Inside the power-hungry data centres taking over Britain

Inside the power-hungry data centres taking over Britain

Our thirst for AI is fuelling a new construction wave: of giant data centres. But can ourelectricity and water systems cope — and what will the neighbours say?Plants [like the one] run by the company Stellium on the outskirts ofNewcastle upon Tyne, are springing up across the country. There are alreadymore than 500 data centres operating in the UK, many of which have beenaround since the Nineties and Noughties. They grew in number as businesses …