A new report from McKinsey & Company has laid out just how much money will be needed to ensure data centers are equipped to handle the compute demands needed for an AI-fueled future and let’s just say, it is far from cheap.

In an April report, the management consulting firm estimates that nearly $7 trillion in capital outlays will be needed by 2030 to support the capacity demands of AI data centers.

The math behind the money. McKinsey partners back up their reasoning for the 13-digit estimate in the report by predicting $5.2 trillion in capex will be needed to support data centers that are fit to handle AI processing loads, while another $1.5 trillion will be needed to fund data centers powering “traditional IT applications.” That amounts to $6.7 trillion needed to keep facilities up to speed with compute demand.

The figures account for a scenario where demand for AI continues at a similar momentum. However, the global consulting firm also calculated the amount of capex needed to handle AI processing loads in the event that there is an accelerated or constrained demand for compute power in the next five years. In an accelerated demand environment, where 205 incremental gigawatts of AI-related data center capacity is added by 2030, McKinsey predicts $7.9 trillion capex will be needed to support loads. In a more restricted environment, where only 78 incremental gigawatts are added in the next five years, the firm estimates that $3.7 trillion in capex will be required.

At least one data pro says the number’s a bit high.—BM

It pays to be flexible.

Nate Buniva, who advises companies on contract strategy, says today’s IT agreements with service providers would be better served with some expanded adaptability. Agreements need to be written carefully to absorb sudden cost hikes—like, say, a jump in prices following a raft of new tariffs.

“Any time that there’s an economic shift or uncertainty or headlines, we find that these IT providers can, not necessarily nefariously, but can leverage that as a way to prop up a pricing conversation and say, ‘With tariffs now coming into play, our costs are going up,’” Buniva, a partner at consultancy West Monroe, told us.

“Now more than ever, it’s time to look at those contracts and see where you have bargaining power and where you don’t,” he said.

Know your clauses.—BH

RSAC, the San Francisco tech conference that brings together cybersecurity professionals from around the world, is a time for the industry to reflect on what works and to look toward what’s coming next.

Hugh Thompson, RSAC executive chairman and conference program committee chair, said in his keynote address on Apr. 28 that the event was coming at a moment of major upheaval and opportunity in the cybersecurity space.

“So much is changing—the way that attackers operate is changing dramatically, the pervasive use of AI, the rapid adoption of AI, the security implications of that, massive changes to what we do and how we might do it,” Thompson said.

When IT Brew was on the ground at RSAC, the two things we heard most about were agentic AI and security education. Here’s what experts told us.

Threat actors are studying, too.—EH