Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 hours ago
For the past two decades, the tech industry operated under the illusion that the internet was weightless. But the Artificial Intelligence boom of the 2020s has violently reintroduced Silicon Valley to the laws of physics.
As we move through 2026, hyperscalers like Amazon, Microsoft, and Google are spending over $650 billion in capital expenditures, largely to build massive AI data centers. But they have hit a terrifying bottleneck: they are literally running out of electricity.
Footage: Shutterstock
Sources:
1. The AI Energy Drain
Goldman Sachs & Brookings Institution: A standard ChatGPT query uses nearly 10x the electricity of a traditional Google search (2.9 watt-hours vs. 0.3 watt-hours).
Read more: https://www.brookings.edu/articles/global-energy-demands-within-the-ai-regulatory-landscape/
International Energy Agency (IEA): Electricity 2024 Report projecting global data center power demand could double, pushing past 1,000 Terawatt-hours (equivalent to Japan's entire power grid).
Read the report: iea.org/reports/electricity-2024
2. The Renewables Flaw & Big Tech's Rising Emissions
Google 2024 Environmental Report: Acknowledging a 48% increase in greenhouse gas emissions compared to a 2019 baseline, largely driven by data center energy demands.
Read the report: https://sustainability.google/reports/google-2024-environmental-report/
Microsoft 2024 Sustainability Report: Disclosing a 29.1% spike in emissions since 2020 due to the massive construction and energy requirements of new AI infrastructure.
Read the breakdown: microsoft.com/en-us/corporate-responsibility/sustainability-report
3. The Legacy Nuclear Mega-Deals
Microsoft & Three Mile Island: Constellation Energy’s $1.6 billion investment to resurrect Unit 1 of Three Mile Island (rebranded as the Crane Clean Energy Center) under a 20-year power purchase agreement with Microsoft.
Official Press Release: constellationenergy.com/news/2024/Constellation-to-Launch-Crane-Clean-Energy-Center-Restoring-Jobs-and-Carbon-Free-Power-to-The-Grid.html
Amazon & Talen Energy: Amazon Web Services' $650 million acquisition of the 1,200-acre Cumulus data center campus, situated directly adjacent to the Susquehanna nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania.
Read more: spglobal.com/market-intelligence/en/news-insights/articles/2024/3/talen-energy-sells-pa-datacenter-campus-to-amazon-web-services-for-650m-80711401
4. The Grid War & Regulatory Pushback
FERC Rejects Amazon/Talen Deal: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (FERC) tight 2-1 decision to deny an amended interconnection agreement that would have allowed Amazon to siphon increased direct power from the Susquehanna plant.
Read more: ans.org/news/article-6534/ferc-rejects-interconnection-deal-for-talenamazon-data-centers
5. Shrinking the Atom: Small Modular Reactors (SMRs)
Google & Kairos Power: Google's landmark agreement to purchase up to 500 megawatts of power from a fleet of Kairos Power SMRs by 2035.
Read more: ans.org/news/article-6476/google-and-kairos-power-partner-on-500-mw-advanced-nuclear-project
Amazon & X-energy: Amazon anchored a massive $500 million financing round for X-energy to develop advanced SMRs and vertically integrate their TRISO-X nuclear fuel supply chain.
Read more: esgtoday.com/amazon-backed-nuclear-tech-company-x-energy-raises-over-1-billion-in-ipo
Inquiries: behindasian@gmail.com
Brought to you by the Behind Asian Team.
For the past two decades, the tech industry operated under the illusion that the internet was weightless. But the Artificial Intelligence boom of the 2020s has violently reintroduced Silicon Valley to the laws of physics.
As we move through 2026, hyperscalers like Amazon, Microsoft, and Google are spending over $650 billion in capital expenditures, largely to build massive AI data centers. But they have hit a terrifying bottleneck: they are literally running out of electricity.
Footage: Shutterstock
Sources:
1. The AI Energy Drain
Goldman Sachs & Brookings Institution: A standard ChatGPT query uses nearly 10x the electricity of a traditional Google search (2.9 watt-hours vs. 0.3 watt-hours).
Read more: https://www.brookings.edu/articles/global-energy-demands-within-the-ai-regulatory-landscape/
International Energy Agency (IEA): Electricity 2024 Report projecting global data center power demand could double, pushing past 1,000 Terawatt-hours (equivalent to Japan's entire power grid).
Read the report: iea.org/reports/electricity-2024
2. The Renewables Flaw & Big Tech's Rising Emissions
Google 2024 Environmental Report: Acknowledging a 48% increase in greenhouse gas emissions compared to a 2019 baseline, largely driven by data center energy demands.
Read the report: https://sustainability.google/reports/google-2024-environmental-report/
Microsoft 2024 Sustainability Report: Disclosing a 29.1% spike in emissions since 2020 due to the massive construction and energy requirements of new AI infrastructure.
Read the breakdown: microsoft.com/en-us/corporate-responsibility/sustainability-report
3. The Legacy Nuclear Mega-Deals
Microsoft & Three Mile Island: Constellation Energy’s $1.6 billion investment to resurrect Unit 1 of Three Mile Island (rebranded as the Crane Clean Energy Center) under a 20-year power purchase agreement with Microsoft.
Official Press Release: constellationenergy.com/news/2024/Constellation-to-Launch-Crane-Clean-Energy-Center-Restoring-Jobs-and-Carbon-Free-Power-to-The-Grid.html
Amazon & Talen Energy: Amazon Web Services' $650 million acquisition of the 1,200-acre Cumulus data center campus, situated directly adjacent to the Susquehanna nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania.
Read more: spglobal.com/market-intelligence/en/news-insights/articles/2024/3/talen-energy-sells-pa-datacenter-campus-to-amazon-web-services-for-650m-80711401
4. The Grid War & Regulatory Pushback
FERC Rejects Amazon/Talen Deal: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (FERC) tight 2-1 decision to deny an amended interconnection agreement that would have allowed Amazon to siphon increased direct power from the Susquehanna plant.
Read more: ans.org/news/article-6534/ferc-rejects-interconnection-deal-for-talenamazon-data-centers
5. Shrinking the Atom: Small Modular Reactors (SMRs)
Google & Kairos Power: Google's landmark agreement to purchase up to 500 megawatts of power from a fleet of Kairos Power SMRs by 2035.
Read more: ans.org/news/article-6476/google-and-kairos-power-partner-on-500-mw-advanced-nuclear-project
Amazon & X-energy: Amazon anchored a massive $500 million financing round for X-energy to develop advanced SMRs and vertically integrate their TRISO-X nuclear fuel supply chain.
Read more: esgtoday.com/amazon-backed-nuclear-tech-company-x-energy-raises-over-1-billion-in-ipo
Inquiries: behindasian@gmail.com
Brought to you by the Behind Asian Team.
