The Edge: Data center boom linked to heat spikes in neighborhoods around them
Apr 27, 2026
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A new warning as North Carolina races to cash in on the AI boom.
The same massive data centers powering your apps and searches could be heating up the neighborhoods around them. New research shows these facilities may create “heat islands,” pushing local temperatures up by
several degrees.
As dozens of projects are planned across the state, communities are now asking: what’s the real cost of all this computing power?
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