US startup Iozera's Moroccan AI project sparks questions

American technology startup Iozera has raised questions with its announcement of a partnership with the Moroccan government to build a massive data center in Tetouan, northern Morocco.

The planned facility is touted as innovative and environmentally friendly, aiming to revolutionize the artificial intelligence industry by making high-performance computing (HPC) resources more accessible. 

This strategic partnership aims to democratize access to GPU-based processing for researchers, startups, and enterprises in the US, Morocco, and globally. A key feature is the project's commitment to sustainable development, utilizing Morocco's renewable energy resources to power the data center.

The signing of the Memorandum of Understanding is scheduled for May 8th, 2024, at the Capital Factory in Austin, Texas.  Moroccan government representatives, including Mohcine Jazouli, Minister Delegate for Investment, Convergence and Evaluation of Public Policies, and Ghita Mezzour, Minister Delegate for Digital Transition and Administrative Reform, will be present alongside representatives from the Moroccan Agency for Investment and Export Development (AMDIE).

However, questions linger about the project's scope and feasibility. The announcement of a 386 MW data center raises doubts, particularly due to the limited information available online about Iozera. 

A facility of this size, with a capacity exceeding established data centers in major European cities like Madrid and Paris, seems disproportionate for a company founded in December 2023 and lacking a track record of such large-scale projects. 

The announced investment of $500 million (over 5 billion dirhams) also draws comparisons to the unfulfilled promises of Soluna, a 2018 project that proposed a data center and wind farm in Dakhla.