Signal Data-centre electricity demand could double by 2030

Summary

According to the report, electricity demand from data centres could be twice today's level by 2030. The projection follows from the big technology firms competing over AI infrastructure and building data centres on an unprecedented scale to supply enormous computing power. The report sees data centres as consuming very large amounts of electricity and water and requiring heavy investment. They are frequently built in regions that already face water scarcity, where their water use collides with the needs of local residents and agriculture. The report treats the location of computing capacity, energy and data centres as a question of power and of siting. This power and water consumption is presented, alongside mineral extraction and low-paid data work, as part of the social costs piling up on the 'back side' of AI.