By 2035, data centers are projected to consume about 20% of the U.S. electricity supply, becoming the next AI bottleneck.

July 25th, the power demand of U.S. data centers is projected to surge by 253% from 2026 levels to a record-breaking 194 gigawatts by 2035, with 1 gigawatt roughly equivalent to the capacity of a traditional nuclear reactor. Currently, data centers consume 6% of the U.S. electricity per year, estimated to reach about 12% by 2030, and by 2035, data centers will account for around 20% of U.S. electricity consumption.

Most of the U.S. power consumption growth is concentrated in a few power grid regions, such as the Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Maryland Interconnection (PJM), which serves the District of Columbia and 13 states including Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Ohio. Power will be the next AI bottleneck.