If we look at human history through the ages, the instruments of power have been different. Civilisations first measured power in land and grain, then in gold, the most trusted store of value for centuries, perhaps even now! Empires rose and fell on their ability to hoard it, mint it, and defend it. As trade expanded and industrialisation took hold, oil replaced gold as the world’s most strategic currency. Whoever controlled oil fields, shipping lanes, and refineries controlled growth, warfare, and diplomacy. In the late twentieth century, another currency quietly emerged—data. Nations and corporations that mastered data flows, networks, and platforms gained unprecedented influence over markets, narratives, and behaviour.
Today, as artificial intelligence (AI) reshapes economies and societies, a new and far more elemental currency is asserting itself. Power, quite literally electricity, and the water required to sustain cooling systems at data centres are becoming the decisive arbiters of global advantage.
What most of us do not realize is that AI is not just software; it is infrastructure. Training large language models, running inference at scale, and supporting always-on digital intelligence requires enormous computational capacity. That capacity, in turn, consumes staggering amounts of electricity. A single hyperscale data centre can draw as much power as a medium-sized city. According to industry estimates, global data centre electricity consumption could double by the end of this decade, potentially accounting for over 7–10 percent of total electricity demand in some advanced economies. In this world, access to cheap, reliable, and scalable power is no longer the “utility”, it is a strategic weapon.
The geopolitical implications are already visible. The United States has surged ahead in the AI race not only because of its research capabilities and technology dominance but because of its ability to rapidly build massive data centres backed by relatively stable power grids and abundant capital. States like Virginia and Texas have become global data centre hubs, offering tax incentives, land, and energy access. Meanwhile, China has taken a distinctly state-driven approach, aligning AI expansion with long-term power planning. It is experimenting with data centres located near hydroelectric dams and even submerged or river-adjacent facilities that use natural water flows for cooling, dramatically reducing energy costs. These innovations are strategic moves in a geopolitical long game that has only just begun!
Smaller nations, too, are finding their niche by recognising that power is the new leverage. The Nordic countries—Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland—have positioned themselves as attractive destinations for data centres by offering abundant renewable energy, cool climates that reduce cooling needs, and political stability. Iceland, in particular, runs much of its data infrastructure on geothermal and hydroelectric power, turning natural geography into geopolitical relevance. In the Middle East, oil-rich nations are attempting a remarkable pivot: converting fossil fuel wealth into AI infrastructure, with massive investments in solar power, nuclear energy, and next-generation grids to support data sovereignty and technological independence.
Yet electricity alone is not enough. Water is equally fundamental in the AI dominance game. Data centres require vast quantities of water for cooling, often competing with agriculture and human consumption. As climate change intensifies water stress across regions, this competition will become sharper. Countries that can secure sustainable water sources—through rivers, desalination, recycling, or advanced cooling technologies—will gain a decisive edge. This is why innovations such as liquid immersion cooling, underwater data centres, and closed-loop water systems are attracting intense interest. In the AI era, the ability to cool a server efficiently may matter just as much as the brilliance of the algorithm running on it!
An interesting consequence of this transition is the return of core engineering disciplines to prominence. For years, electrical, power electronics, mechanical, and thermal engineers were pushed to the margins as software took centre stage. Today, they are indispensable again. AI infrastructure systems survive on power stability, efficient conversion, and heat management—areas where foundational engineering expertise matters most
For countries like India, this new dynamic presents both a challenge and an opportunity. India has talent, data scale, and a rapidly growing digital economy, but power availability, grid reliability, and water stress could constrain its AI ambitions if not addressed proactively. At the same time, India’s expanding renewable energy capacity, improving transmission infrastructure, and strategic geography offer the potential to become a global AI infrastructure hub—if policy, planning, and execution align. The lesson from history is clear: nations that recognise a new currency early and build institutions around it tend to shape the rules of the game.
In that sense, the AI revolution is bringing us full circle—back to the fundamentals of energy, resources, and stewardship. Power is once again the ultimate currency. The future may not belong to those who write the smartest code, but to those who can keep the machines that write it alive!
The author is the Vice-Chancellor of Sister Nivedita University and Group CEO, Techno India Group. A visionary leader, he is shaping future-ready institutions and inspiring students to lead with purpose