{
  "id": 15463613,
  "title": "America's $10 trillion AI data centre boom faces delays, rising costs and investor concerns",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/18/americas-10-trillion-ai-data-centre-boom-faces-delays-rising-costs",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-10-18T17:21:05.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Hindustan Times - World News",
    "slug": "hindustan-times-world-news",
    "url": "https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/us-news/americas-10-trillion-ai-data-centre-boom-faces-delays-rising-costs-and-investor-concerns-101792343327657.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The $10 trillion investment in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure in America is encountering significant obstacles. Projects related to data centers are experiencing delays, some are being abandoned, and there is growing skepticism among investors about the continued pace of spending on AI infrastructure. This boom has transformed the industry into a landscape often described as the \"Wild West,\" where money flowed into new companies hastily, with limited scrutiny on their projects. As three years have passed since the AI boom commenced, construction plans for data centers are encountering practical challenges. According to data shared by RegLayer, a regulatory intelligence company, over 47 large data center projects were delayed, cancelled, or blocked in 2026, which some consider a conservative estimate given that it focused on the largest projects. Analysts estimate that only around 35% of the planned US data center projects are viable, casting doubt on the completion of many announced projects. Opposition from local communities presents another obstacle for data center developers, with over 1,000 US communities attempting to impose temporary bans or restrictions on AI infrastructure in 2026. This resistance complicates the process of obtaining necessary approvals for new facilities. Higher borrowing costs and a weakened bond market pose additional threats to the expansion plans, potentially slowing down the overall AI infrastructure boom. Investors are becoming more cautious about AI infrastructure companies, causing debt linked to several businesses in the sector, such as cloud computing provider CoreWeave, to plummet sharply. Shares of listed companies in the AI infrastructure sector have also declined. Several companies have postponed or halted their plans to go public, including SoftBank's SB Energy and Nvidia-backed Firmus, both of which delayed their initial public offerings (IPOs). OpenAI's decision to postpone its IPO has further eroded investor confidence in the sector. Construction delays could enable customers to terminate data center agreements, while clauses in some contracts allow customers to cancel their commitments if facilities are not delivered within the agreed timelines. This could leave developers with expensive projects and uncertain future income. Former cryptocurrency mining companies are also modifying their AI infrastructure plans. TeraWulf and Cipher, which previously operated in cryptocurrency mining, have renegotiated leases and extended delivery schedules for projects intended to serve Anthropic, a leading AI lab. Cipher has agreed to absorb a significant portion of the additional construction costs, requiring approximately $750 million in additional equity funding. Anthropic could terminate its $45 billion agreement with Nscale if the company fails to meet key targets. Nscale, a London-based neocloud launched in 2024, has a significant project planned in West Virginia. The company's IPO could face difficulties due to unstable markets, despite its target valuation of $35 billion. Nscale aims to list on the New York stock market but faces challenges given the current market conditions. The planned spending on US AI infrastructure is unprecedented, with projections indicating that it will exceed $10 trillion between 2025 and 2032. According to Stijn van Nieuwerburgh, an economist at Columbia Business School, US spending on AI infrastructure is expected to surpass this figure during the specified period.",
  "summary": "America's $10 trillion AI data centre boom faces project delays, rising costs, funding challenges and investor doubts, raising questions about future growth.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Seeking Alpha News",
        "title": "Funding strains, construction delays test America’s $10T AI buildout: FT",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/18/funding-strains-construction-delays-test-americas-10t-ai-buildout-ft",
        "published": "2026-10-18T12:46:01.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}