a fan.
What makes the solution different from other liquid cooling systems are smaller bubbles at the surface of the server, which detach more frequently, accelerating the heat transfer process. Credits : Credit: Courtesy of Ferveret *Terms of Use: Images for download on the MIT News office website are made available to non-commercial entities, press and the general public under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives license . You may not alter the images provided, other than to crop them to size.
A credit line must be used when reproducing images; if one is not provided below, credit the images to "MIT." : Ferveret's cooling system submerges computer servers in a specialized liquid that absorbs heat much more efficiently than air from a fan. What makes the solution different from other liquid cooling systems are smaller bubbles at the surface of the server, which detach more frequently, accelerating the heat transfer process.
For more details please read the original article at MIT News AI.
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