Practically every large company and building in the world uses the absorption cycle system for cooling and/or refrigeration. It is very long lived system (an absorption refer was removed from service after 72 years, still working), the absorption cycle requires a fraction of the electrical or energy input that a compressor requires, plus uses the natural substances ammonia and water, instead of ozone depleting halocarbons.
Still very much a 'modern technology'. There's an ice hotel in Fairbanks Alaska I had the pleasure of touring that not long ago installed a large absorption system to keep their ice motel frozen using thermal hot springs water. The water wasn't hot enough for a lot of other more 'modern' systems but works fine with the ammonia absorption system.