Data Centers Drive Rising Global Energy Demand
Northwestern University researchers published a Science/AAAS study in February 2020 modeling global data-center energy use, integrating equipment stocks, efficiency trends, and market structure. They find energy consumption has remained flat over the past decade due to efficiency gains but warn that continued demand—driven by AI, IoT and billions of devices processing over 2.5 exabytes daily—could outstrip efficiency, requiring new cooling, renewables, and policy measures.
Key Points
- 1Models global data-center energy use, finding flat growth over the past decade due to efficiency gains
- 2Warns efficiency limits will be reached, risking a sharp surge in energy demand later this decade
- 3Urges investment in cooling, renewable power, standards, monitoring, and next-generation computing to avert crisis
Scoring Rationale
High-quality Science study with global scope and actionable recommendations; being published in February 2020 reduces immediate novelty and timeliness.
Sources
Public references used for this report.
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