Microsoft’s new sustainability report, released late last week, shows how a carbon-heavy economy can weigh on a company that wants to be carbon light. Since 2020, the company’s carbon emissions are up 23.

New data center builds have contributed to a 23.4 percent increase in Microsoft's carbon emissions since 2020, according to the company's 2025 Environmental Sustainability Report.

Houston has seen a recent surge in data center companies, particularly those interested in powering the facilities. The latest such venture is led by a former energy CEO and former Microsoft global edge operations leader.

Amazon is investing $10 billion in North Carolina data centers in an effort to focus on the continued development of generative artificial intelligence.

As data center demand soars, Amazon expands the use of wastewater to cool its U.S. data centers and curb its use of drinking water.

The return seems more apparent for rival Amazon, with TD Cowen noting that the company may have won an unnamed 1GW+ customer "for which it would need to procure capacity quickly." However, executives at the company have still expressed dissatisfaction with colocation costs and a preference for self-builds.