Half of all new electricity demand in the U.S. last year came from data centers—just as public opinion of them plummets

The U.S. just had one of its most energy-hungry years in recent memory, and the largest single driver of demand happens to be a lightning rod. 

Energy demand in the U.S. grew 2% in 2025, according to a report on the global state of energy published Monday by the International Energy Agency (IEA), a watchdog outfit.

While that’s slower than 2024’s 2.8% increase, last year’s growth was the second-highest rate since 2000 excluding years that followed recessionary lulls.

Tremendous energy demand in the U.S. was largely fueled by a huge increase in electricity needs across the country. Economic growth and a cold winter that required ample heating usage powered some of that rise, but the single largest contributor to the nation’s additional power appetite last year was the rapid buildout of data centers, the critical server infrastructure tech companies are rolling out to train artificial intelligence models. 

Data centers accounted for around 50% of all electricity demand growth in the U.S. last year, according to the IEA, far surpassing the rise in electricity usage in the residential, industrial, and transport sectors. IEA also sees data centers continuing to account for half of U.S. electricity demand growth to 2030.

The concentration of this growth in the U.S. highlights the country’s role as the epicenter of the AI-driven construction boom,........

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