ZincFive unveils BC 2 AI battery system for both AI and traditional IT loads

ZincFive, the Oregon-based nickel-zinc battery specialist, has announced the upcoming release of its latest innovation, BC 2 AI – a UPS battery cabinet engineered to meet the unique power demands of artificial intelligence workloads while continuing to support traditional IT backup in a single, compact system.

Described by the company as the latest advancement in its BC Series, BC 2 AI is touted as the industry’s first AI-optimized battery system purpose-built for dual-mode operation, supporting both high-intensity AI pulse cycling and conventional outage protection.

At the heart of the system is ZincFive’s new 90 Ah NiZn battery designed for high-intensity discharge cycles, paired with the company’s latest battery management system (BMS). The BMS oversees all charge functions and continuously monitors a full suite of parameters – including battery voltage, temperature, and current – during pulsing, discharge, and standby operations. The system also integrates advanced telemetry and analytics, streamlined hardware, an enhanced user interface, and AI Pulse Power intelligence for real-time monitoring and precise workload data capture.

BC 2 AI offers flexible nominal voltage configurations, with 481 V DC for the 37s setup (37 battery modules per string), 494 V DC for 38s, and 507 V DC for 39s. Charge voltages vary accordingly: 552–570 V DC for 37s, 567–585 V DC for 38s, and 582–600 V DC for 39s. The system supports a charge current range of 20–160 A, with a standard 90 A charge current. It operates safely within a temperature range of 20–35 °C and is inherently safe, showing no thermal runaway under UL 9540A testing.

The cabinet measures 2096 mm (2121 mm with high-voltage box) × 533 mm × 914 mm and weighs 966.4 kg, offering a field-upgradable design that adapts as AI power requirements evolve. Its dual-use design provides runtimes of over five minutes within the same footprint while mitigating AI pulse loads, making it ideal for GPU clusters and AI training environments.

By managing dynamic AI power at the UPS level, BC 2 AI reduces strain on upstream infrastructure, minimizes UPS overdesign, lowers CAPEX, and improves grid interactions. According to ZincFive, competing solutions may require two to four times more space to meet the high-power surges generated by AI workloads, which can reach up to 150% of UPS rated capacity.

“AI is transforming the very foundation of data centers, creating new challenges that legacy technologies cannot solve,” said Tod Higinbotham, CEO of ZincFive. “With BC 2 AI, we are delivering a safe, sustainable, and future-ready power solution designed to handle the most demanding AI workloads while continuing to support traditional IT backup. This is a defining moment not just for ZincFive, but for the entire data center industry as it adapts to the AI era.”