Data Center Spending in US
The good folks at “Our World in Data” have been putting together a data series which shows monthly spending on the “on-site work to build data centers each month, including materials and construction labor. It excludes the cost of IT hardware like servers and storage, which can account for a large share of total investment.” … Continue reading Data Center Spending in US The post Data Center…
According to the data from "Our World in Data," monthly spending on constructing data centers in the United States has been increasing since around 2014, with a significant surge beginning in early 2023. As of the most recent data available, which is from June 2026, there is no indication that this upward trend is slowing down. On current trends, it is plausible that the total on-site construction spending for data centers could reach $40 billion or more in 2026.
While there has been political resistance to building data centers, the figure suggests that this opposition has not had a dramatic effect. The increase in construction spending is largely driven by blue-collar work, such as building and maintaining these sites. However, concerns about energy, water, noise, and traffic are associated with other industries as well, and data centers are not unique in facing these issues.
The rise in data center construction is partly due to the growing importance of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. However, it seems misguided to limit AI development by hindering data center construction. Instead of opposing AI specifically, one could consider limiting AI by hindering the production of semiconductor chips, computers, smartphones, or other information technology products.
After all, if someone uses a smartphone, shops online, works from home, or streams on a computer or television, they are indirectly benefiting from data centers.
It is also worth noting that data centers power a wide range of online services beyond AI, including streaming services and cloud storage. Additionally, AI as an industry may have the worst public relations campaign, with ads promoting the idea that AI could do all the work, enabling people to take a day off. While it may be exaggerated, the potential benefits of AI-assisted research in speeding up medical innovation should not be overlooked.
If AI can contribute to a decade or two of increased healthy human life, it could be a significant positive effect worth considering in the context of data center construction.
Written by urgent.news from Conversable Economist's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
