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> The data centers the industry wants are all going to get built. If that was the case then why are the majority of data center projects getting scrapped? htt
by cootsnuck 5mo ago
> The data centers the industry wants are all going to get built.
If that was the case then why are the majority of data center projects getting scrapped?
https://gizmodo.com/data-center-project-cancellations-quadrupled-in-2025-as-locals-fight-back-2000709669 https://gizmodo.com/data-center-project-cancellations-quadru...
Why are insiders saying they only expect about 10% of data center projects to ever be completed?
Why is 2026 already shaping up to have less than half of planned data centers break ground on construction?
Local community opposition is a big driver but so is permitting and infra procurement.
https://www.datacenterknowledge.com/energy-power-supply/why-ai-data-center-projects-face-years-of-delays-after-approval https://www.datacenterknowledge.com/energy-power-supply/why-...
All of this is inconvenient to big tech's "inevitability" narratives.
- ojbyrne 5mo agoThat Gizmodo article says none of the things you characterize it as saying. Except sorta - "Peter Freed, Meta’s former director of energy strategy, who spoke to Heatmap, expects only about 10% of the projects that are currently underway to ever be completed." Perhaps that's why he's a "former director" but that doesn't really qualify as an "insider."
- cootsnuck 5mo agoYea, my bad. "majority getting scrapped” was sloppy wording. More accurate to say would be that a big chunk of the AI data center pipeline looks delayed/speculative. 16GW is slated for 2026, but only 5GW is actually under construction. https://www.sightlineclimate.com/research/data-center-outlook https://www.sightlineclimate.com/research/data-center-outloo... I do think it's a bit ridiculous though to not consider someone a tech insider who was a director for a decade at one of the biggest tech companies in history...