The US Energy Information Administration projects that electricity use from data center servers will rise dramatically through 2050, driven largely by growing demand for AI and cloud computing. In its Annual Energy Outlook 2026, the agency estimates server electricity consumption could increase to between 446 billion and 818 billion kilowatt-hours annually by 2050, with standalone data centers accounting for most of the growth.
The report says data centers already accounted for about 7% of commercial-sector electricity use in 2025, but this could rise to as much as 22%–33% by 2050. Increased demand for cooling systems, which are highly energy-intensive, will also contribute significantly to rising commercial electricity consumption and overall building energy intensity.
The outlook assumes that servers may become more energy efficient over time in some scenarios, but rapid growth in the number of installed servers—especially AI-focused systems—still drives major increases in power demand. In higher-demand scenarios, the report assumes slower efficiency gains and faster adoption of power-hungry AI servers, leading to much larger electricity consumption growth.
