Nebraska Data Center News

Jan 14, 2026

Lawmakers Warn Digital Trade Rules Will Shape U.S. AI Leadership

The House Ways and Means Committee held a hearing on “Maintaining American Innovation and Technology Leadership” on Jan. 14, 2026.

The hearing concluded that foreign digital trade barriers (including digital services taxes and data localization mandates) and weakened IP enforcement threaten the fiber networks and data centers that underpin U.S. AI, cloud services, and digital exports; witnesses included Nigel Corey (Crowell Global Advisors) and former USPTO Director Andrei Iancu.
Background and next steps:
- Policy actions under consideration: review of digital trade provisions under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement and ongoing international negotiations on cross-border data flows.
- Countries cited:China, European Union, Canada, Australia.
- Date & location: Jan. 14, 2026, Washington, D.C.; Agenda/subject: “Maintaining American Innovation and Technology Leadership” (focus on digital trade, data flows, and patent reform).

Jan 7, 2026

Patented: Making a Degradable Ice Straw and More North Texas Inventive Activity

Prive Products of Dallas has received a newly granted U.S. patent for a system and method to make degradable drinking straws from ice, invented by Thomas Surgent (Patent No. 12484726).

Main announcement: Prive Products, LLC — Patent No. 12484726 (Application No. 17609970 filed 05/16/2020; 2026 days app to issue) — describes a system with tubes extending into a reservoir, a connecting bar delivering hot and cold fluid into the tubes, and a resulting hollow ice straw that can cool a beverage as liquid passes through the straw. The abstract states: “A system and method for making degradable drinking straws made of ice (or other frozen liquid(s)).”
Background & roundup details: Dallas-Fort Worth was ranked No. 9 among 250 metros for the week of 12/2/25 with 134 patents granted. The article is a patent roundup (announcement/summary) listing top assignees (e.g., Texas Instruments Inc. — 15 patents), notable grants (Bank of America, Dell, IBM, Verily, Lennox, Halliburton, etc.), and includes patent abstracts, assignees, inventor locations, application numbers and days from application to issue. For partnerships or deals, the article provides assignee and patent filing/issue dates but no implementation timelines beyond application and issue dates.

Jan 6, 2026

Ohio EPA reviewing data center discharge permits amid water quality concerns

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency is reviewing a proposal to issue five-year permits allowing eligible data centers to discharge cooling water into Ohio’s lakes and streams.

Main action: The draft would allow eligible data centers to obtain five-year permits to release cooling water; the permit text includes a ban on discharges within 500 yards upstream of a public water intake, prohibits discharges into groundwater and lakes other than Lake Erie, and uses standard NPDES “lowering” language for new or expanded discharges. The article states a single data center can use up to half a billion gallons of water daily for cooling.
Background and details:Environmental groups (Ohio Valley Environmental Group, Ohio River Foundation) raise concerns about PFAS contamination and limited capacity at rural treatment centers to filter contaminants; the Ohio EPA responded that permits include strict limits and monitoring and that data centers are not expected to be PFAS sources. The piece notes H2Ohio does not set discharge rules, mentions Bloom Energy as an alternative technology, and provides a public comment link (https://ohioepa.commentinput.com/?id=csDN8pRrg).

Jan 5, 2026

Beyond Energy Use: Strategies for Sustainable Data Center Operations

The article argues that data center operators must prioritize sustainable operations as rapid US data center growth is straining regional grids and driving a large e-waste burden.

Main announcement/action: The piece calls on data center operators to adopt sustainable operations and circular lifecycle practices (modular/repairable systems, component-level upgrades, secure sanitization and certified reuse/resale) to reduce grid strain and e-waste; it cites 1,240 data centers built or approved in the US by end of 2024 and urges adoption of standards such as NIST 800-88 and ISO 27040, and use of R2v3 / e-Stewards certified ITAD partners.
Background and details: The article summarizes evidence and policy responses: Virginia data centers consumed about 26% of state electricity in 2023 (with North Dakota 15%, Nebraska 12%), Illinois bills H.B. 3758 / S.B. 2497 target 15 GW of state energy storage and establish a virtual power plant program, California enforces efficiency/carbon rules via Title 24; global e-waste was 62 million tons in 2022 and a study warns generative AI could add 1.2–5 million tons annually; used hardware may retain hundreds of thousands of dollars in residual value.

Jan 2, 2026

State Broadband Bills of 2025: A Legislative Review

State legislatures across the United States enacted and considered broadband-related legislation in 2025; fewer than 140 of more than 600 proposed bills became law.

Main actions: States enacted laws prioritizing infrastructure and permitting reforms, pole and rights-of-way access, criminal penalties for theft/vandalism, state broadband funding, and data center incentives. Notable enacted measures include Hawaii H 934 (established a state Broadband Office and programs, enacted in June and backed by $400 million in combined funding), West Virginia SB 907 (expanded the Economic Development Project Fund to allow up to $25 million annually for broadband incentives and up to $125 million annually for broadband loan insurance) and West Virginia HB 2014 (signed in April; created microgrid districts with zoning/permitting exemptions and special property tax treatment for qualifying projects).
Additional details and timelines: States also raised criminal penalties (e.g., Oklahoma classified willful damage to a critical infrastructure facility as a Class D3 felony with fines up to $100,000 and prison up to 10 years; Louisiana authorized fines up to $50,000 and prison up to 20 years; California AB 476 increased penalties for knowingly buying illegally obtained scrap metal to $5,000). Other enacted programs include California SB 338 (a $2 million telehealth pilot), New Mexico SB 126 (Rural USF increased from $30 million to $40 million), and Oregon’s device support up to $100 in Lifeline-related assistance. At least 37 states passed data center incentives in 2025 and over 1,000 AI-focused bills were introduced nationwide, with ~38 states adopting or enacting roughly 100 AI measures in 2025.

Dec 17, 2025

DCF Trends Summit 2025: The Distributed Data Frontier - Edge, Interconnection, and the Future of Digital Infrastructure

Data Center Frontier published highlights from a panel discussion at the 2025 Data Center Frontier Trends Summit, moderated by Scott Bergs of Dark Fiber and Infrastructure, featuring executives from DartPoints, 1623 Farnam, Duos Edge AI, ValorC3 Data Centers, and 365 Data Centers.

Panel summary and key actions: The panel examined how AI inference is driving distributed infrastructure and shifting rack densities from legacy 4–6 kW toward common enterprise ranges of 12–30 kW, with some new builds targeting 50–80 kW and designs stretching toward 120 kW; Duos Edge AI targets 5–10 kW racks for modular edge units (with some hospital use cases at 20–30 kW), 1623 Farnam reports interconnection node loads of 8–14 kW, and Recker (Duos Edge) plans to pursue acquisitions of 1–2 MW facilities in tier 2 markets to build a hub-and-spoke edge network. The article was published on December 17, 2025, and the Call for Speakers for the 2026 DCF Trends Summit lists a proposal deadline of Jan. 9, 2026.
Background, constraints and implementation details: Panelists identified connectivity and middle-mile fiber as defining bottlenecks (building new dedicated conduit/cable systems can take 24 months or more), urged early carrier engagement, and noted carriers are being encouraged to upgrade to 400 Gbps capacity; they also recommended planning power, fiber, and zoning together, pre-ordering long-lead equipment (e.g., switchgear), and designing for electrical and cooling upgradability over multi-decade building lifecycles.

Dec 10, 2025

Private LTE Networks at the Edge: Faster Cloud Paths for Industrial Sites

1623 Farnam is promoting its edge data center and interconnection hub as the optimal termination point for private LTE and FWA backhaul from industrial sites to major cloud platforms.

Edge data center positioning: The article explains how industrial private LTE traffic can be backhauled directly into AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud via direct cloud on-ramps at 1623 Farnam’s central U.S. facility with 60+ carriers and cloud providers, reducing latency, congestion, and security risks compared with traversing the public Internet.
Industrial and logistics focus: It highlights use cases such as manufacturing automation, logistics and distribution centers, OT/IT convergence, and FWA backhaul, emphasizing low-latency paths, proximity to Omaha IX, and regional Nebraska/Midwest manufacturing and logistics corridors as key advantages for real-time robotics, analytics, and telemetry workloads.

Dec 2, 2025 · RMI

The Five Types of Electro-Industrial States

Rocky Mountain Institute presents a typology classifying US states into five electro-industrial archetypes.

Main announcement/action: RMI authors classify states into five archetypes — Momentum Hubs (Arizona, California), Fast‑Track Builders (Texas, Georgia, South Carolina, Florida, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Ohio, Idaho), Policy Champions (New York, Michigan, Virginia, Oregon, Washington, North Carolina, Wisconsin, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania), Open‑Door Starters (Vermont, Wyoming, Nebraska, Kansas, North Dakota, South Dakota, Mississippi, Iowa), and Early‑Stage Starters (Missouri, New Hampshire, Kentucky, Maine, Alabama, Louisiana, Indiana, West Virginia, Montana, Arkansas). The typology is based on policy reliability, regulatory ease, economic capacity, physical infrastructure (power and interconnection), and market momentum.
Background and details: The analysis highlights that market momentum and policy reliability should operate in tandem; low regulatory burdens accelerate short-term investment but may strain local housing and infrastructure without accompanying policy ambition. The authors reference the report GREASE Lightning as a policy playbook for designing investment-led, state-driven electro-industrial strategies.

Sep 10, 2025

ORNL wins 20 R&D 100 Awards

Oak Ridge National Laboratory announced it set a new lab record by winning 20 R&D 100 Awards in the current global competition (ORNL led 17 winners and co-developed three more, with 29 ORNL finalist technologies).

Main announcement & highlights: ORNL reports 20 R&D 100 Awards (17 led, 3 co-developed) across energy, materials, manufacturing, computing and emerging technologies; notable technology metrics include rotary transformer motor tested on a 200-kW BorgWarner motor (92–95% efficiency, up to 15% efficiency improvement, up to 25% higher power density, validated over 53,000 cycles ≈ 10 years), LMHE engine with 15% weight reduction and >10% fuel-efficiency improvement, heat pump water heater with 30% improvement in first-hour hot water delivery, and BIPHASICS CO2 capture claiming up to 46% less solvent regeneration energy and 30% lower CO2 capture cost vs MEA.
Background, partners and technical details: The announcement lists commercial and research partners and commercialization steps (e.g., The Sexton Corporation commercializing the underwater X-ray system; collaboration with BorgWarner, GM, Cummins, Soteria Battery Innovation Group, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, and academic partners). It documents technology specifics such as HyPoCap (surface area >4,000 m2/g; 610 F/g capacitance), E-GRIMS operating at ~800°C with >90% energy savings and completing graphitization in ~2 hours, Next-Gen Polyiso R-value 8.3 per inch (30% better), Future Foundries reducing production cycles by up to 68%, and simulation tools (DR-Weld, ExaDigiT, PRESTO, Simurgh) with stated performance claims and deployment partners. Funding sources and managing organization (UT-Battelle for DOE Office of Science) are also listed.

Aug 18, 2025

Nebraska Data Center Intel

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