China Launches World's First Underwater Data Center Powered by Offshore Wind near Shanghai for AI and Cloud Computing
Off the Lingang coast of Shanghai, a submerged compute facility began operating in May 2026. Industry outlets such as Data Center Dynamics and Tom’s Hardware, citing Chinese government and industry sources, reported the deployment.
The installation provides 24 MW of capacity. Construction wrapped up by October 2025, equipment tests occurred in early 2026, and full service started in May 2026. Placed roughly 10 km offshore at depths between about 10 and 35 meters, server modules sit inside sealed capsules and rely on seawater to carry away heat instead of conventional, energy-hungry air conditioning.
Operators say 90–95% of the electricity arrives directly from adjacent offshore wind farms through dedicated cabling, which lowers transmission loss and supplies a high share of green power. Inside the site are about 2,000 servers intended for AI, big data, 5G, autonomous systems, and robotics workloads. Reported energy efficiency is strong — a PUE under 1.15, according to operator estimates.
Cost and timing: the project is put at roughly 1.6 billion yuan (about $220–230M). The agreement was signed in mid‑2025, build finished in autumn, and launch followed in spring 2026.
The initiative responds to two pressing industry issues:
- Rapid growth in energy demand driven by AI workloads
- High water and electricity consumption for cooling
That said, the concept carries practical headaches. Underwater gear faces corrosion and access problems; repairs and scaling can become expensive and complex. Those constraints helped convince Microsoft to halt its Project Natick effort in the past, and observers note similar risks here.