While tech executives paint rosy pictures of AI transforming humanity, their data centers are quietly becoming electricity vampires. The numbers are staggering. Data centers worldwide will more than double their electricity demand by 2030, reaching around 945 terawatt-hours. That’s enough juice to power entire countries.
America is leading this charge into energy oblivion. By 2030, US data centers will account for almost half of the country’s electricity demand growth. Think about that. The nation will burn more power processing data than manufacturing all its energy-intensive goods combined. Server farms will need more than 600 TWh—triple today’s consumption.
The growth trajectory is insane. North American data centers jumped from 2,688 megawatts in 2022 to 5,341 megawatts in 2023. That’s not a curve; it’s a vertical line. Currently, data centers consume as much electricity as Germany or France. By 2030, they’ll match India, the world’s third-largest electricity user.
Generative AI is the real culprit here. These systems gobble up seven to eight times more energy than typical computing workloads. ChatGPT and its cousins aren’t just clever chatbots—they’re power-hungry monsters driving the most significant increase in data center electricity demand through 2030.
The environmental impact? Brutal. AI’s rising electricity appetite could add 1.7 gigatons of greenhouse gas emissions between 2025 and 2030. Tech companies promise renewable energy will save the day. By 2030, they claim natural gas and renewables will each supply about 50% of AI’s power needs. Solar demand will grow 20%, wind 39%. Natural gas? A modest 4% bump.
Sure, the IMF says AI will boost global economic growth through automation and better decision-making. But at what cost? Advanced economies‘ data centers will drive over 20% of electricity demand growth through 2030. Without intervention, data centers would rank as the world’s 11th largest electricity consumer, sitting between Saudi Arabia and France. The nationwide battery storage expansion of 18.2 GW planned for 2025 will be crucial for managing AI’s fluctuating power demands. Making matters worse, cyberattacks on energy utilities have tripled in the past four years, threatening the very infrastructure needed to power our AI ambitions. Unless electricity supply responds quickly to this surge, power prices could skyrocket and throttle AI innovation itself.
The AI transformation comes with a hefty electric bill. Someone’s going to pay it. Spoiler alert: it’s probably you.
References
- https://www.iea.org/news/ai-is-set-to-drive-surging-electricity-demand-from-data-centres-while-offering-the-potential-to-transform-how-the-energy-sector-works
- https://www.imf.org/en/Blogs/Articles/2025/05/13/ai-needs-more-abundant-power-supplies-to-keep-driving-economic-growth
- https://www.devsustainability.com/p/data-center-energy-and-ai-in-2025
- https://news.mit.edu/2025/explained-generative-ai-environmental-impact-0117
- https://www.mizuhogroup.com/americas/insights/2024/09/the-energy-sources-powering-the-ai-revolution.html
