{"id":766272,"date":"2025-07-29T05:39:12","date_gmt":"2025-07-29T12:39:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/?post_type=wherenext&p=766272"},"modified":"2025-07-31T08:49:50","modified_gmt":"2025-07-31T15:49:50","slug":"ai-and-data-centers","status":"publish","type":"wherenext","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/publications\/wherenext\/ai-and-data-centers","title":{"rendered":"The Location Science Behind the AI Boom"},"author":501,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"sync_status":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","castos_file_data":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[],"tags":[1741,160952,22772,238001],"department":[476822],"wherenext-category":[],"industry":[],"class_list":["post-766272","wherenext","type-wherenext","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","tag-ai","tag-infrastructure","tag-manufacturing","tag-site-selection","department-data-and-ai"],"acf":{"short_description":"As AI booms, developers and tech firms are using GIS technology to assess potential data center sites and outmaneuver competitors.","pdf":{"host_remotely":false,"file":"","file_url":""},"flexible_content":[{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"Tech companies and real estate developers are racing to acquire a hotly contested asset: land that can accommodate the data centers powering the AI boom."},{"acf_fc_layout":"sidebar","layout":"standard","image_reference":null,"image_reference_figure":"","spotlight_image":null,"section_title":"","spotlight_name":"","position":"Left","content":"Snapshot<\/strong>: Ask a question of an AI chatbot and a data center somewhere kicks into gear. GIS technology is helping bring them to life through site analysis and digital twin simulations.","snippet":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"Every day, businesses and individuals enter millions of prompts into AI platforms. These commands are routed to data centers, where graphics processing units (GPUs)\u2014thoroughbreds of the computing world\u2014enable AI models to send back answers and analyses in real time.\r\n\r\nThe companies involved include cloud computing behemoths known as hyperscalers, specialized data center firms, and real estate developers. As they look for land to build data centers, they\u2019re turning to an enterprise technology<\/a> known as geographic information system (GIS) software.\r\n\r\nData centers have a unique profile. They require access to abundant stores of energy to maintain servers and high volumes of water to cool equipment. They must be near fiber-optic networks, critical infrastructure, and skilled workers\u2014while meeting zoning laws and environmental standards. You can find them in the suburbs outside of DC, in the Nevada desert, or in a small town in central Oregon.\r\n\r\nSome have suggested that the pace of data center buildouts may be moderating<\/a>, but others say demand remains strong: During the first six months of 2025, they note, investment in generative AI<\/a> eclipsed that of full-year 2024.\r\n\r\nBy real estate firm CBRE\u2019s reckoning, just 2.8 percent of data center space in North America<\/a> is unoccupied, a vacancy rate that underscores the intense competition for such sites. The advantage goes to those who can scout, evaluate, and plan the quickest.\r\n\r\n\u201cSpeed to market has been so critical for data centers,\u201d says Sony David, a principal at the engineering and environmental services firm Langan, which has advised hyperscalers, major financial firms, and colocation developers on data center projects.\r\n\r\nLangan\u2019s data center team uses tools built with GIS technology to help clients find prime sites<\/a> and prototype facilities faster, outmaneuvering the competition. \u201cWe see it as having a competitive edge and providing our clients with missing tools in the space,\u201d David says."},{"acf_fc_layout":"quote","image":766302,"text":"We saw that you could leverage GIS tools to quickly find information. It\u2019s something that a lot of our clients have been really receptive to because it opens a new door to find new sites that can be developed.","author_name":"Sony David, Langan","author_profession_organization":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

GIS: The Tech Fueling the Hunt for Data Center Space <\/strong><\/h3>\r\nIn the hunt for data center property, cloud hyperscalers and other large firms may dedicate their own staff to site selection, hire AEC or corporate real estate firms as advisers, or rely on a mix of both. However they proceed, GIS is often the common denominator, helping firms gauge the value of parcels and scenario-plan for the build process."},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":766492,"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"Location software can narrow thousands of potential sites to a ranked short list of properties that meet a client\u2019s specifications. At Langan, GIS tools have shrunk the time needed for this analysis to three or four minutes from several hours, according to David. GIS even helps developers discover off-market opportunities and avoid bidding wars.\r\n\r\nThe applications do this by analyzing a plethora of parcel variables\u2014substrate conditions, flood zones, opportunity zones\u2014on maps that can be shared with clients, civil site engineers, geotechnical experts, and other stakeholders.\r\n\r\nData center advisers also use GIS-based 3D digital twins<\/a> to visualize facility layouts on a parcel, allowing designers and project owners to experiment with trade-offs such as:\r\n