Power shortages, carbon capture, and AI automation: What’s ahead for data centers in 2026

The data center industry is racing toward a power crisis that technology alone will not be able to solve, according to Uptime Institute’s 2026 data center predictions report.

“Critical digital infrastructure continues to expand strongly,” said Andy Lawrence, executive director of research at Uptime Institute, in a statement. “At the same time, our research shows uncertainty about how AI will reshape demand. This is complicating both capacity planning and resiliency strategies. We are also seeing increasing fragmentation in the design and deployment of data centers and expect investment and innovation in carbon capture technologies, in AI, and automation in the data center itself.”

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