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There is growing pressure on data center infrastructure — the non-computing equipment (e.g., power, cooling and rack systems) that supports the operation of core IT hardware — to modernize power systems, improve energy efficiency and adapt facilities to the demands of accelerated computing workloads. In a survey conducted by 451 Research by S&P Global, we seek to understand the key dynamics driving the data center market.
The survey covered topics including data center power usage effectiveness, energy backup system approaches, adoption of integrated energy storage uninterruptible power supply systems, views on solid state transformers and 800 volts direct current (VDC) deployment, alternative energy storage, new data center location priorities and organizations’ IT environments.
The Take
Three interconnected forces are reshaping data center infrastructure: the surge in AI-driven workloads, mounting sustainability pressure, and a broad technology transition in energy storage and power distribution. AI and accelerated computing workloads are increasing power-density demands and forcing organizations to rethink their supporting infrastructure. At the same time, sustainability accountability is tightening: PUE tracking has improved markedly year over year, and organizations are actively exploring alternative energy storage options as they look beyond diesel generators toward cleaner, more resilient backup systems.
Within that context, the energy storage and power distribution transition is moving faster than prior survey waves suggested. The shift to lithium-ion battery banks is well underway — diesel-only holdouts are a shrinking minority — while appetite for solid-state transformers and 800 VDC power distribution has moved well past curiosity. Most respondents have active assessment or pilot plans for both technologies, signaling that high-voltage DC architectures are gaining ground.
Summary of findings
Cloud services and company-owned server rooms together account for the dominant IT environment footprint, with owned data center facilities and colocation playing secondary roles.
Among all respondents, 66% report using cloud service providers, including IaaS, SaaS, PaaS or hosted private cloud, down from 79% in 2025. Just over half of organizations (52%) use company-owned server rooms and closets, up slightly from 48% in 2025, while 38% own and operate dedicated data center facilities, versus 40% in 2025. More than a quarter of respondents (27%) use colocation providers, up from 19% in 2025, while 21% own facilities and contract service providers to manage them.
These results indicate that a hybrid approach combining cloud and owned infrastructure remains the dominant model across the survey population, with notable shifts in colocation and facilities management adoption year over year.
Data analytics and high-performance computing lead accelerated workload adoption in enterprise data centers, with AI/ML close behind. Data analytics/big data ranks as the most common type of accelerated computing workload, cited by 58% of respondents. High-performance computing is next at 54% (down from 69% in 2025), followed by networking and security at 51%, edge and IoT computing at 43%, and AI/ML workloads at 42% (steady with 41% in 2025). Only 5% of respondents report running no accelerated computing workloads.
PUE tracking has improved markedly year over year, with fewer organizations reporting they do not measure data center efficiency. When asked about the power usage effectiveness (PUE) of their primary data center, 14% of respondents say their organization does not track PUE, down significantly from 23% in 2025. Among those reporting a PUE value, the most common ranges are 1.51-1.60 and 1.61-1.70, each cited by just over 15% of respondents, followed by 1.71-1.80 with just under 15%. Less than 2% report a PUE at or below 1.20, indicating that highly efficient facilities remain uncommon across the panel.
Most organizations are incorporating, or plan to incorporate, lithium-ion battery banks into their energy backup systems, and the share with no transition plan continues to fall. Among respondents involved in data center infrastructure decision-making, 33% report continuing to use diesel generators while ensuring newer backup deployments use lithium-ion battery banks, on par with 31% in 2025. An additional 17% (versus 20% in 2025) plan to implement only lithium-ion battery banks across all backup systems. Combined, nearly 29% indicate plans to switch from diesel generators to lithium-ion within the next 12 months (15%) or 2-4 years (13%). Only 13% (down from 15% in 2025) report retaining diesel generators with no plans to switch.
Integrated energy storage UPS adoption is well underway, with more than half of respondents either already deployed or citing clear adoption plans. When asked about uninterruptible power supply systems with integrated energy storage, 35% of respondents say their organization has deployed the technology in some or all data centers, and 25% report clear pilot or deployment plans. An additional 20% are in the technology evaluation and testing phase. Only 3% consider the technology either not yet mature or unnecessary, while 9% recognize its value but report no immediate plans to implement it.
Hydrogen and thermal storage are top areas of exploration for alternative data center energy backup, with interest rising year over year. Among respondents exploring alternative energy storage for their primary data center, hydrogen energy storage is the top-cited option at 43% (versus 39% in 2025), followed by thermal energy storage at 40% (up from 26% in 2025), flow batteries (vanadium/organic) at 32%, and sodium-ion batteries at 32%. The share of respondents not exploring any alternative energy backup system fell to 17% from 28% in 2025, indicating increased appetite for diversifying energy storage options.
Most organizations are actively assessing or monitoring solid-state transformers, signaling a transition from awareness to evaluation. When asked about their position on solid-state transformers, 45% of respondents report having a clear assessment or pilot plan. In comparison, an additional 40% indicate they are monitoring the situation and will assess SSTs in due course. Just 11% report no consideration, and 4% say they do not know. Taken together, 85% of respondents express some level of interest in or preparation for SST deployment.
800 VDC power distribution draws comparable interest to SSTs, with nearly half of respondents holding clear assessment or pilot plans. When asked about their organization’s position on 800 VDC power distribution, 46% of respondents report a clear assessment or pilot plan in place — slightly higher than the equivalent figure for SSTs. An additional 37% are monitoring the situation and will assess 800 VDC in due course. Among organizations considering high-voltage DC deployment, 400 VDC remains the preferred nominal voltage at 47%, followed by 336 VDC at 32%, while 800 VDC is selected by only 12%.
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The author used a proprietary S&P Global AI platform in the production of the report that this blog post was based on. It was subsequently peer-reviewed, fact-checked and edited before publication.
This content may be AI-assisted and is composed, reviewed, edited and approved by S&P Global in accordance with our Terms of Service.
