US Data Centers Projected to Use 20% of Power by 2035

A new forecast warns that surging demand from artificial intelligence is set to dramatically reshape the U.S. electricity landscape, with data centers projected to consume one-fifth of the nation's power by 2035. Research firm BloombergNEF released an updated outlook on July 21, 2026, raising its 2035 demand projection for U.S. data centers to 194 gigawatts, an 83% increase from its forecast of 106 gigawatts made just last December.

The rapid revision reflects an unprecedented volume of new AI facilities entering development pipelines. BNEF analysts note that over 100 gigawatts of new data center demand has been proposed since the beginning of 2026, driven by the explosive growth of AI training and inference workloads. The firm estimates that by 2033, the United States will host 64% of the world's AI chips measured by power demand, with nearly half of all projected U.S. data center capacity dedicated to AI.

This accelerating demand is creating a severe challenge for the nation's power grid. BNEF calculates that even if the U.S. sustains a record pace of grid connections-matching the highest annual connection of 7.1 gigawatts every year for a decade-a supply shortfall of 19...