Artificial intelligence is expanding at remarkable speed, with adoption, investment, and technical capability all moving upward. Stanford HAI's 2026 AI Index Report reports that organizational AI adoption reached 88% in 2025, while global corporate AI investment more than doubled to $581.69 billion. Generative AI also reached an estimated 53% population adoption within three years, suggesting that AI is becoming part of everyday digital and organizational activity at an unusually rapid pace.
That expansion brings a physical question into view. The International Energy Agency's Key Questions on Energy and AI projects global data-center electricity consumption could rise from 485 terawatt-hours in 2025 to approximately 950 terawatt-hours by 2030. A 2026 report from the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health also examines AI's associated electricity, water, and land requirements, highlighting the physical infrastructure supporting increasingly digital experiences.
