Global Data Centre Energy Demand Jump 26% In 2026, AI Servers Set To Dominate By 2027: Gartner
would not be a stretch to call data centres the lungs of artificial intelligence, continuously ingesting and processing raw data to fuel AI models. As tech giants continue to invest heavily in the advancement of AI, the need for data centres continues to rise in tandem. This rise, in turn, is pushing the electricity demand through the roof.
A Gartner study projects the global electricity demand to jump 26.4 per cent in 2026, with consumption rising to 565 terawatt hours (TWh), up from 447TWh in 2025.
The report attributed the estimated surge in consumption to compute‑intensive artificial intelligence workloads pushing power needs to unprecedented levels. It said that data centre power demand will reach 132 gigawatts in 2026, up from 104 gigawatts in 2025, with projections of 290 gigawatts by 2030, which reflects the unprecedented scale and pace of GenAI boosting demand.
A Gartner study projects the global electricity demand to jump 26.4 per cent in 2026, with consumption rising to 565 terawatt hours (TWh), up from 447TWh in 2025.
The report attributed the estimated surge in consumption to compute‑intensive artificial intelligence workloads pushing power needs to unprecedented levels. It said that data centre power demand will reach 132 gigawatts in 2026, up from 104 gigawatts in 2025, with projections of 290 gigawatts by 2030, which reflects the unprecedented scale and pace of GenAI boosting demand.