Us Hyperscalers to Guzzle 22% More Grid Juice by End of 2025
Posted3 months agoActive3 months ago
theregister.comTechstory
calmmixed
Debate
40/100
DatacentersEnergy ConsumptionAI
Key topics
Datacenters
Energy Consumption
AI
US hyperscalers are expected to increase their energy consumption by 22% by the end of 2025, driven by AI growth, sparking discussions on sustainability and infrastructure planning.
Snapshot generated from the HN discussion
Discussion Activity
Light discussionFirst comment
2h
Peak period
3
2-4h
Avg / period
2
Key moments
- 01Story posted
Oct 17, 2025 at 10:47 AM EDT
3 months ago
Step 01 - 02First comment
Oct 17, 2025 at 1:17 PM EDT
2h after posting
Step 02 - 03Peak activity
3 comments in 2-4h
Hottest window of the conversation
Step 03 - 04Latest activity
Oct 18, 2025 at 7:40 AM EDT
3 months ago
Step 04
Generating AI Summary...
Analyzing up to 500 comments to identify key contributors and discussion patterns
ID: 45617400Type: storyLast synced: 11/20/2025, 2:55:49 PM
Want the full context?
Jump to the original sources
Read the primary article or dive into the live Hacker News thread when you're ready.
Don't they already pass the cost of that onto consumers?
I'm perfectly fine if to satisfy that requirement the Data Center operator pays the Utility Company for the cost of expanding existing infrastructure, but I want those expenses more direct to the specific consumer (data center) likely to consume more energy in a day than most of the residents of the city do via taxes or direct fees against increased demands.
This is not even close to how anything works. There's some state regulation but most GSOs/TSOs/DSOs/IPPs are private companies, SGEs, or nonprofit co-ops. All RTOs/ISOs are nonprofits but own no grid assets.
If hyperscalers keep pushing that kind of increase they will eventually learn that the supply and cost of energy becomes a limiting factor. When demand outstrips supply, prices go bonkers and rolling blackouts become a fact of life. See the California grid crisis back in 2000-2001, although in that case the supply shortage was the result of blatant market manipulation by Enron.