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Google explores liquid cooling equipment partnerships with Chinese firms including Envicool for AI data centers
Wednesday, March 18, 2026 at 12:45 AM
Google's Taiwan-based engineering team is reportedly negotiating with Chinese suppliers, including Envicool, to procure liquid cooling solutions for its AI data centers. This move suggests a diversifying supply chain strategy as demand for high-performance thermal management infrastructure outpaces current production capacity in Taiwan and other regions.
Context
On March 17, 2026, reports surfaced that Google is in active discussions with Chinese precision cooling specialist Envicool and at least one other mainland firm to procure liquid cooling equipment for its AI data centers. The discussions are being led by Google’s Taiwan-based procurement team, signaling a critical move to diversify the supply chain as traditional regional suppliers in Taiwan reportedly struggle to keep pace with surging demand. Envicool, which is already a certified partner for Intel and a supplier to Nvidia, has seen its market profile rise significantly alongside the rapid shift from air to liquid cooling.
This development underscores the immense pressure on the AI infrastructure tail; the global market for server liquid cooling is projected to exceed $17 billion by 2026. As next-generation processors like Nvidia’s Blackwell B200 reach thermal design power levels of 1,000 watts per GPU, liquid cooling has transitioned from an optional efficiency gain to a technical necessity. Google's willingness to engage Chinese suppliers despite ongoing geopolitical tensions highlights the severity of the hardware bottleneck facing hyperscalers as they race to deploy trillion-dollar AI ecosystems.
Sources (12)
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