Executive Summary
- UK-wide survey of 2,000 shows while public awareness has risen since 2024, concerns still grow around energy use and AI demand.
- 56% of respondents say they are concerned about the amount of energy data centres consume, while 55% consider their negative environmental impact ‘significant’.
- Mark Pestridge, Executive Vice President and General Manager at Telehouse Europe, says the industry needs to be more transparent to ‘close the gap’.
Public awareness of data centres is rising in the UK, however understanding of their role in society is low, new research from Telehouse has revealed.
The survey, which polled 2,000 members of the public, found that 52% are now aware of the term ‘data centre’, up from 40% in 2024. Despite this progress, 59% still say they are unclear about what a data centre is or does.
Telehouse first explored public understanding of data centres in 2024, before they were classified by the UK government as Critical National Infrastructure (CNI). At the time, the research highlighted a significant knowledge gap around the infrastructure that supports daily digital life.
Greater awareness means greater scrutiny
Since then, data centres have become more visible in public and political debate, driven by CNI classification, major infrastructure projects, and the rapid rise of AI tools that rely on significant digital capacity. While this has helped to improve public awareness, Telehouse’s latest findings also suggest it has brought greater scrutiny and concerns to light.
Only 37% of respondents believe data centres have a positive impact on the digital services they use at home or at work, down from 48% in 2024, while those who view their impact as negative has risen from 4% to 15%.
The research also points to energy use and sustainability as areas where clearer public communication is needed. More than half of respondents (56%) say they are concerned about the amount of energy data centres consume, up from 45% in 2024, while 55% consider their negative environmental impact ‘significant’.
Everyday use brings everyday concerns
These concerns come as the growth of AI places greater attention on the infrastructure required to support advanced digital services. With AI tools becoming part of both everyday working and personal life, questions around how data centres operate and how much energy they use are becoming increasingly present. Therefore, education around their true impact is important.
Mark Pestridge, Executive Vice President and General Manager at Telehouse Europe, said: “It is encouraging to see that more people have heard of data centres and have a better understanding of some of the roles they play since we first commissioned this research.
“The objective now is helping people understand why data centres matter and how it supports everyone’s lives, from the digital services they use to the business applications and AI tools that are becoming increasingly important in healthcare, retail – and society.
“Awareness is an important first step, but these findings show it does not always translate into confidence. People want to understand how their services are supported, how their data is managed and how the industry is addressing energy use and sustainability.
“As an industry, we have a role to play in closing that gap by working more closely together, being more transparent, engaging openly with the public and communities and doing a better job of explaining the value data centres enable.”
