Data center

A data center is a physical room, building, or facility for storing, managing, and disseminating data and information, including computer systems and associated components, housing IT infrastructure, and training artificial intelligence. The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 defines a data center as "any facility that primarily contains electronic equipment used to process, store, and transmit digital information." This includes "a free-standing structure" or "a facility within a larger structure, that uses environmental control equipment to maintain the proper conditions for the operation of electronic equipment." According to IBM, data centers date back to the 1940s, with the U.S. military's Electrical Numerical Integrator and Computer (ENIAC) as an early example.

Data centers have different models depending on their workloads. An enterprise (on-premises) model hosts IT infrastructure and data on-premises, while cloud data centers, including hyperscale data centers, house IT infrastructure resources through an internet connection used by cloud service providers such as Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud Platform, IBM Cloud, and Microsoft Azure. They frequently contain thousands of servers and many miles of high-speed data connection equipment, with the largest occupying up to 10,000,000 sq ft (930,000 m). Managed service data centers have third-party managers hired on behalf of a company, which leases the equipment and infrastructure instead of buying it. Colocation data centers allow companies to rent space in an off-site data center owned by others, with the colocation data center hosting the infrastructure while the company provides and manages the components. Edge data centers are smaller, decentralized facilities located closer to end users and devices. In the 2024 U.S. Data Center Energy Usage Report,Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory estimated that hyperscale and colocation centers contained 74% of computer servers in 2023.

Large data centers require significant energy to operate, with the largest consuming over 3,000 MW, raising concerns about energy use. The International Energy Agency (IEA) estimated that electricity consumption from these data centers amounted to around 415 terawatt hours (TWh), about 1.5% of global electricity consumption in 2024, with a growth rate of 12% per year over the previous five years. The IEA projects that this amount could double to reach around 945 TWh by 2030, growing by around 15% per year. In the U.S. alone, which has almost nine times more data centers than any other country, power consumption by data centers is projected to account for "almost half of the growth in electricity demand between now and 2030." This includes increased electricity costs.

Concerns over environmental impacts, energy and water use, and other costs have led to opposition to new data centers during the AI boom. These movements have occurred in parts of Europe, the U.S., and South America. Data Center Watch's first report covered a period from May 2024 to March 2025, during which it found that "local opposition had blocked or delayed a total of $64 billion in data center projects (six projects were blocked entirely, while 10 were delayed)."