Over time, very large fractions of the earth's land surface will be given over to data centers as AI compute demand scales — hyperscaler DC footprint transitions from discrete campuses to regional-scale compute territories.

Over time, very large fractions of the earth's land surface will be given over to data centers as AI compute demand scales — hyperscaler DC footprint transitions from discrete campuses to regional-scale compute territories. | a lot of the world gets covered in data centers over time | OpenAI Abilene Phase 2; GW/week build cadence

Key catalyst: OpenAI Abilene Phase 2; GW/week build cadence

Watch events: OpenAI regional expansion announcements; hyperscaler land-purchase disclosures; rural zoning battles

a lot of the world gets covered in data centers over time

OpenAI Abilene TX mega-DC under construction; Stargate $500B; OpenAI goal of 1 GW/week capacity addition at ~$20B/GW (Axios, Oct 2025). Consistent spatial-scale trajectory.

{
  "nia": false,
  "mode": "FORECAST",
  "role": "Cited-CEO",
  "context": "Altman has repeatedly framed compute infrastructure as the bottleneck to AGI economics, with OpenAI committing $1.4T / ~30 GW in physical infrastructure and targeting a run-rate of ~1 GW/week at ~$20B/GW buildout.",
  "to_year": 2040,
  "verbatim": "a lot of the world gets covered in data centers over time",
  "conv_cues": "CEO FIRST_PERSON; explicit spatial claim",
  "direction": "HAPPEN",
  "from_year": 2028,
  "timeframe": "long-term (2030+)",
  "conv_level": "HIGH",
  "milestones": [
    {
      "kind": "llm_pre_event",
      "label": "OpenAI / Stargate exits 2025 with >2GW operational capacity, on track for 10GW Stargate buildout",
      "source": "https://fortune.com/2025/09/25/i-met-sam-altman-in-texas-hes-turning-the-race-for-ai-into-a-gigawatt-arms-race/",
      "status": "overdue",
      "weight": 0.4,
      "ordinal": -11,
      "source_id": null,
      "confidence": 0.85,
      "source_url": "https://fortune.com/2025/09/25/i-met-sam-altman-in-texas-hes-turning-the-race-for-ai-into-a-gigawatt-arms-race/",
      "expected_date": "2026-03-23",
      "miss_emitted_at": "2026-05-02T22:07:21.384228+00:00",
      "miss_emitted_by": "metadata_milestone_sweep",
      "research_origin": "deep_research",
      "expected_date_range": {
        "to": "2026-06-30",
        "from": "2025-12-15"
      },
      "measurement_criterion": "OpenAI, Oracle, or SoftBank press release or SEC filing confirms cumulative operational data center capacity exceeding 2GW across Stargate sites, with construction continuing at Abilene and announced new sites in NM/OH"
    },
    {
      "kind": "llm_pre_event",
      "label": "US data center IT-power demand passes 100GW (S&P Global trajectory: 108GW in 2028)",
      "source": "https://www.spglobal.com/energy/en/news-research/latest-news/electric-power/101425-data-center-grid-power-demand-to-rise-22-in-2025-nearly-triple-by-2030",
      "status": "pending",
      "weight": 0.4,
      "ordinal": -10,
      "source_id": null,
      "confidence": 0.75,
      "source_url": "https://www.spglobal.com/energy/en/news-research/latest-news/electric-power/101425-data-center-grid-power-demand-to-rise-22-in-2025-nearly-triple-by-2030",
      "expected_date": "2028-06-15",
      "research_origin": "deep_research",
      "expected_date_range": {
        "to": "2029-06-30",
        "from": "2027-06-01"
      },
      "measurement_criterion": "S&P Global, Goldman Sachs, or DOE/EIA annual data center power estimate reports US data center electricity demand for IT equipment exceeds 100GW"
    },
    {
      "kind": "scenario_signal",
      "label": "Scenario fires: Compute: 10GW total by Dec 2028",
      "status": "pending",
      "weight": 0.3,
      "ordinal": -9,
      "source_id": "S_COMPUTE_10GW_2028",
      "expected_date": "2028-12-31",
      "observed_date": null
    },
    {
      "kind": "llm_pre_event",
      "label": "First single-campus data center facility surpasses 5GW total contracted power capacity",
      "source": "https://www.goldmansachs.com/insights/articles/ai-to-drive-165-increase-in-data-center-power-demand-by-2030",
      "status": "pending",
      "weight": 0.4,
      "ordinal": -8,
      "source_id": null,
      "confidence": 0.7,
      "source_url": "https://www.goldmansachs.com/insights/articles/ai-to-drive-165-increase-in-data-center-power-demand-by-2030",
      "expected_date": "2028-12-31",
      "research_origin": "deep_research",
      "expected_date_range": {
        "to": "2030-12-31",
        "from": "2027-01-01"
      },
      "measurement_criterion": "Public utility filing, SEC disclosure, or hyperscaler announcement confirms single contiguous data center campus with >=5GW contracted capacity (multiples of current single-site records of ~1-2GW)"
    },
    {
      "kind": "llm_post_event",
      "label": "First US state grid operator declares data center load exceeds 30% of regional electricity demand"
... (truncated)