Accord to a recent report published by consultancy group PwC, global spending on data centres is set to hit $31.6 trillion by 2050 as demand for AI computing capacity drives a boom in infrastructure investment.
In its Global Data Centre Outlook report, PwC predicted annual data centre capex will rise from about $800 billion this year to $1.1 trillion in 2030 and $1.8 trillion by 2050. The consultancy added spending could even approach $50 trillion depending on the pace of AI adoption.
The US is expected to capture almost half of the spending, with $15.1 trillion in cumulative capex through 2050. Asia Pacific is forecast to attract $8.2 trillion, followed by Europe at $5.6 trillion, the Middle East at $1.1 trillion and Africa at $255 billion.
PwC said the investment cycle differs from previous infrastructure booms because spending will continue well beyond the buildout of new facilities are built. Servers, GPUs, storage and networking equipment will typically need to be replaced every four to six years, creating a recurring investment requirement as AI workloads expand. ICT equipment is expected to account for 93% of total data centre capex by 2050, compared with 70% today.
However, geopolitical changes could reshape the market. If tighter export controls disrupt advanced GPU supplies, cumulative global investment could fall to $25.5 trillion through 2050, around $6 trillion below the central forecast.
A shift towards digital sovereignty would have a smaller impact on total spending but alter its geography. PwC estimates cumulative investment would reach $29.5 trillion, with capital redistributed into markets with stronger domestic demand rather than established global hubs.
“The AI buildout is not a rising tide that will naturally lift all boats”, said Clara Cutajar, global infrastructure leader at PwC Australia. “Capturing this investment requires active positioning.”
Trillion-dollar question
Yet, power is likely to be the “binding constraint” on AI infrastructure build-out “in every region”, the report warned. It flagged access to affordable, reliable and increasingly low-carbon electricity at scale will determine which markets can attract investment. Connectivity, security, policy certainty, community consent and access to GPUs will also influence global locations of AI facilities.
Indeed, at least 75 data centre projects worth around $130 billion were blocked or delayed by local opposition in the US during the first three months of 2026, according to Data Centre Watch, with concerns including environmental impact and resource consumption.
“The $31.6 trillion question isn’t whether the capital exists. It does”, the report noted. “Nor is the question whether the demand is real. It is”. The question is which regions, operators, and institutions are positioned to capture it and which aren’t”.
Source: Mobile World Live
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Source: Tahawul Tech