Technology

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.dbzer0.com/post/74108967

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.dbzer0.com/post/74091518

CME Group, the world's leading derivatives marketplace, and Silicon Data, the industry leader in GPU market intelligence and benchmarking backed by global trading firm DRW, today announced plans to launch two Compute futures contracts on October 5, 2026, pending regulatory review.

These innovative new trading tools will bring much-needed hedging and investment vehicles to businesses looking to manage the cost of compute, the processing power and hardware infrastructure that machines need to train and run AI models. Both Silicon Data H100 Rental Index Futures and Silicon Data B200 Rental Index Futures will track indexes measuring hourly rental GPU costs published by Silicon Data. Each contract will represent a month's worth of rent for the Nvidia H100, the chip central to today's AI ecosystem, and the next-generation Nvidia Blackwell B200, respectively.

"Compute has become the currency of the AI age, and this innovative market will bring transparency to the current and future costs that AI builders and hyperscalers need to hedge as they grow," said Pete Keavey, Global Head of Energy and Environmental Products at CME Group. "Just as oil fueled the 20th century economy and evolved from spot trading into a global derivatives market, our futures contracts will now turn compute into a standardized, tradable commodity that will provide global businesses with a reliable, regulated venue to manage price risk ."

"For years, two companies buying the exact same GPU capacity could pay wildly different prices with no way to know who got the better deal. They will now have a benchmark to check that against," said Carmen Li, Chief Executive Officer of Silicon Data. "Compute futures give the market something it's never had: a public, tradable reference price for the resource every AI system runs on. Silicon Data's benchmarks make that price real; CME makes it tradable. Together, that turns compute from something enterprises negotiate blindly into a market they can actually plan around."

Explosive demand has driven sharp swings in compute prices, with volatility exposing a gap in the risk-management toolkit for companies building the AI infrastructure. CME Group and Silicon Data's Compute futures close that gap, bringing transparency to the market and allowing companies, including AI developers and hyperscalers, to lock in their costs. They will also provide a window into future AI spending.

FARA FRIDAY: Israel has launched a new campaign to influence how large-language models like ChatGPT are answering questions about Gaza and the Israel Defense Forces amid declining public support for the country across the U.S. political spectrum.

The institute’s website features dozens of “data reports” with no named authors, each of which features questions like “Is the IDF the World’s Most Moral Army?” and “Is There a Policy of Starvation in Gaza?” — a telltale sign that the articles are designed to feed data to LLMs. The site’s “About” page says “The Hanover Institute for Public Policy studies the inputs fueling antisemitism in the United States, and publishes what the evidence shows,” adding that its unidentified founder “traces this work to a moment in childhood.”

It appears to be working: ChatGPT and Perplexity both cited the Hanover Institute’s material in response to neutral tests run by PI, referring to the site’s content on Gaza, anti-Zionism and antisemitism.

title: "Google announces three new cable projects in the Americas" url: "https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/google-announces-three-new-cable-projects-in-the-americas/" author: "Dan Swinhoe"

Google has announced three new subsea cables in the Americas.

The search giant this week announced three new subsea cable systems - Alisios, Canoa, and OlaLuz – linking south, central, and north America.

The three cables form part of the Americas Connect initiative alongside the previously announced Firmina, Curie, Nuvem, and Sol cables.

The Alisios subsea cable system will connect the Dominican Republic, Panama, and Chile.

Canoa will connect the Dominican Republic to Bermuda, where the Sol and Nuvem cables land.

The OlaLuz cable will connect the Dominican Republic directly to Florida.

Google is also introducing a new branch of the Firmina subsea cable that will land directly in the Dominican Republic.

Capacities, landing points, and project timelines weren’t shared.

“Named after regional maritime traditions, these cables will create highly resilient, diverse routes connecting Chile, Panama, the Dominican Republic, Bermuda, Florida, and beyond,” Bikash Koley, Google VP of global infrastructure, said on LinkedIn. “By creating geographically diverse rings across the Pacific Coast, Caribbean Sea, and Atlantic Ocean, we’re helping bridge the digital divide, connect communities, and drive economic growth in partnership with local governments.”

The new cables will link with Google’s existing subsea infrastructure in the region. Sol and Nuvem link North America and Bermuda to Europe. Firmina and Curie link Brazil and Chile to the US.

The Alisios cable is named after the vientos alisios - the Spanish term for the trade winds that blow across the tropics and the Caribbean, historically used by sailors to navigate between continents. Canoa comes from the Taíno word for canoe, harkening to the longstanding maritime culture in the Caribbean and North Atlantic. The name OlaLuz combines the Spanish words for "wave" (ola) and "light" (luz), referencing the waves of light that carry data along the cable on the ocean floor.

“As we welcome the announcement of the Alisios, OlaLuz, and Canoa subsea cable systems, the Dominican Republic is pleased to continue partnering with Google to bolster digital connectivity and innovation as part of Americas Connect,” said Luis Rodolfo Abinader Corona, president of the Dominican Republic. “Our participation in the Caribbean and Latin America telecommunications network allows us to join our partners in strengthening connectivity across the Americas, serving as an integral node in this expanding digital ecosystem. Our shared vision supports a leap forward in the DR government’s quest to bridge the digital divide, foster local talent, and drive tech-based economic opportunity for our people. This milestone is yet another piece of our collaboration with Google propelling the Dominican Republic into a new era of global digital integration.”

The Dominican Republic currently has three data centers, according to Data Center Map, all located in Santo Domingo and operated by Kio or NAPCaribe (x2). Six cables land there across five landing points.

Google has invested in more than 30 subsea cables in the past 15 years, more than any other hyperscaler, both privately and part of multi-party consortia. The search giant is developing multiple cable landing stations and “connectivity hubs” across a number of locations to support its network build-out.

https://archive.ph/ApymE

Link to video: https://xcancel.com/TadhgHickey/status/2087924096008880309

https://archive.ph/6eeKS