Data center demand doubled year-over-year, JLL finds

A JLL report found data center absorption hit a record 25 gigawatts in the first half of 2026, roughly double the prior year and above expectations. The growth reflects continued build-out driven largely by AI compute demand.

Why it matters: This is a concrete data point in the ongoing debate over whether AI data-center capex is outrunning real demand or usage is actually growing even faster than supply comes online. It's useful context for the GPU-financing, grid-interconnection-limit, and mega-scale leasing stories already in the feed.