Nabeel Mahmood returns to the OCP Global Summit — and the OCP Podcast — with momentum, mission, and a message. In this follow-up conversation with host Rob Coyle, Nabeel shares the growth of Nomad Futurist’s education efforts, bringing students and new voices to the forefront of the data center ecosystem.

The episode dives deep into why building the future of infrastructure starts with people, access, and understanding. From debunking misconceptions about data centers to spotlighting programs supporting students in underserved regions, Rob and Nabeel explore the true meaning of open innovation and industry responsibility.

Key Themes:

The importance of global education in tech

Empowering communities to understand digital infrastructure

Social responsibility in the data center industry

Bridging policy, power, and people through open knowledge

Nomad Futurist’s collaboration with OCP

Evolving power architectures and AI-driven infrastructure

The 1% concept: How small contributions make big impact

Chapter Markers:

00:00 – The Barrier of Access

00:45 – Global Student Sponsorships

02:00 – Why Community Literacy Matters

03:10 – Debunking Myths About Data Centers

05:00 – Responsible Progress

07:15 – Education as Industry Defense

08:00 – Scaling the Mission Globally

10:00 – Infrastructure Evolution & Opportunities

As the Open Compute Project continues to grow and diversify, our role is more than managing projects, it’s fostering an experience that helps members thrive across technical and business goals. 

The focus of OCP remains open participation and collaboration. But with the investment our members make, they also need to see outcomes. This has never been more important than with the new requirements in the hardware ecosystems and the rush to support AI workloads.

Our Community grows through the strength of our member’s contributions, our knowledge sharing through events, webinars and virtual workshops, and the opportunity to shape the future of computational infrastructure through open standardization. 

Though each of these programs can be great, the value is not in just selecting one, it's in the journey for our members, provided by the framework for a thriving open community. 

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#OpenComputeProject #OCP #InfrastructureInnovation #OpenHardware #DataCenters #TechLeadership #Podcast

In this special episode of the Open Compute Project Podcast, host Rob Coyle sits down with Bill Carter, Fellow Emeritus and former CTO of the OCP Foundation, for a deep and personal conversation spanning the entire history of OCP — from its scrappy beginnings to its position today as a force in global infrastructure innovation.

Highlights Include:

* The Birth of OCP: How Facebook, Intel, and Rackspace sparked a hardware revolution in a curtained-off corner of a San Jose colo.

* Vanity-Free Computing: The story behind the radical idea that simplicity, not flash, drives scale.

* Rack to Reality: The evolution of Open Rack — from triple-bus bar designs to a global standard reshaped by collaboration.

* White Box Networking Breakthroughs: Why disaggregated switches became one of OCP’s most disruptive contributions.

* Collaboration Over Competition: The unlikely alliances between rivals like Intel and AMD that propelled early specs like Decathlete and Roadrunner.

* Specs That Stuck — and Some That Didn't: Bill breaks down the difference between thriving standards and those that fell flat.

* OCP’s Global Footprint: What Europe and Asia bring to the future of open hardware, sustainability, and sovereign tech.

* What’s Next: Lessons from the past and a look forward at where OCP is headed — especially in the AI, modular, and liquid-cooled future.

Whether you're new to open hardware or a long-time community member, this is a must-listen look at how open collaboration can reshape an entire industry — told by someone who helped build it.

Chapters:

00:00:00 — Intro

00:02:36 — The Birth of OCP: Why Facebook broke away from traditional server designs

00:08:44 — Bill Joins the Movement: How Intel became an early OCP catalyst

00:22:13 — Network Disaggregation: The white box switch that shook the industry

00:28:49 — Decathlete & Roadrunner: Competing specs, shared goals

00:34:12 — OCP Inspired vs Accepted: What it means and why it matters

00:43:10 — The Power of Connector Standardization: Dripless and universal quick disconnects

00:50:05 — Modular Momentum: The rise of DCM and the value of early collaboration

01:02:08 — What's Next for OCP: AI, sustainability, and global community growth

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#OpenComputeProject #OCP #InfrastructureInnovation #OpenHardware #DataCenters #TechLeadership #Podcast

In this episode, host Rob Coyle welcomes Cagatay Yilmas, RISE Project Manager & OCP EMEA Lead for the Nordics, to explore Europe’s distinctive approach to data center innovation. 

Cagatay unpacks how RISE is building vendor-agnostic, sustainable digital infrastructure, why open innovation is key to Europe's growth, and how the EU's regulatory frameworks are shaping the future of energy-efficient computing.

From heat reuse strategies and digital twins to cutting-edge developments like the EU’s first homegrown servers, the conversation offers a unique lens on how European data centers differ—and why that matters globally. They also discuss RISE’s role as an OCP Experience Center, collaboration opportunities for tech innovators, and what’s in store at the upcoming OCP EMEA Summit in Dublin.

Chapters:

00:00 What is RISE? Cagatay explains the mission behind Sweden's largest research institute.04:17 How OCP and RISE Collaborated: The origin story of open hardware adoption in Europe.07:50 Proprietary vs Open: Why OCP standards are reshaping thermal management, efficiency, and material transparency.13:28 Inside ICE Data Center: How RISE’s OCP Experience Center is validating next-gen technologies at scale.19:40 The HeatWise Project: Tackling edge computing, grid integration, and climate-neutral buildings.24:25 EU Regulations & KPIs: How Europe is setting new benchmarks for data center efficiency and sustainability.30:10 The First European Server Prototype: How RISE is helping shape Europe’s sovereign digital future.

Web page for RISE ICE Data Center:

https://www.ri.se/en/ice-datacenter

Contact Information:

• Çağatay Yılmaz – Project Manager @ ICE Data Center & OCP EMEA Nordics Lead: [email protected]

• Jon Summers – Scientific Lead of ICE Data Center & Chair of OCP FTS: [email protected]

• Isabelle Kremlin – Business and Innovation Manager of ICE Data Center: [email protected]

• Tor Björn Minde – Unit Manager of ICE Data Center: [email protected]

Project Discussed:

• HIGHER (European Heterogeneous Cloud/Edge Infrastructures for Next Generation Hybrid Services): https://www.higher-project.eu

• HEATWISE (Holistic Energy Management and Thermal Waste Integrated System for Energy Optimisation): https://heatwise.eu

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In this episode of the Open Compute Project Podcast, Rob Coyle welcomes Beth Langer, Principal Thermal Technologist at CPC (Colder Products Company), to discuss the rapid development of quick disconnects for liquid cooling in data centers. 

As an OCP Community member and key contributor to the Cooling Environments Project, CPC is at the forefront of innovation in liquid cooling connections. Beth shares insights on the challenges and advancements in developing quick disconnects for high-performance computing, the importance of reliability at scale, and the evolution of the Universal Quick Disconnect (UQD) specification. Join us as we explore the future of liquid cooling and its impact on next-generation data centers.

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction to Beth Langer and CPC’s role in liquid cooling solutions

3:07 The rise of liquid cooling in data centers 5:31 Scaling liquid cooling reliability and manufacturing challenges

9:12 The importance of standardization and collaboration in OCP

14:13 The development and evolution of the Universal Quick Disconnect

28:36 Future-proofing liquid cooling and upcoming innovations

36:53 How to get involved in OCP and CPC’s contributions to the industry

Resources:

• OCP's Cold Plate Sub-Project: https://www.opencompute.org/projects/cold-plate

• “Liquid Cooling When Component Failure is Not an Option” Presentation at the OPC Global Summit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwQGH3wsfGI

• Website: CPC Worldwide: https://www.cpcworldwide.com/cool

Connect with the OCP Podcast:

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At the OCP Global Summit in San Jose, we sit down with Nick Hume, founder of Hume Consulting and host of the Tech Insider Podcast.

In a new episode of the OCP podcast, recorded at the 2024 OCP Global Summit, host Rob Coyle welcomes Miranda Gardiner, Executive Director iMasons Climate Accord. They explore the critical sustainability challenges in the tech industry and the collaborative efforts on carbon disclosure between OCP and the iMasons. 

Miranda highlights the Climate Accord's mission to engage nearly 300 companies in reducing carbon footprints through improved practices in materials and power usage. The conversation delves into the importance of transparency in emissions data and the need for a collective approach to carbon accounting.

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction at OCP Summit

1:37 Carbon Disclosure Collaboration

5:34 Operationalizing Sustainability Initiatives

8:43 The Importance of Transparency

15:36 Future Challenges and Responsibilities

19:39 Building Community and Collaboration

23:19 Hope for a Sustainable Future

26:50 Upcoming Initiatives at Climate Accord

Visit: https://climateaccord.org/press-releases/ica-selects-miranda-gardiner-as-executive-director/

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In this episode, Nabeel Mahmood, Managing Director, Nomad Futurist, joins host Rob Coyle of Open Compute to discuss the vital need to prepare the next generation for careers in technology, as the industry faces a significant human capital deficit due to impending retirements of longtime professionals.

Recorded live at the Open Compute Project Global Summit, Mahmood highlights the lack of awareness about tech careers and the importance of making technology relatable and accessible to youth through educational initiatives. He shares insights on how AI can enhance sustainability efforts, counters misconceptions about the tech industry's environmental impact, and announces future plans for a job board and Nomad Futures Academy to simplify entry into tech careers.

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction to Nabeel Mahmood

1:49 The Alliance with OCP

2:30 Human Capital Crisis

4:38 Bridging the Knowledge Gap

6:55 Addressing Energy Consumption

10:45 The Future of Technology

14:42 Immediate Challenges Ahead

26:09 Optimism for the Future

31:23 Nomad Futurist's Upcoming Initiatives

34:31 The Job Market Landscape

35:50 Call to Action for Listeners

Visit https://www.opencompute.org/ to learn more.

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Join host Rob Coyle of OCP as he delves into an insightful conversation with Amir Elbaz, CEO of BE-Net, and key leaders from ThyssenKrupp—Jens Riemer, Head of IT Infrastructure, and Marco Decker, Head of SD-NET. This episode explores the strategic partnership between OCP, BE-Net, and ThyssenKrupp, highlighting how their collaboration addresses the massive challenges of scaling operations, navigating regulatory complexities, and managing a diverse portfolio of capabilities on a global scale.

Discover how OCP serves as the platform that empowers BE-Net to deliver innovative solutions, enabling ThyssenKrupp to achieve seamless connectivity, robust infrastructure, and agile growth in an increasingly complex industrial landscape.

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction to the Participants

1:19 Exploring Open Standards in IT

3:47 Challenges of Legacy Hardware

8:41 Solutions with OCP Technology

14:05 Benefits of Abstraction in Networking

19:22 The Transition to OCP Solutions

34:20 Future Needs and Requirements

38:13 The Importance of Community Feedback

43:50 Closing Thoughts and Future Predictions

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