U.S. data center spend hits $50B annualized

U.S. spending on data-center construction is rising at a pace that would put annual outlays near $50 billion, according to industry estimates built off federal construction data and private-sector tracking of AI infrastructure projects. The buildout has been driven by cloud companies, model developers and newer AI cloud providers racing to secure power, land and electrical equipment. At the same time, the projects are drawing sharper political resistance in states and localities that host them. Gallup said on May 13 that seven in 10 Americans oppose building an AI data center in their local area, and lawmakers have begun filing bills that would slow or block projects. ### Where does the $50 billion figure come from? The U.S. Census Bureau’s monthly Value of Construction Put in Place survey is the main federal source for tracking construction activity, and its release schedule shows April 2026 data are due on June 1. Industry researchers and investors have used those federal construction series, along with project-level announcements, to estimate that U.S. data-center construction spending has climbed to about a $50 billion annualized rate as of April. Bloomberg reported on April 1 that tech giants including Alphabet, Amazon, Meta and Microsoft had committed to spend more than $650 billion in 2026, and that almost half of planned U.S. data centers for the year were expected to be delayed or canceled because of shortages in transformers, switchgear and batteries. (census.gov) ### Which companies are pushing the buildout fastest? Amazon has been cited in multiple reports as planning about $200 billion in 2026 capital expenditures, with most of that tied to AWS infrastructure and data centers, though Reuters results were not available in this search and Amazon’s own AWS site did not surface that figure directly. CNBC and GeekWire both reported in February that Chief Executive Andy Jassy told investors the company expected about $200 billion of capex this year, with most of the spending going to data centers. (bloomberg.com) Nebius has moved from plans to execution in Missouri. Nebius said on March 3 that Independence, Missouri, approved incentives for a planned AI factory campus with potential capacity of up to 1.2 gigawatts, and the company’s newsroom said on May 12 that it broke ground on the project. The company said the site would be its largest U.S. AI factory to date. ### Why are local communities pushing back? (geekwire.com) Gallup said on May 13 that 71% of Americans oppose the construction of an AI data center in their local area, including 48% who are strongly opposed. Gallup’s topic pages describe the survey as the first time the organization has measured opinion on local AI data-center construction. Data Center Watch, a research firm that tracks local opposition, said $64 billion of U.S. data-center projects had been blocked or delayed amid local resistance over the prior two years. (nebius.com) The group said it tracks opposition across 28 states and cited concerns including noise, water use, power demand and property values, while also cautioning that not every delay can be attributed solely to activism. ### How far has the backlash reached into legislatures? (gallup.com) Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez announced the Artificial Intelligence Data Center Moratorium Act on March 25. Congress.gov lists the measure as S.4214, a bill to impose a moratorium on construction of new data centers until legislation is enacted to safeguard the public from AI-related harms, and the measure was referred to the Senate Commerce Committee. (datacenterwatch.org) Sanders’ office said more than 100 local communities had enacted moratoriums on data centers and 12 states were advancing statewide moratorium proposals. Data Center Watch’s recent briefings also show state and local fights continuing in places including Virginia, Pennsylvania, Florida, Kentucky and North Carolina. ### What should readers watch next? (congress.gov) June 1 is the next federal checkpoint. Census is scheduled to release April 2026 construction-spending data that day, giving investors and local officials a fresh read on whether data-center outlays are still accelerating. In Missouri, Nebius has already broken ground on its Independence campus, and in Washington, Sanders’ bill remains pending in committee. Those two tracks — shovel-ready projects and attempts to pause them — are likely to define the next phase of the U.S. data-center fight. (sanders.senate.gov) (nebius.com) (census.gov)