Vancouver gets a factory for floating wave-energy data centers - Oregon Public Broadcasting
Portland-based Panthalassa unveiled a new factory in Vancouver, Washington, where it plans to mass-produce wave-powered nodes for floating AI computation hubs. The company says the technology could provide renewable power for offshore data centers while avoiding some land-based facilities' carbon, water and neighborhood impacts.
Panthalassa unveiled its new manufacturing facility in Vancouver, Washington, on Nov. 6, marking the Portland-based startup's move from building individual prototypes to assembly-line production. The factory, located in a former Kaiser Shipyard warehouse near the Columbia River, is expected to employ about 50 people when fully staffed and will produce large floating nodes for deployment in the deep ocean.
The company, led by co-founder and CEO Garth Sheldon-Coulson, plans to use wave energy captured by self-driving buoys to power floating AI computation hubs. Panthalassa has raised more than $300 million this year, with backing that includes Peter Thiel and other technology investors, but its approach remains a test of whether ocean energy can become commercially viable at scale. The company ultimately hopes to replicate the Vancouver manufacturing model at factories around the world.