More and more mainstream analysts are identifying the coming AI crash, which is a good indication that it will happen soon.

So, what happens to all the data centers? They are already built but probably very expensive to maintain. Will many of them just be abandoned? Bought up by cloud computing companies? Scammers? Crypto miners? Can they be parted out and sold off piecemeal?

Will they be put to some productive use, or just become massive e-waste sites left to the locals to deal with?

  • Psiczar@aussie.zone
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    29 minutes ago

    AI isn’t going away, there may be some consolidation of providers and right sizing of costs but AI is here to stay. Too many big companies have invested too much for it to fail.

  • WanderWisley@lemmy.world
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    16 hours ago

    They will just turn all the empty space inside into detention centers and keep all of us locked up.

  • Encrypt-Keeper@lemmy.world
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    17 hours ago

    If they’re already operational when that happens, likely sold off to cloud hyper scalers on the cheap. That or they’ll be turned into warehouses.

    Nothing half done will just be abandoned and the land sold.

  • WhatISawInTheWoods@lemmy.world
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    1 day ago

    My doom scenario: They will become low security prisons/manufacturing factories.
    Or Company Housing to go along with the Company Store where you will always be short 1 Company Buck to buy that half loaf of day old white bread…same thing, really.

  • mlg@lemmy.world
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    1 day ago

    The ones being built or planned to be built will have to be sold off.

    Probably not abadndoned, but land owner changing several hands in what is essentially someone buying a vacant lot. Maybe a handful will reuse any existing building already made, but most will be used for something new.

    The existing ones will start their fight to the lowest market price which will probably cause many to either sell to a different cloud provider or change hardware to something more profitable.

    None of the electronic hardware will go to waste because there will always be a demand for it, even if they sell it off at a loss. But any permanent fixtures like industrial cabling, ventilation, piping, etc probably will be wasted.

    There’s still no guarantee on whether it’ll implode or just slowly deflate though. The natural assumption would be that the post IPO pricing will completely wreck sales and value, but they could easily move to an enterprise vendor lock scenario where they can charge whatever they want due to tech stack deals like how MSFT runs teams.

    Remember, they’ll do anything in their power to keep the pumping going, even if it involves tax bailouts.

    • GarboDog@lemmy.world
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      1 day ago

      Hire funny wood it be if they tried to get a tax bail out and Trump approved it but he actually can’t do it since there’s no money left to bail them out

  • CultLeader4Hire@lemmy.world
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    1 day ago

    They will stop pretending they’re data centers and we will start calling them what they really are, surveillance centers

  • lemmydividebyzero@reddthat.com
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    1 day ago

    mainstream analysts are identifying the coming AI crash

    If so many people /experts are expecting a crash, the crash chances will be more and more included in the price. So far, I don’t see that at all.

    • amelia@feddit.org
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      4 hours ago

      Also, I don’t think the crash is going to be what people here seem to expect. It’s not like AI is going to die and just go away. The hype will just slow down and some companies will probably die. But its not like the technology will vanish and the hardware will be useless. Datacenters will still be used.

    • fruitycoder@sh.itjust.works
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      5 hours ago

      Its more like the dotcom bubble if the president was also clearly taking bribes and had significant interest is picking winners.

      Some AI companies are going to keep going providing the marginal value that they do. Just some of them will lose.

      Place your bets but the house wins

    • gedaliyah@lemmy.worldOP
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      1 day ago

      That has not been true of any historic financial bubble. Almost ALL of them have been clearly identified in advance. However, the nature of financial bubbles is that there is lots of money to be made leading up to the burst.

      Please learn a little history.

      • lemmydividebyzero@reddthat.com
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        8 hours ago

        That has not been true of any historic financial bubble. Almost ALL of them have been clearly identified in advance.

        Clearly identified by who? Maybe be a few. For sure not by the majority.

        There are people predicting crashes all the time… So many crashes that never happened. Just because someone predicts it doesn’t mean that it is going to happen.

        • gedaliyah@lemmy.worldOP
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          17 hours ago

          You know, that’s fair enough. But honestly people confidently spreading ridiculous misinformation can set me off a bit.

          • lemmydividebyzero@reddthat.com
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            8 hours ago

            Sharing an argument is “misinformation” nowadays, but writing “the coming AI crash” (as if that’s a fact) without posting a single source about those “more and more” analysis…? You are a rage-baiting troll.

    • iocase@lemmy.zip
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      1 day ago

      They tried to make pension funds into bag holders before those IPOs got blocked. I think the desperation surrounding getting those stocks added in 5 days should be a better indication than price.

        • iocase@lemmy.zip
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          1 day ago

          They decided not to change their rules to allow these unhealthy stocks in. They have to do the full process instead of skipping the line to make pensioners into bag holders as opposed to Altman and friends.

          They’re not blocked but they’re never going to be healthy enough to be added before they implode.

          If I smother OpenAI to death by denying them oxygen for 5 minutes did I “block” the entry of air into their lungs, or did they just not breathe for 5 minutes?

              • nosuchanon@lemmy.world
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                1 day ago

                As soon as they can be force listed on every index the will take the rest!

                I think they will leverage what money they raise via stocks sales to continue the buildout of the mainframe surveillance state.

                • iocase@lemmy.zip
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                  1 day ago

                  They’ll try. Once this bubble pops there literally isnt enough money for the US to print their way out of it. It’ll be a default on US treasuries since they got all the blood they’re going to get out of the working class the last 3 times they printed infinite money. I think we’re soon about to meet that can multiple generations of corrupt politicians and bankers have been kicking down the road.