2026 Global Data Center Market Predictions

Bonisiwe Shabane

-Jan 2, 2026, 12:01 PM

2026 global data center market predictions

How breakthroughs like DeepSeek will shock data center builds and operations Navigating SE Asia’s data center market: What it takes to win As we enter 2026, the global data center industry is at a critical turning point. Historic absorption rates over the past year have been driven by the growing demand for AI infrastructure. In this episode of the datacenterHawk podcast, Founder and CEO David Liggitt joins regional leaders Ed Socia (North America), David Sandars (EMEA), Dedi Iskandar (APAC), and Steve Sasse (Latin America) to analyze key trends... North America leads in data center development, but the growth is shifting geographically.

Regional Director Ed Socia highlights a movement toward nontraditional markets like North Dakota, Wyoming, and Missouri, driven by available power and the need to avoid community pushback. AI providers are building large, master-planned campuses in these areas. Regions like West Texas are seeing plans for massive 1-gigawatt projects, although network latency keeps traditional hubs like Chicago and Northwest Indiana relevant. Additionally, smaller enterprise demand (20-50MW) is carving a niche alongside hyperscale developments, signaling diverse growth within the market. In Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, diversification is the name of the game. Regional Director David Sandars notes a slowdown in speculative building, with some projects delayed until 2026 or 2027.

Interest is expanding beyond traditional FLAP-D markets to areas like Zaragoza, Spain, and parts of Eastern Europe, including Romania, Hungary, and the Czech Republic. The Middle East is emerging as a major AI hub, with plans for multi-gigawatt campuses. Its strategic location between Europe and Asia is attracting investments not only from western hyperscalers but also from countries like South Korea, keen to support their tech industries. As we enter 2026, the global data center industry is at a critical turning point. Historic absorption rates over the past year have been driven by the growing demand for AI infrastructure. In this episode of the Data Center Hawk podcast, Founder and CEO David Liggitt joins regional leaders Ed Socia (North America), David Sandars (EMEA), Dedi Iskandar (APAC), and Steve Sasse (Latin America) to analyze...

North America leads in data center development, but the growth is shifting geographically. Regional Director Ed Socia highlights a movement toward nontraditional markets like North Dakota, Wyoming, and Missouri, driven by available power and the need to avoid community pushback. AI providers are building large, master-planned campuses in these areas. Regions like West Texas are seeing plans for massive 1-gigawatt projects, although network latency keeps traditional hubs like Chicago and Northwest Indiana relevant. Additionally, smaller enterprise demand (20-50MW) is carving a niche alongside hyperscale developments, signaling diverse growth within the market. In Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, diversification is the name of the game.

Regional Director David Sandars notes a slowdown in speculative building, with some projects delayed until 2026 or 2027. Interest is expanding beyond traditional FLAP-D markets to areas like Zaragoza, Spain, and parts of Eastern Europe, including Romania, Hungary, and the Czech Republic. The Middle East is emerging as a major AI hub, with plans for multi-gigawatt campuses. Its strategic location between Europe and Asia is attracting investments not only from western hyperscalers but also from countries like South Korea, keen to support their tech industries. The Asia-Pacific market has doubled in size from 5GW to 10GW in just two years. Regional Director Dedi Iskandar highlights that while Japan and Australia remain key hubs, power constraints in major cities like Tokyo are pushing developments into tier-two markets.

Johor in Southeast Asia has quickly become a 2GW market, while India’s rapid growth positions it as a future leader, potentially surpassing Tokyo. Unlike Europe’s cautious pace, APAC’s AI companies demand fast delivery, often seeking 100MW+ capacities within just 3 to 6 months. Lead the conversation for the year ahead in the data center sector To help data center decision-makers navigate ongoing disruption, our Trends and Outlooks series offer actionable insights into the defining trends and challenges of the past year – while also exploring what 2026 may hold... Download our 2026 Trends and Outlooks guide now to find out more on how you can lead the conversation for the year ahead, including topics such as: Charting the Future of Data Center, Cloud, and AI Infrastructure

Ed. Note - Data Center Frontier's annual Trends Scorecard and 8 Trends That Will Shape the Data Center Industry articles will appear soon. In the meantime, we give you DCF Editor-at-Large Melissa Reali's assessment of the top five data center, AI and digital infrastructure trends for the year just past, with predictions for what lies ahead in... - MV This year not only stretched our industry, but exposed our fault lines. To wrap 2025 data center industry trends, the emerging sentiment is that our industry is being forced into adulthood: data centers can no longer behave like passive grid customers or anonymous real estate investment...

Power independence, active policy alignment, and more sophisticated capital stacks will determine who actually delivers capacity in a world where innovation and ambition still far exceed what the grid, permitting, and supply chains can... As 2025 closes the digital backbone did not simply expand; it bifurcated into power‑rich and power‑poor regions, aligned and misaligned policy regimes, and well‑capitalized versus stranded capacity. Connectivity, data, and computation move fully into the realm of economic statecraft, where questions of data center access, control, and investment are argued as much in ministries and sovereign funds as they are in... The global data center infrastructure market is propelled by escalating data traffic, driven by the proliferation of digital services, IoT, and AI applications. According to the World Bank, global internet penetration has reached 65%, fueling demand for robust data centers. Regulatory shifts emphasizing energy efficiency and carbon neutrality are compelling data center operators to adopt sustainable practices, supported by initiatives from the EPA and national governments.

The rising adoption of cloud computing and digital transformation initiatives across industries further accelerates infrastructure investments, with the market expected to grow at a CAGR of approximately 8% through 2033. Key drivers include evolving industry regulations mandating energy-efficient cooling and power systems, alongside government incentives aimed at promoting green data centers. The surge in enterprise and cloud service provider investments reflects an industry-wide focus on scalability, agility, and sustainability, supported by policies encouraging renewable energy integration. Additionally, the rapid rise of remote work and digital services has led to increased consumer adoption of cloud solutions, compelling providers to expand infrastructure capacity to meet soaring demand. These factors collectively underpin a resilient growth trajectory, with strategic investments geared toward future-proofing data center assets. Emerging technological trends such as the integration of AI-driven automation and IoT-enabled smart solutions are transforming data center operations, optimizing energy consumption, and reducing operational costs.

The shift towards edge computing is decentralizing data processing, creating new opportunities in high-growth regions like Asia-Pacific and Latin America. Moreover, the adoption of renewable energy sources and innovative cooling techniques, including liquid cooling and free-air cooling, are setting new sustainability benchmarks. Consumer behavior shifts towards more data-intensive applications and 5G deployment are further fueling market penetration strategies, emphasizing innovation-driven growth in mature and emerging markets alike. This comprehensive report equips strategic decision-makers, investors, and competitive intelligence teams with in-depth insights into market dynamics, enabling informed investment and operational decisions. It tracks competitive developments, technological innovations, and regional growth patterns, providing a clear view of opportunities and risks. The reportâ€™s customizable frameworks allow businesses to tailor insights to their specific strategic needs, enhancing relevance and applicability.

Additionally, our free analyst support facilitates ongoing strategic refinement and implementation, ensuring stakeholders stay ahead in a rapidly evolving industry landscape. By the year 2030, the scale for growth in the market research industry is reported to be above 120 billion which further indicates its projected compound annual growth rate (CAGR), of more than 5.8%... There have also been disruptions in the industry due to advancements in machine learning, artificial intelligence and data analytics There is predictive analysis and real time information about consumers which such technologies provide to... The Asia-Pacific region is expected to be a key driver of growth, accounting for more than 35% of total revenue growth. In addition, new innovative techniques such as mobile surveys, social listening, and online panels, which emphasize speed, precision, and customization, are also transforming this particular sector. Our recently published 2026 Global Data Center Market Outlook polled more than 400 senior executives across the data center industry—including investors, operators, technology providers, and real estate investment trusts (REITs)—to gain insight into current...

More than 50 of these executives are located in the Middle East. This article focuses on the unique differences of this region with regard to data center builds and operations in the coming year and beyond. The Middle East is fully aligned with global sentiments on AI-driven growth, with 96% believing AI inferencing will influence future market growth. Notably, 66% say AI will "somewhat influence" growth (higher than other regions' "strongly influence" rates), indicating broad consensus but measured enthusiasm. The region also shows strong belief that GPU efficiency improvements will drive a decline in LLM training(53% cite this as the main cause, higher than most markets). Middle East respondents overwhelmingly see the data center industry as being in a growth stage (68%), with only 32% considering it mature.

However, the region also reports low demand certainty, as most have less than two years of visibility. This combination of growth optimism and short-term visibility reflects an agile, opportunistic investment posture focused on rapid adaptation to market dynamics. The Middle East demonstrates the strongest belief in M&A activityof any region, with 70% of respondents expecting M&A attractiveness to increase within the next six months, compared to 60% globally. This reflects aggressive market consolidation strategies and a strong appetite for synergy-driven growth, positioning the region as particularly dynamic in deal-making and partnership formation. Following a year of uncertainty in the economy, experts expect much of the same for the construction industry heading into 2026. “There is this sort of general unease” when looking at the next one to two years, says Jay Bowman, partner at FMI Consulting.

“I understand that to a degree but at the same time, [contractors are] expressing all this concern, yet their backlogs in many cases are the best they’ve ever been. [So] there’s a little bit of a disconnect.” FMI is forecasting that spending for total construction put-in-place will decline 1.4% in 2025, before rebounding slightly, at a rate of 0.7%, in 2026. Total residential put-in-place follows a similar trend, expected to drop 2.2% in 2025, then increase 0.7% in 2026. In the non-residential market, declines are predicted in both 2025 and 2026, at a rate of 2% and 0.5%, respectively. “This year was a soft year,” says Bowman, but anticipates 2026 will be “a soft blend, where [things steady] for contractors.”

Data centers continue to drive a significant amount of market growth. Following a substantial 55.7% spike in 2024, FMI forecasts data center construction to increase 24.9% in 2026, following a 33.4% increase in 2025. “Obviously, data centers [are] becoming a larger and larger piece of the market,” Bowman says, adding, “I think we’re starting to get near a peak from a growth perspective. We’ve seen some states and municipalities starting to push back against data center development … [by eliminating] tax incentives. I’m not trying to say data centers are going away, [but] it’s not going to be this never-ending growth.” Manufacturing also may be reaching a high point.

“We saw that huge ramp-up in manufacturing over the last five years,” Bowman says, noting that FMI’s put-in-place forecast in this market is expected to reach $225 billion by the end of 2025, a... Going forward, Bowman expects spending in the sector to stay largely flat when compared to the huge spikes seen in the past few years. The FMI forecast predicts a dip of 4.7% in 2025, followed by a 3.7% decline in 2026. As we enter 2026, the global data center industry is at a critical turning point. Historic absorption rates over the past year have been driven by the growing demand for AI infrastructure. In this episode of the datacenterHawk podcast, Founder and CEO David Liggitt joins regional leaders Ed Socia (North America), David Sandars (EMEA), Dedi Iskandar (APAC), and Steve Sasse (Latin America) to analyze key trends...

2026 Global Data Center Market Predictions

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