Inner Mongolia Secures $27.49 Billion in 12 AI Projects, Launches Global Services Platform
Updated
Updated · TNW · Aug 24
Inner Mongolia Secures $27.49 Billion in 12 AI Projects, Launches Global Services Platform
3 articles · Updated · TNW · Aug 24
Summary
$27.49 billion in green computing deals was signed in Hohhot, where Inner Mongolia also started building a platform to market Chinese AI services overseas.
The 12 projects involve ByteDance cloud arm Volcano Engine, Cambricon and China Telecom, spanning intelligent computing centers, token factories and computing-power and power-equipment manufacturing.
Hohhot is pitching scale and low costs: Horinger New Area already has 62 computing centers with 150,000 petaflops of capacity, while neighboring Ulanqab has 172,000 petaflops in operation.
Cheap renewable-heavy power underpins the buildout, with electricity around 0.36 yuan per kilowatt-hour, green power use above 80% and cooling costs cut by Hohhot's cool climate.
The expansion fits Beijing's 2021 'Eastern Data Western Computing' strategy, though researchers say data centers often bring limited job spillovers and can add to local debt burdens.