Data center boom may need 36% more power than previously thought

Electricity demand from U.S. data centers is projected to be 36 percent higher over the next decade than forecast a few months ago, signaling how quickly the industry is changing amid the artificial intelligence boom, according to a new report.

The findings from BloombergNEF on Monday are notable partly because the research firm tends to have more conservative estimates of data center growth than the federal government and other analysts. According to the report, AI power demand is slated to surge by 106 gigawatts by 2035, up from 78 GW estimated in April.

“Data centers are rapidly scaling in size to meet compute intensity,” the report says. “Grid tipping points are already emerging.

Read more at E&E News