GoKawiilJournalist Paris Marx's new book 'Hyperscale' details data centers' fossil-fuel reliance and local opposition
In his book 'Hyperscale: The Ambition and Excess of Big Tech's Data Empires,' journalist Paris Marx recounts visiting heavily secured data centers in Virginia and Ireland operated by companies including Microsoft. He reports that Amazon, Microsoft and Google together control 59% of hyperscale data center capacity, and that modern AI-driven facilities can require roughly triple the power of older large data centers, around 50 megawatts previously versus much higher now.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
The scale of power and water consumption described suggests that AI infrastructure growth could strain local grids and resources, which may explain the community protests Marx documents near these sites. Marx's framing of data centers as a 'metaphor' for corporate power implies, in his view, that this infrastructure buildout reflects broader concerns about unchecked tech industry influence rather than just operational needs.
- Marx's book documents tight security at Big Tech data centers in Virginia and Ireland.
- Amazon, Microsoft and Google control 59% of hyperscale data center capacity, per the book.
- Hyperscale data centers can need roughly three times the power of older large facilities.
Source: cnet.com — Katelyn Chedraoui, 2026-10-20
Published there as: “Data Centers Are Burning Fossil Fuels. It’s Destroying Big Tech’s Climate Goals”
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