Trump Tells Microsoft to Foot the Energy Bill for Xbox Cloud Gaming

Microsoft's data centers just got a Trump mandate: Pay for their own juice or risk gaming's cloud future.

The White House has directed Microsoft to cover energy costs for its data centers under a new policy targeting AI and cloud infrastructure. This comes as part of broader efforts to ensure tech giants like Microsoft—owner of Xbox Game Studios—finance their own energy consumption. The directive could reshape how cloud gaming services like Xbox Cloud Gaming operate, particularly as energy demand for data centers is projected to double by 2030.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) forecasts data center energy use will surge to 400 TWh by 2030, a figure that could strain gaming studios relying on cloud rendering and streaming. While Microsoft has not released specific statements about the policy's impact on gaming, the move signals potential shifts in infrastructure costs and latency management for cloud-based titles.

Developers using Microsoft’s Azure infrastructure for cloud gaming may face recalibrated budgets as energy expenses rise. This could indirectly affect streaming latency and server allocation strategies, though concrete details remain unconfirmed.