9 February 2026

What Are the Pros and Cons of Data Centers?

Aminu Abdullahi

When ChatGPT launched in late 2022, I watched something remarkable happen. Within two months, it hit 100 million users, a growth rate that sent shockwaves through Silicon Valley. Today, it has over 800 million weekly active users. That launch sparked an explosion in AI development that has fundamentally changed how we build and operate the infrastructure powering our digital world.

That all happens in data centers… and lots of them. Data centers are economic engines and technical marvels, but they also come with real costs that communities are only beginning to feel. Let me walk you through the three major pros and cons of today’s data center boom and what they mean for our future.

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