The Data Centre of 2030: Smarter, Faster and More Sustainable

Data centres are poised for an era of rapid change, and by the end of this decade they will be very different, with the data centre of 2030 built for sustainability as well as computing power. The reason for this is simple, the power demands of data centres are rising rapidly. Data centre technology already accounts for 2% of energy use worldwide, according to the International Energy Authority (IEA), and by 2026, that figure could well double, with the demands of data centres equalling the electricity consumption of Japan. In Britain, the National Grid predicts that data centre power consumption could increase six-fold over the coming decade. These predictions are set to drive a surge in demand for sustainable computing.

One of the reasons behind the exponential rise in electricity demand is artificial intelligence (AI) and in particular generative AI, alongside other innovative technologies such as quantum computing. Generative AI’s appetite for energy is enormous. Research estimates that generating just one image with AI uses as much energy as fully charging a smartphone. But this must be weighed against the important role AI has to play in the battle against climate change, with AI expected to deliver breakthroughs in clean energy (for example designing nuclear fusion reactors) and in other areas such as limiting methane emissions from waste. The challenge is clear: the world must find a balance to enjoy the benefits of AI, while also containing its impact on the environment. 

So how can we build data centres fit for a cleaner future? Business leaders need to take an overview of the real energy impact of data centres, taking in everything from how servers are cooled and how that energy might be reused, to how they are shipped and the mix of energy used. Understanding the true impact of data centres is the first step towards a smarter, more sustainable future.

Powering progress

With generative AI appearing in software ranging from email apps to internet search, the energy demands of the AI industry is going to continue rocketing, with one study in the journal Cell suggesting the power demand of AI alone could match the demand of the Netherlands by 2027. The compute power required to train AI doubles every six months, and Gartner® predicts  that ‘by 2030, AI could consume up to 3.5% of the world’s electricity’. The IEA’s report suggests that adding generative AI to search (as companies including Google are rushing to do at present) could multiply the energy demands of internet searches by 10.

All of this requires the technology industry to design carefully for sustainability, not just at the chip level, but at the server level and data centre level. It’s also worth bearing in mind that there is a flipside to this in terms of the environmental benefits of innovations sparked by new technologies. Emerging technology such as quantum computing will be more energy-efficient and could also mean that problems are solved exponentially faster than classical computers. Both quantum and AI are expected to drive rapid innovation in everything from demand response in the electricity grid to photovoltaics to electricity generation technology. The ‘smart grids’ of the future will be powered by AI. In building decarbonisation, to take one example, Mckinsey estimates that AI can accelerate the process 100-fold compared to existing technologies. 

Smarter systems

The data centre of the future will be designed from the bottom up with sustainability in mind. Technologies such as warm water cooling enable high performance with far less energy use, provided a host of power consumption benefits. For instance, in data centres that use warm water-cooling, there is much less need for high-speed fans to dissipate heat. Air-cooling systems can often consume vast amounts of energy in themselves.

Furthermore, any wasted heat can be reused effectively because warm water-cooling systems produce heat waste at a temperature that is more easily reused for other purposes. Not only will this improve energy efficiency across an entire data centre facility, but this energy can be successfully recycled in sustainable ways in the wider community. By 2030, recycling the heat from data centres will become the norm, from heating nearby buildings and swimming pools to piping warm liquid under roads and walkways to melt ice. 

The data centres of the future will also be built around renewable energy, from renewable sources to solar panels on roofs, driving towards a future of carbon-neutral or even carbon-negative operations. Organisations will adopt ‘as a service’ approaches to AI to improve efficiency, and increasingly businesses will harness the power of AI to optimise electricity consumption in data centres themselves. Just as AI will assist in demand response in the electricity grid, within the data centre, algorithms can help with optimisation, predictive maintenance and energy management. This can reduce energy consumption by improving cooling efficiency, minimising waste and optimising resource allocation. 

Circular thinking

When designing and building a data centre fit for the future, it’s key for business leaders to take a view across the whole lifecycle of their data centre and the servers that will work in it. Everything from how components are designed and manufactured to how they are shipped, deployed and disposed of at the end of their lives matters, and taking a holistic view is key to making real sustainability gains. Through this decade, asset recovery services (ARS) and recycling of computer equipment will grow in importance. Other markets in Europe have already implemented legislation to reduce the environmental footprint of digital technology. For example, France introduced a mandate that 20% of IT devices bought by organisations need to be refurbished, with a target of 40% by 2040.

Manufacturing products regionally to cut shipping miles will also be a key differentiator. The current shift towards ‘as-a-service’ approaches to everything from hardware to software will continue, with business leaders focusing on avoiding overprovisioning to cut carbon emissions. 

Towards net zero

The challenge facing the technology sector is clear. AI’s hunger for energy is set to catalyse a race to adopt smarter and more sustainable approaches in the data centre as this decade unfolds. By 2030, we will see a new kind of data centre powered by renewables, and integrated thoroughly into the community around it with excess heat efficiently re-used to heat buildings and swimming pools. They have the potential to power a new era of quantum and AI, which will help unearth breakthroughs to tackle global issues, such as climate change.