The global data center construction boom continues to accelerate in 2026, with AI, cloud computing and growing demand for digital services driving unprecedented investment in new facilities. The expansion is spreading across established markets in North America and Europe, while Asia-Pacific, Africa and Latin America are attracting increasing interest from hyperscale operators, technology companies and infrastructure developers.
As of October 2026, 971 data center projects are either under construction or planned across 49 countries. This represents approximately 99.8GW of proposed and ongoing capacity. Of these, 298 projects accounting for 31GW are under construction, while another 673 projects representing 68.8GW remain in the planning pipeline. The United States accounts for the largest share, with approximately 58.4GW of planned and ongoing capacity. The United Kingdom, India, Germany and Malaysia are also among the leading markets.
Market insights
North America continues to dominate the global expansion. It is supported by major investments from hyperscalers including Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft, Google and Meta.
The United States is also experiencing particularly strong construction activity in Virginia, Texas, Ohio, Georgia and Indiana. This is as developers race to establish facilities capable of supporting increasingly demanding AI workloads. Also noteworthy is that the number of planned and operating US data center projects nearly tripled between March and August, highlighting the extraordinary pace of development.
Europe and Asia-Pacific expand their data centre construction pipelines
Europe is also witnessing significant investment in new data center infrastructure. This is particular to the Nordic countries where access to renewable electricity and cooler climatic conditions continues to attract major technology companies.
Finland is emerging as a particularly important destination. On October 29, 2026, Finnish authorities opened a criminal investigation into suspected environmental damage associated with Google’s operations in the country. This also continues to highlight the growing environmental scrutiny accompanying the region’s data center expansion.
Meanwhile, Envision’s proposed 3GW Galaxy AI Data Center Campus in China adds to the growing scale of AI infrastructure investment in Asia. India, Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia are also attracting developers seeking to expand their presence in the Asia-Pacific market.
Africa and Latin America attract new data centre investment
Africa and Latin America are also increasingly positioning themselves as emerging destinations for data center construction. South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria continue to remain important African markets. This is while Brazil and Mexico are attracting investment from international technology and infrastructure companies.
According to CBRE’s 2026 Global Data Center Trends report, Latin America recorded the strongest year-on-year data center inventory growth among major regions in the first quarter of 2026, at 41.3%. This was followed by North America at 33%.
Improving internet connectivity, submarine cable infrastructure, cloud adoption and growing demand for locally hosted digital services are supporting the expansion. These markets are also attracting attention from developers seeking alternatives to increasingly constrained established data centre locations.
Power availability and construction costs reshape project development
Despite the strong development pipeline, securing sufficient electricity has become one of the biggest challenges facing data centre construction worldwide. Grid connection delays, shortages of transformers and switchgear, rising construction costs and limited availability of skilled workers are also affecting project delivery schedules. Developers are also increasingly exploring alternative power arrangements, including dedicated renewable energy generation, battery storage, natural gas-fired power plants and nuclear energy agreements.
It is also estimated that nearly 100GW of additional capacity will be required between 2026 and 2030, potentially doubling global data center capacity. Additionally, the associated investment requirement could approach US$3 trillion when building costs, financing and tenant expenditure on computing equipment are considered. JLL also estimates that average global data center construction costs will reach approximately US$11.3 million per megawatt in 2026.
Looking ahead: AI drives the next phase of global data centre construction
The next phase of the global data center construction boom is expected to be shaped by larger AI-focused campuses, increased investment in power infrastructure and the adoption of more efficient cooling technologies. Developers are also increasingly considering liquid cooling and modular construction. Renewable energy integration and battery storage to accommodate high-density computing requirements while addressing environmental concerns is also another key consideration.
However, the growing gap between announced projects and facilities that can actually secure financing, permits, electricity and construction resources means that not every proposed development will reach completion. The ability to secure reliable power, obtain regulatory approvals and deliver projects within increasingly complex construction schedules will therefore determine which developers emerge as major players in the expanding global market.
A Closer Look into the Data Center Construction Boom Around the World
Reported June 2026 – The global AI data center expansion is reaching unprecedented scales, with capital expenditure from major operators approaching $750 billion as over 23 gigawatts of capacity remains under construction worldwide.
However, this rapid buildout is hitting critical bottlenecks: severe grid connection queues, specialized labor shortages, and mounting local environmental pushback over water and power usage are causing delays or cancellations for up to half of newly proposed megawatt-scale sites. To circumvent overloaded power grids and tight supply chains, developers and tech giants are increasingly turning to behind-the-meter generation, on-site battery storage, and direct natural gas or nuclear power deals to bring high-density AI clusters online.
As the world becomes increasingly digitized, the demand for data processing, storage, and transfer is reaching unprecedented levels creating a data center construction boom.
The needs range for the growing e-commerce industry, data heavy development of artifical intelligence(AI) and a society dependent on digital information. This has triggered a global boom in data center construction, with new facilities springing up in nearly every region to meet the explosive growth from cloud computing, to streaming service. The race to expand digital infrastructure is unsatiable in the near future given that it will consistently be out-matched by demand.
North America: Hyperscale Expansion
North America, particularly the United States, is leading the charge in data center development. Tech giants such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud are building hyperscale data centers—massive facilities capable of housing thousands of servers to operation their Large Language models (LLM).
The Tech giants are spending colossal amounts to keep ahead in what appears to be a database capacity race. Amazon is to spend $20B in Pennsylvania to expand its data centers the largest private sector investment in the sates history.
Virginia’s “Data Center Alley” remains a prime hotspot due to its robust fiber network, low-cost power, and business-friendly policies. CleanArc Data Center are just one of several players putting up data centers there.
States like Texas and Arizona are also emerging as key players, offering vast land and renewable energy options.
Europe: Balancing Growth and Sustainability
In Europe, countries like Ireland, the Netherlands, Germany, and the Nordics are experiencing rapid data center growth. In France Microsoft has announced plans to expand their data centers in Marseille and Paris with a price tag of $4.3b.
In the UK the largest data center in Europe is coming up at a cost of £3.75bn in the M25 Green belt site in Herfordshire by DC01UK.
However, increasing scrutiny over energy consumption and land use has prompted stricter environmental regulations. Developers are now investing heavily in sustainable technologies, including liquid cooling systems, green energy sourcing, and carbon offsetting.
Sweden and Finland are attracting data centers with their cool climates and abundant hydroelectric power. Google is to spend $1b in expanding its 10 year old facility in Finland. Tiktok is also making advancements as it implements a second $1bn data center campus in Finland.
The move comes less than year after the company constructed its first data center in the European nation. Furthermore, it facilitates Tiktok’s movement of data storage for European users to the continent. The announcement comes as Tiktok’s Chinese parent ByteDance in January avoided a U.S. ban over data protection concerns.
Moreover, European nations are ratcheting up pressure on social media companies to protect children from their addictive algorithms. The $1bn investment in data center is for an initial capacity of 50 megawatts.
Asia-Pacific: A Rising Digital Powerhouse
Asia-Pacific is becoming one of the fastest-growing data center regions globally. India is making strong advances with government-backed digital initiatives and a rising middle class driving internet usage. Singapore, after lifting its data center moratorium, is now allowing new builds under tighter energy efficiency rules. South Korea is not being left behind with reports of the world’s biggest AI data centre being constructed in Jeollanam-do Province. Meanwhile, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam are also seeing increased investment as global players seek alternatives to China’s saturated market. China also recently reported that it will be building the worlds first commercial data center located under the sea in Shanghai and cooled directly by water. Additionally, Australia is joining the race with upcoming data center projects such as the planned Beetaloo Digital Project that will he developed near Darwin.
Africa and Latin America: Emerging Hubs
While still in earlier stages, Africa and Latin America are beginning to see increased interest. South Africa is leading the way on the African continent, with Nairobi and Lagos also emerging as key locations. In Latin America, Brazil and Mexico are witnessing data center investments due to improved internet penetration and rising demand for local content and services. ByteDance, the Chinese parent company of TikTok, is reportedly exploring a significant investment in a data center in Brazil,
These regions are seen as the next frontiers for digital infrastructure, especially as undersea cable projects improve global connectivity.
Data Center Construction: Challenges and Opportunities
The surge in construction brings significant economic benefits—creating jobs, enhancing internet performance, and supporting digital transformation. However, it also poses challenges related to environmental impact, water and energy consumption, and local opposition to land use. In response, many developers are adopting green building standards, reusing heat, and locating facilities near renewable energy sources.
Looking Ahead
The global data center construction boom is far from over. As technologies like AI, 5G, and edge computing continue to evolve, the need for robust, efficient, and sustainable data infrastructure will only intensify. The next phase of development will likely focus on decentralization, modular designs, and carbon neutrality—ensuring the world can process its growing volume of data without compromising the planet.
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