Data Center Trends 2025: Vertiv Highlights AI’s Impact 

Artificial intelligence (AI) continues to revolutionize the data center industry, as reflected in Vertiv’s (NYSE: VRT) forecast for 2025 trends. Vertiv, a global critical digital infrastructure company, predicts significant innovation to support high-density computing, growing regulatory attention on AI, and intensified efforts toward sustainability and cybersecurity. 

“Last year, we highlighted the growth of AI and the need for advanced liquid- and air-cooling technologies. This trend is accelerating further in 2025,” said Giordano (Gio) Albertazzi, CEO of Vertiv. “As AI drives rack densities into the hundreds of kilowatts, scalable solutions for power and cooling, alongside efforts to reduce environmental impact, will become increasingly critical. This evolution aligns with our customers’ growing demands.” 

Key Data Center Trends for 2025 

1. Power and Cooling Systems Evolve for AI Rack Demands: 
   Compute-intensive workloads continue to rise, pushing power and cooling infrastructure to innovate rapidly. Transitioning from CPUs to GPUs, with their higher thermal design points, is intensifying pressure on current systems. AI adoption in enterprise data centers is also expanding beyond early adopters like cloud and colocation providers. 

• AI racks will require robust power systems, including UPS units, batteries, and switchgear capable of handling extreme fluctuations in load. 

• Hybrid cooling systems—spanning liquid-to-liquid, liquid-to-air, and liquid-to-refrigerant configurations—are evolving to meet both new and existing application needs. 

• Liquid cooling paired with high-density UPS systems will enhance system efficiency and ensure continuous operation. 

• Servers with integrated factory-installed cooling infrastructure will streamline manufacturing, improve deployment speed, and optimize energy usage. 

2. Energy Availability and Efficiency Become Critical: 
   Global data center power consumption, currently at 1-2%, may surge to 3-4% by 2030, driven by AI’s rising energy demands. Overburdened grids and increasing regulatory scrutiny could lead to limits on data center construction and energy consumption. In response, data centers are prioritizing efficiency and exploring alternatives like microgrids, fuel cells, and advanced battery technologies. 

• Innovations in energy sources, including small modular reactors, could offer long-term solutions, with deployment expected by the decade’s end. 

3. Collaboration Fuels AI Factory Development: 
   As rack densities skyrocket—rising from an average of 8.2kW in 2020 to potentially over 500kW—industry stakeholders are joining forces to address the challenges of scaling AI adoption. Partnerships among chipmakers, infrastructure providers, and end users are driving innovation in tools and processes for integrated IT and infrastructure systems. 

4. AI Impacts Cybersecurity: 
   The dual-edged sword of AI is reshaping cybersecurity. On one hand, cybercriminals are leveraging AI to launch more sophisticated ransomware attacks, targeting connected hardware and infrastructure systems. On the other, AI is empowering data center operators to counteract these threats with advanced defense technologies. As attack frequencies rise, maintaining vigilance and employing layered security measures will remain essential. 

5. Regulation of AI and Energy Use Gains Momentum: 
   Governments and regulators worldwide are increasingly focused on managing the implications of AI. Sovereign AI initiatives, such as Denmark’s national AI supercomputer, and legislative measures like the EU’s Artificial Intelligence Act, reflect this trend. Additionally, concerns about energy and resource consumption could lead to restrictions on certain AI applications and their infrastructure. Governance, however, will vary by region and enforcement consistency. 

These projected trends highlight the critical need for industry-wide innovation, collaboration, and adaptability as AI reshapes the data center landscape. Vertiv’s insights offer a glimpse into how the sector is preparing to meet these challenges in the coming year.