# As AI data centres guzzle energy, can we harness their wasted heat?

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/as-ai-data-centres-guzzle-energy-can-we-harness-their-wasted-heat/
- Published: 2026-11-08T08:17:12+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-08T09:26:00+00:00
- Original publisher: Al Jazeera (publisher lean: Left)
- Original article: https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2026/11/8/as-ai-data-centres-guzzle-energy-can-we-harness-waste-heat?traffic_source=rss
- Topics: AI, Technology, World

## Key points

- Denmark is using AI supercomputer heat to warm homes.
- Data centres consumed 485 terawatt hours of electricity in 2024.
- Heat recovery works best where communities can use it.

## Summary

Denmark is recovering the heat produced by an AI supercomputer and feeding it into the district heating network in Sønderborg. The approach could make some of the energy consumed by data centres useful to nearby communities, as their rapid expansion puts added pressure on electricity supplies and climate targets.

The University of Southern Denmark’s Bitten supercomputer uses liquid cooling developed by Danfoss to capture all of its waste heat, which can help heat homes and support industrial processes. The article says data centres used 485 terawatt hours of electricity in 2024, about 1.5 per cent of global electricity, and that share is expected to reach 3 per cent by 2030. It also notes that heat recovery depends on having a nearby use for the heat: the United States has about 4,000 data centres, which use 5 per cent of its electricity, but recovers little of their waste heat.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.