The explosive growth of AI is fueling a historic build-out of data centers, with their collective electricity demand projected to skyrocket. This surge is already causing regulatory headaches and could lead to higher power prices for everyone.
Equinix has been granted planning permission to turn the former AkzoNobel paint factory in Slough into a data center campus. The site was previously bought by the council for £38.5 million with plans for homes, but was sold due to high costs.
Vodafone is launching a major initiative to use AI for network resilience. The goal is to keep emergency services and basic connectivity running during major outages by intelligently managing backup power.
A proposed EdgeConneX data center in rural Ohio is drawing criticism from local residents concerned about utility costs and environmental impact. The massive campus would require a 1.8GW substation and comes with a request for 30 years of tax breaks.
OpenAI faces a staggering $207 billion funding gap by 2030 according to HSBC analysts. The company has committed to trillions in data center deals but lacks the revenue to pay for them. This could impact major partners like Microsoft, Oracle, and Nvidia.
Major data center providers Digital Realty and Equinix are in a bidding war for Nordic operator atNorth. The acquisition could reshape Europe’s data center landscape as demand for Nordic facilities grows.
Netflix users reported widespread service issues on Wednesday evening, coinciding with the highly anticipated premiere of Stranger Things Season 5. The outage began around 7:40 PM Eastern Time, just 20 minutes before the new season was scheduled to go live at 8 PM ET.
European data center operator nLighten has signed an innovative renewable energy agreement covering its entire French portfolio. The deal provides hourly insight into power sources rather than relying on annual certificates.
The battle over data center connections to PJM’s grid intensifies as the market monitor files a formal complaint. Existing and expected data center loads have driven up capacity revenues by $16.6 billion in recent auctions, raising reliability concerns.
Microsoft is implementing major security changes to Entra ID that will block external scripts during authentication. The update rolls out globally starting mid-to-late October 2026 and affects browser-based sign-in experiences.
