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Explained: What are dark GPUs and how are they holding back the AI boom?

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Explained: What are dark GPUs and how are they holding back the AI boom?

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Explained: What are dark GPUs and how are they holding back the AI boom?

Power shortages are leaving billions of dollars' worth of AI chips unused at data centres. Here's what dark GPUs are, why they matter and how they could slow the AI boom

A graphics processing unit (GPU) is a specialised computer chip designed to handle several calculations at the same time.

Rimjhim Singh New Delhi 5 min read Last Updated : Oct 30 2026 | 10:25 AM IST

The artificial intelligence (AI) boom has run into an unexpected problem: some of the world's most powerful computer chips are sitting idle because data centres do not have enough electricity to run them, Business Insider reported. These unused chips, known as 'dark GPUs', highlight a growing gap between the pace of investment in AI infrastructure and the availability of power to support it.

Business Insider reported last week that Amazon was buying billions of dollars' worth of Nvidia AI systems even as some of its data centres lacked the electricity needed to operate them. Internal company emails reviewed by Business Insider showed that Amazon Web Services (AWS) expected to receive about $5 billion worth of Nvidia GB300 server racks in August this year, followed by around $3 billion worth every month.

Some of the equipment was being stored in warehouses until the required power infrastructure became available.

A graphics processing unit (GPU) is a specialised computer chip designed to handle several calculations at the same time.


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