800 VDC rack power

What it is

Instead of many AC to DC conversions near each rack, power is converted at facility level and fed as 800 V DC to racks, then stepped down near the GPUs. NVIDIA says full-scale production of 800 VDC data centres will coincide with its Kyber rack systems in 2027, aimed at 1 MW IT racks. Interim designs use a rack-adjacent sidecar that converts AC to 800 VDC.

Supplier activity

Schneider Electric announced an 800 VDC sidecar with NVIDIA. Eaton published an 800 VDC reference architecture and bought solid-state transformer maker Resilient Power Systems. ABB is co-developing with NVIDIA.

Prototype vs shipping

Treat products as announced or development stage unless a supplier confirms orderable status and ratings. Standards, protection, arc flash practice and maintenance procedures for 800 VDC in white space are still maturing.

Sourcing considerations

DC protection and fault clearing, personnel safety and training, connector standards, energy storage integration, and compatibility with existing AC UPS and switchgear.

Questions to ask suppliers

• Product status (prototype, announced, orderable, shipping)
• Applicable safety standards and certification status
• DC protection and arc flash approach
• Interface with existing AC power train
• Rack and connector compatibility with the chosen IT platform

Start a requirement brief