Sensors and other forms of data collection stream information from almost every imaginable source to the cloud. There, data is stored, filtered, crunched and analyzed to create energy optimization and actionable energy intelligence, among other things, to accelerate us into a greener, cleaner world. However, the cloud is not a virtual space in the metaphorical sky where our information floats around waiting to be analyzed. It is made up of heavy industrial facilities, “information factories,” which have become some of the largest energy consumers in the world. The Range International Information Hub in Langfang, China, is the world’s largest data center. At 6.3 million square feet, it is roughly the size of the Pentagon, or 110 football pitches. It consumes as much energy as a small city and it is just the tip of an iceberg of mega data centers around the world. In the US, which hosts approximately 40% of the world’s data center […]