their own power and backup power so no one can get in their system because it’ s a closed grid, and it’ s much harder for anyone to come in and interfere. Some of these data centers have their own models, and their investors won’ t invest if they diverge from that model.”
According to West Virginia Secretary of Commerce Matt Herridge, Governor Patrick Morrisey’ s administration is actively invested in bringing these types of technology companies to the Mountain State.
“ One of the reasons I accepted this role was because I was so impressed with Governor Morrisey’ s insight into why this direction was going to be important, and I wanted to be a part of a team that was going to bring these types of businesses here,” Herridge says.“ I have been on the phone with the leadership from many of these businesses, and they are so excited to get to West Virginia. They see the potential with our workforce and energy opportunities. We have water, gas, oil and coal. With our proactive approach to microgrids, we are delivering flexible, sustainable power solutions that meet the demands of a rapidly growing sector, while creating long-term opportunities for innovation and investment.”
Overcoming Obstacles
As with anything new, the potential explosion of data centers across the Mountain State raises some concerns. According to Biller, some implications of the demand for data and computing power include infrastructure strain, geopolitical competition, economic shifts and workforce transformation.
“ Data centers are multiplying rapidly, raising concerns about energy consumption, land use and sustainability,” she says.
Along with ensuring communities that data center projects will not diminish their quality of life, other obstacles include West Virginia’ s ongoing battle to bring broadband to every corner of the state as well as meeting the educational needs of a new industry.
Alpha Innovations is already working in the edge infrastructure and computing space, helping organizations deploy and scale edge infrastructure. In helping to build and maintain edge data centers, Spence says connectivity remains one of the most important challenges.
“ Reliable broadband is essential for enabling real-time data processing, supporting advanced technologies and attracting new digital infrastructure such as edge data centers,” he says.“ While West Virginia has made meaningful progress in expanding broadband access, there is still work to be done. Gaps in connectivity can slow the deployment of modern infrastructure and limit the ability of communities and businesses to fully participate in a digital and AI-driven economy.”
The Alpha team currently designs edge solutions that can operate under current conditions while supporting long-term connectivity goals. According to Spence, with continued investment and collaboration, momentum can continue to build.
Being able to provide the appropriate level of cybersecurity is another requirement, and West Virginia’ s colleges and universities have been working on increasing their cybersecurity offerings for several years now.
“ The widespread adoption of AI is reshaping the Appalachian workforce and economy by creating new job opportunities, but it is also putting demands on our educational system to provide West Virginians with the skills they need to thrive in an AI-driven economy,” Biller says.“ There’ s growing demand for talent skilled in data science, cloud engineering and AI ethics, reshaping educational and training priorities.”
West Virginia has made additional strides to establish strategic partnerships and policies that will help overcome some of these obstacles, including the creation of the West Virginia POWER Tech Center, a tailored workforce pipeline for data and technology operations; Oak Ridge National Laboratory Partnership, a model to help plan and prepare for sustainable growth; Transmission Ready, a collaboration with Appalachian Power, FirstEnergy and Dominion; and Resilient West Virginia, a commitment to build an educated, resilient workforce to meet the needs of the evolving, AI-powered U. S. economy in advanced manufacturing, cybersecurity and data analytics.
“ West Virginia’ s strengths lie in its ability to unify the public, private and academic sectors in support of opportunities to expand and diversify the state’ s economy,” Biller says. •
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