DARPA’s Microsystem Electricity Generation (MEG): Turning Waste Heat into Power for the Next Generation of Military AI and Semiconductor Systemsa

Introduction: Transforming Thermal Waste into Strategic Power The exponential growth of artificial intelligence, advanced semiconductor manufacturing, and autonomous defense systems is creating an unprecedented energy challenge. Every modern processor—from AI accelerators inside hyperscale data centers to mission computers aboard fighter aircraft, satellites, autonomous drones, and missile systems—converts nearly all of its electrical power into heat….