SPAN tests mini data center units installed next to new homes

In short: SPAN is piloting a plan to place small “data center” boxes next to new homes and cover part of the home’s power and internet costs in return.

What happened

A San Francisco startup called SPAN says it is testing “XFRA nodes,” which are small computing units installed alongside houses. SPAN has begun pilot testing and is preparing for a 100-home trial.

Each unit would include high-end computer chips used for AI work, plus cooling designed to keep noise low. SPAN says this could add more computing capacity without waiting for large, warehouse-style data centers to be built.

For homeowners, the pitch is simple. SPAN would pay the electricity and internet bills, and residents might pay a flat monthly fee, the company has floated $150, or possibly nothing. Each home would also get a wall-mounted smart electrical panel and a backup battery, which could keep some circuits running during outages.

SPAN says the system is designed to mostly use spare electrical capacity in modern homes. If a house briefly needs more power, the setup would first use the battery, and in rare cases could temporarily slow “flexible” uses like electric vehicle charging. Homeowners would be able to set priorities, like choosing which things get reduced first.

Why it matters

AI services need a lot of computing power, and big data centers can be hard to build because of land, water, and electricity limits. SPAN’s idea is like turning many homes into a neighborhood network of small server rooms (a bit like having lots of mini warehouses instead of one huge one). If it works, some residents could get cheaper utilities, but experts say it could raise questions about local grid strain, theft risk, and security since the hardware is spread out.

Source: Arstechnica