ResearchGlobal|2024jll.comDataCenters2024GlobalOutlookAIandthegreenenergytransitionwillbringnewchallengesandopportunitiesDataCenters2024GlobalOutlookContentsExecutivesummary301Demanddrivers5Digitaleconomy6GenerativeAI802Datacenterdesign9Increasingrackdensity9Liquidcooling12Datacenteroperations13Increasingpowerefficiency13Software-fueledefficiencyimprovements14AlgorithmsandCPUcycles1403Powersourcing15Globalpowershortage16Sustainableenergy18Low-carbonstrategiestoovercomesupplyissues2004Opportunitiesforsustainablegrowth22Keycontacts242DataCenters2024GlobalOutlookContents→ThedemocratizationofArtificialIntelligence(AI)standstobethebiggesttransformationinthedatacenterindustrysincethesectorburstontothescene.Thedatacenterindustryhasexperiencedexplosivegrowthoverthepastdecade,drivenbyever-increasingdemandforcloudservicesandtheexpandinguseofweb-enableddevicesglobally.Nowin2024,AIandmachinelearningispromptingafundamentalshiftindatacenterdesign,siteselectionandinvestmentapproach.Withpowerrequirementsfordatacentersgrowingexponentially,weareseeingascarcityofdatacentercolocationsupplydrivenbyregionalpowerlimitations.Datacentergrowthisexperiencingsignificantcompetitionwithotherhigh-powerusersincludingelectricvehicleinfrastructureandadvancedmanufacturing.TheEuropeanCommissionestimatesthatelectricityconsumptionwillincreaseby60%by2030whilepowergenerationcapacityneedshugeinvestmentinordertomeetrenewableenergytargets.ExecutivesummaryTheimpactonthedatacenterindustryisimmense.Powerpresentsbothanopportunityandathreattothesectorandasaresultwehavededicatedouroutlooktothisevolvingdynamic.Ourreportexploresindetail,whatthismeansfordevelopersandoperatorsin2024andbeyond,includingcasestudiesofingenuityandinnovationasthesectorevolves.3DataCenters2024GlobalOutlookContents→DemanddriversTheever-growingdigitaleconomyanddemocratizationofAIwilldrivedemandformoreandlargerdatacenters.Withmanyrealestateassetclassesseeingapullbackfordevelopersandinvestors,datacentersstandsoutasapromisingassetclassin2024.DatacenterdesignThehighlyspecializedequipmentneededtosupportAIdensities,particularlyliquidcooling,willtransformtraditionalfacilitydesign.Datacenterprovidersarerapidlychangingdesignstosupportthesenewrequirements.DatacenteroperationsInthequesttolowerpowerusageeffectiveness(PUE),datacenteroperatorswillseeknewsoftwaresolutionsandalgorithmstopropelefficiencygains.Forenterprisedatacenteroperators,achievingbetterefficiencyrequiresspecializedexpertise.PowersourcingTheurgentneedformorepowerwillleaddatacenteroperatorsandevengovernmentstoscrambletosecurerequiredutility,especiallysustainablesourcesofenergywhilespurringinnovation.AIisdrivingextremescalefornewdevelopmentswithrequirementsnowrangingfrom300megawatts(MW)toover500MW.Siteselectioncriteriahavechangeddramaticallywithamoreprominentfocusonpoweravailabilityanddeliverytimelines.4DataCenters2024GlobalOutlookContents→Thecontinuedtransitiontothecloud,growthintheInternetofThings(IoT),growingdatasovereigntyandresidencyregulations,andtheexpandingamountofdatathatconsumersandbusinessesgeneratearefuelingtherapiddevelopmentofdatacentersglobally.Inthenextfiveyears,consumersandbusinesseswillgeneratetwiceasmuchdataasallthedatacreatedoverthepast10years.Inresponse,totalstoragecapacityindatacentersandendpointdeviceswillgrowfrom10.1zettabytes(ZB)in2023to21.0ZBin2027,forafive-yearcompou...