Driven by surging investment in AI and cloud infrastructure, Asia-Pacific’s data center pipeline reached a record-breaking 26.5 GW in H1 2026.
Asia-Pacific’s data center development pipeline reached a record 26.5 GW in the first half of 2026 as investment in AI and cloud infrastructure accelerated across the region, according to a new report from Cushman & Wakefield.
The milestone comes as colocation vacancy rates continue to decline, highlighting the region’s urgent need for additional capacity to meet growing demand.
The data center capacity pipeline grew by 7.1 GW during the six-month period, one of the strongest half-year increases on record. Of the 26.5 GW total, approximately 4.8 GW was under construction, and 21.7 GW remained in the planning stage.
According to Cushman & Wakefield, the region also brought about 1.4 GW of new operational capacity online. Despite those deliveries, colocation vacancy rates declined from 10.9% in the second half of 2025 to 10.3%, indicating that customer demand continued to absorb new supply.
Cushman’s report covers Australia, mainland China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam.
“New supply is being absorbed quickly, with a growing share of capacity pre-leased before delivery, meaning much of the new stock is already committed when it becomes operational,” Pritesh Swamy, head of research and consulting at Cushman & Wakefield’s Asia-Pacific data center group, told Data Center Knowledge.
“While conditions vary across markets, we expect this trend to continue as strong demand and limited new supply keep availability tight.”
Swamy added that power constraints, longer development timelines, and evolving technical requirements are prompting customers to commit to capacity well before project completion.
Southeast Asia Leads Construction, Seoul Squeezed #
Southeast Asia accounted for approximately half of all capacity under construction in APAC, with 2.38 GW. Malaysia led the region with 1.04 GW under construction, followed by Thailand with 859 MW, with much of the expansion concentrated in Johor, Indonesia, and Bangkok.
Johor’s capacity under construction grew by 91% to 602 MW, while its overall development pipeline grew 28% to 3.09 GW. When existing and future capacity are combined, Johor exceeds 4 GW, making it the largest market in Cushman’s APAC maturity index.
Bangkok’s construction pipeline rose 148% to 859 MW, while its total development pipeline nearly doubled to 2.08 GW. Sydney’s pipeline increased 65% to 2.13 GW, Jakarta’s grew 56% to 1.70 GW, and Mumbai’s expanded 31% to 1.73 GW.
Japan added 293 MW of operational capacity, lifting its total to 1.8 GW and moving it ahead of India as APAC’s second-largest operational market behind mainland China. Cushman projects that Australia, India, Japan, and Malaysia will each exceed 2 GW of operating capacity by 2028.
Greater Seoul recorded just 1.1% colocation vacancy rate in the first half of 2026. While operational capacity rose 10%, the pipeline remained nearly flat, in an exceptionally tight market.
Major Data Center Projects Underway in Asia-Pacific #
The Asia-Pacific region is witnessing significant data center development, with major projects underway to meet the demands of AI and cloud infrastructure. Key projects underway include:
CoreWeave is currently expanding its AI cloud platform with
three facilities in Indonesia. The Greater Jakarta deployment totals 360 MW of contracted IT power and is expected to come online in 2028, serving AI labs, startups, enterprises, and government customers across Southeast Asia.In July, Digital Edge acquired land in South Korea to
develop 60 MW of AI-ready data capacity, supported by a 90 MVA power agreement. The site will feature dual-feed power architecture supported by two independent 154 kV substations.In June, Gorilla Technology Group announced plans for a
200 MW AI data center campusin Korat, Thailand, with six data halls supporting 150 MW of IT load and approximately 76,000 GPUs at full deployment.Also in June, CDC Data Centres in Australia secured a record 555 MW contract with an unnamed U.S. customer, with
capacity scheduled to enter operationacross new campuses in fiscal 2028 and 2029.
Planned Capacity Faces Challenges in Power Availability #
The composition of the pipeline is as important as its size. Roughly 82% remains planned rather than under construction, leaving delivery dependent on power connections, land, permitting, financing and equipment availability.
Cushman concludes that APAC has entered a period of “power-constrained execution.”
While data centers historically clustered around network connectivity, AI infrastructure requires far greater electrical capacity and higher-density cooling. Development is shifting from saturated hubs toward peripheral districts and entirely new markets capable of supplying power at scale. However, the shift does not mean established hubs are losing demand: Tokyo had just 4.4% vacancy and Singapore 4.8% in the first half of the year. Nevertheless, land and power constraints are limiting conventional expansion.
“Tight availability is likely to support rental growth and encourage further development, although rental data varies by market,” Swamy said. “More importantly, power and land constraints are increasingly influencing where new capacity can be built.”
This is encouraging developers and hyperscalers to look beyond established hubs toward secondary markets that can offer scalable power, land and connectivity.
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