Asia’s rapid data center buildout is sparking local pushback, as governments’ urge to capture value in the AI investment boom runs into constituents’ environmental and health concerns.
Backlash is growing from India to Australia, Nikkei reported, leading not to less demand overall but redirected investments, as companies shift to areas with less opposition.
“Demand is still red-hot across pretty much every market in the region,” one analyst said. “Where you’ll find issues is where [developers] don’t engage with the community.”
The buildout in Asia is running into financial limits as well: Lenders have dished out nearly $29 billion to fund data centers since the start of the year, but are now starting to grow more selective, Barclays bankers told Bloomberg.
