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Deep & Emerging Tech·August 8, 2026·1 min read

An Amazon data center could have the worst polluting power plant in the country

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AI-scale data centers are now directly driving bespoke fossil generation—if a single West Texas gas plant can become one of the largest US emitters just to feed one site, power sourcing is now a first-order product and reputational decision. If you're planning large AI workloads, treat energy mix and local emissions as part of your infra RFPs, not an afterthought for facilities.

Deep & Emerging Tech

A profile of Russia's A7, a payment network that helps Russia bypass Western sanctions, handling ~20% of payments in Russian foreign trade, or $100B+ annually

A state-backed network quietly handling ~20% of Russia’s foreign trade—$100B+ a year—shows how fast parallel financial rails can harden around sanctions. If your business touches cross-border flows, assume fragmentation of payment infrastructure is a permanent condition and map your exposure to non-Western rails now.