Retired Phones Repurposed as Low-Carbon Computing Platform
Google-backed researchers at the University of California San Diego are transforming retired smartphones into a low-carbon computing platform, reducing the need for newly-manufactured hardware and associated emissions. A datacenter built from 2,000 Pixel smartphones will provide low-cost cloud computing to hundreds of researchers and students.
Key points
- Researchers at the University of California San Diego are building a pathway for the second life of phones through phone cluster computing.
- The project, supported by Google, aims to deploy a datacenter built from 2,000 Pixel smartphones to provide low-cost cloud computing.
- The initiative aims to reduce the need for newly-manufactured hardware and associated emissions.
- On average, people replace their phone every four years, contributing to electronic waste and emissions.
- Retired smartphones still have core compute functionalities intact and are relatively powerful computers.
A team of researchers at the University of California San Diego, backed by Google, is working on a groundbreaking project to repurpose retired smartphones as a low-carbon computing platform. The initiative, known as phone cluster computing, involves collecting and redeploying the motherboards of retired smartphones as a general-purpose computing platform. This innovative approach aims to reduce the need for newly-manufactured hardware and associated emissions.
The project plans to deploy a datacenter built from 2,000 Pixel smartphones, providing hundreds of researchers and students with low-cost cloud computing. This not only reduces electronic waste but also minimizes the carbon footprint of computing. According to the researchers, people replace their phones every four years, contributing to a significant amount of electronic waste and emissions.
While an old phone might no longer be of use for its original purpose, it still has core compute functionalities intact and is a relatively powerful computer with integrated processors, accelerators, memory, and storage. By repurposing these devices, the researchers hope to create a more sustainable future for computing and reduce the environmental impact of the tech industry.
Sources
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