SAVRN Infrastructure Platform
Sources & Citations: Build vs Buy AI Infrastructure
Last updated: May 13, 2026
Sources · Citations · Receipts · Piece 9 · May 8, 2026
CFO/CTO decision-guide on the build-versus-buy choice for AI infrastructure in 2026. Total cost of ownership, deployment-timeline risk, sovereignty, and Intelliflex as the integrated ‘buy’ option. Every quantitative claim paired with the named, primary report that supports it. URLs verified May 13, 2026.
Editorial standard. Every URL below is either (a) the named publisher’s official research document, (b) an Independent Market Monitor or system operator’s published analysis, (c) a peer-reviewed research report from a named institution, (d) a regulator’s primary publication, or (e) the legal text of the legislation or rule itself. No paywalled trade-press summaries are load-bearing.
A · Capital expenditure forecastsGoldman · McKinsey
| Claim | Primary source | Document / URL |
|---|---|---|
| Goldman Sachs Research projection on AI-driven data center power demand — anchor for the buy-side capital deployment forecast. | Goldman Sachs Research — “AI poised to drive 160% increase in power demand” (now superseded by the 165% by 2030 update) | www.goldmansachs.com/insights/articles/ai-poised-to-drive-160-increase-in-powe… |
| McKinsey analysis of AI data center capacity expansion to meet growing demand. | McKinsey — AI Power: Expanding data center capacity to meet growing demand | www.mckinsey.com/industries/technology-media-and-telecommunications/our-insigh… |
B · Electricity demand outlookIEA
| Claim | Primary source | Document / URL |
|---|---|---|
| IEA Electricity 2024 outlook on data center electricity demand — the canonical international agency baseline for the buy-side demand projection. | IEA — Electricity 2024 | www.iea.org/reports/electricity-2024 |
C · Federal energy researchLBNL
| Claim | Primary source | Document / URL |
|---|---|---|
| Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory 2024 U.S. Data Center Energy Usage Report — canonical federal study on data center energy intensity, used as the TCO modeling anchor. | LBNL — 2024 United States Data Center Energy Usage Report (Shehabi et al.) | eta.lbl.gov/publications/2024-united-states-data-center-energy |
D · Operator surveyUptime
| Claim | Primary source | Document / URL |
|---|---|---|
| Uptime Institute 2024 Global Data Center Survey — industry baseline for operator-side decision-making patterns, build-vs-lease, and PUE expectations. | Uptime Institute Global Data Center Survey 2024 | uptimeinstitute.com/about-ui/press-releases/uptime-institute-2024-global-data-… |
Cite this article
If you reference this SAVRN piece in your own research, op-ed, white paper, or trade-press writing, please use one of the citation formats below. One-click copy.
Chicago
Harris, Chad Everett. "Build vs Buy AI Infrastructure: A 2026 Decision Guide." SAVRN, May 8, 2026. https://savrn.com/build-vs-buy-ai-infrastructure/.
APA
Harris, C. E. (2026, May 8). Build vs Buy AI Infrastructure: A 2026 Decision Guide. SAVRN. https://savrn.com/build-vs-buy-ai-infrastructure/
BibTeX
@misc{savrn_build_vs_buy_2026,
author = {Harris, Chad Everett},
title = {{Build vs Buy AI Infrastructure: A 2026 Decision Guide}},
publisher = {SAVRN},
year = {2026},
month = {may},
url = {https://savrn.com/build-vs-buy-ai-infrastructure/}
}
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