Distributed Data Centres (DDC)

Bit Warmer has developed a disruptive innovation that re-imagines the data centre as a series of distributed cloud computing systems located inside people's homes. Bit Warmer's 'Hot Patch' unit is retrofitted onto domestic hot water tanks via a thermal contact plate (using a British Gas approved process), where it then performs remote compute tasks (e.g. video rendering) whilst the resulting heat generated is used for water heating. By capturing the significant heat produced by servers at the point of use, Hot Patch has the potential to save households up to £300p.a. on their energy, and to dramatically improve the energy efficiency of the Data Centre (DC) sector, which already accounts for over 2% of global emissions (GeSi, 2018). Having already carried out extensive work to develop an early prototype, Bit Warmer now wants to use this project to develop the first TRL8 operational Hot Patch system for trialling in a series of homes.