The US is fighting over data centers. China is building them fast

illuminem summarises for you the essential news of the day, reviewed by our editorial team. Read the full piece on CNN or enjoy below:

🗞️ Driving the news: China is rapidly expanding its AI data center infrastructure, with Ulanqab in Inner Mongolia emerging as a major hub
• Nearly 90 data centers are planned for the city, supported by government investment, fast construction and abundant renewable energy
• While the US retains a significant advantage in advanced AI chips and overall computing capacity, China is leveraging its ability to build infrastructure at scale

🔭 The context: Beijing recently announced a $560 billion plan to expand information infrastructure over five years
• Chinese companies are also increasing AI investments, while the national “Eastern data, Western compute” strategy directs computing facilities toward western regions with plentiful land and renewable energy
• However, US export restrictions on advanced chips remain a major obstacle, and some rural data center projects risk becoming underused assets

🌍 Why it matters for the planet: China’s approach could help integrate surplus wind and solar power into energy-intensive AI infrastructure
• However, clustering more computing capacity also raises questions about electricity demand, resource efficiency and whether renewable generation can reliably meet AI’s growing needs

⏭️ What’s next: China is betting that its energy infrastructure and construction speed can compensate for its shortage of advanced chips
• In Ulanqab, Envision says more than 80% of the power for its planned Galaxy Campus will come directly from its wind farms, while battery storage and specialized cooling systems aim to reduce environmental impacts
• The model’s success will depend on access to computing hardware, sustained demand and the efficient use of energy

💬 One quote: “China’s trying to take advantage of the fact that it has this muscle memory for building energy (infrastructure) quickly,” said Kyle Chan, a fellow at the Brookings Institution.

📈 One stat: China wasted enough excess renewable energy in the first half of 2026 to power Mexico for an entire year, according to findings from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air and Global Energy Monitor

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