LG Electronics has secured Nvidia approval for a new 2.5-megawatt coolant distribution unit, or CDU, strengthening its position in the fast-growing liquid-cooling market for AI data centers.
LG said Sept. 22 that its 2.5MW CDU had been approved as an Nvidia DSX Ready CDU, meeting the company's requirements for equipment used in Nvidia AI Factory infrastructure. The designation applies to products that satisfy specifications across computing, networking, power, cooling, facilities and software. In the CDU category, only high-capacity systems rated at 2.3MW or above are eligible.
The approval is LG's third Nvidia specification win for a CDU product. Its 600-kilowatt model received approval in July, followed by a 1MW model earlier this month. With the 2.5MW unit now approved, LG has demonstrated that its liquid-cooling technology meets Nvidia requirements across small, mid-sized and large-capacity systems.
The industry is shifting toward larger cooling units as Nvidia's Blackwell-based AI accelerators drive server-rack power density toward the megawatt range. Rather than using an in-rack configuration—with a dedicated CDU installed for each server rack—data center operators are increasingly adopting an in-row approach, in which a single high-capacity CDU cools multiple racks grouped in a row.
A current AI server rack can require roughly 120 kilowatts of power. A row of 20 racks can therefore reach about 2.4MW to 2.5MW, helping establish 2.5MW as a key capacity benchmark for large-scale CDUs.
TrendForce forecasts that adoption of liquid-cooling solutions in AI data centers will rise from 14% in 2024 to 60% by 2027. Dell'Oro Group has similarly argued that as next-generation chipsets consume more power, liquid cooling is becoming a core infrastructure requirement for AI factories rather than an optional technology.
LG now offers a full range of cooling solutions for AI data centers. Its portfolio includes high-efficiency chillers that generate chilled water, computer room air handlers, or CRAHs, 600kW, 1MW and 2.5MW CDUs, and cold plates that remove heat directly from chips.
The lineup gives LG what it describes as a “chip-to-chiller” solution, covering the full thermal-management chain from the processor level to central cooling equipment.
LG plans to use the expanded portfolio to offer customized cooling systems for different AI data center operators and increase supply to global big-tech companies. Industry observers expect competition among cooling-equipment suppliers to intensify as AI infrastructure investment continues and more companies seek Nvidia-compatible certifications.
“This Nvidia DSX approval will enable us to supply more reliable and efficient cooling solutions to global big-tech companies in earnest,” Lee Jae-sung, president of LG Electronics' ES Company, said. “We will continue working to secure leadership in the next-generation liquid-cooling market.”
