Interesting article explaining what data centers are and their impact on the community they are built in. | Did you know most of your daily online activities rely on data centers? Here’s how it works – PolitiFact https://politifact.com/article/2026/aug/17/what-is-ai-data-centers-electricity-water/ #ai
Key numbers from the article:

• Typical AI data center electricity use: up to as much as 100,000 households per year
• Largest data centers under construction: about 20× that amount (per the International Energy Agency estimate in 2025)
• Data centers worldwide electricity use (2024): about 415 terawatt-hours, roughly 1.5% of total world electricity
• U.S. data center power demand (by 2030): 9.5% to 15.3% of total U.S. electricity consumption
• Water used: relies on freshwater (usually from local municipal water systems) for cooling