Most underwater data-centre core patents studied come from China
A study counts 168 core patents and attributes about 80 per cent of them to China.
Listen to this article
There is no audio version yet. Request one and an AI voice will read the article aloud.
Read by an AI voice.
According to a study, about 80 per cent of the globally selected core patents for underwater data centres come from China. The researchers examined the technology’s development up to and including June 2026.
The researchers manually selected 168 global core patents from the period 2006 to June 2026 inclusive. According to the study, they used patent metrics, text analysis and comparisons between countries. The result therefore concerns this selected patent group, not all patent applications, companies or commercial data centres worldwide.
According to the study, underwater data centres place servers in sealed modules on or beneath the seabed and use seawater as a natural source of cooling. According to the study, the technology is moving from technical trials towards large-scale commercial application. The researchers distinguish three phases: an initial period, technical validation and a rapid growth phase.
According to the study, China’s lead is strongest in the technical components needed actually to build and maintain such installations. These include modular structures and on-site maintenance. Foreign development, according to the same analysis, focuses relatively more often on environmentally friendly design and connections between different regions.
China’s lead is consistent with projects already in use or under development. In Shanghai, the authorities reported that an underwater data centre in the Lingang area is directly connected to an offshore wind farm. According to the authorities, the project has a planned capacity of 24 megawatts, of which the first phase comprises 2.3 megawatts, and uses seawater for cooling.
The initiative’s backers say the Shanghai project can reduce electricity consumption by 22.8 per cent, uses no cooling water and cuts land use by more than 90 per cent. These are project estimates from the operator and local authorities, not an independent comparison with all types of data centre. The estimates do not show how the installations perform in the long term.
The patent figures therefore mainly show which countries the selected core patents come from. They do not prove that underwater data centres are already cheaper, more reliable or more sustainable than land-based data centres. For the Netherlands and Europe, the news is mainly relevant because demand for computing power for artificial intelligence is growing, while energy, space and cooling are becoming increasingly significant constraints.
Also show the region and a close-up
Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The key figures and technical description can be found in the study and publicly available Chinese project information. The text clearly distinguishes between the patent share, project estimates and proven commercial performance.
- confirmed The study analyses 168 globally selected core patents from 2006 to June 2026 inclusive. — Stated in the study’s summary. source
- confirmed Patents from China account for about 80 per cent of the investigated global patent group. — Stated in the Chinese and English summaries of the study. source
- confirmed The Shanghai project has a planned capacity of 24 megawatts and a first phase of 2.3 megawatts. — Mentioned in Shanghai’s public project description. source
- confirmed The stated saving of 22.8 per cent is a project estimate, not an independent comparison. — The local government source cites the estimate; the qualification follows from the nature of the source. source
Editor's note
It is certain that the study analyses 168 selected core patents and attributes about 80 per cent to China. It remains uncertain how representative this selection is of the full global patent market and whether the technology can be scaled commercially; the stated energy savings are project estimates.Sources
- Ocean Information Technology and Application: patent analysis of underwater data centers — Ocean Information Technology and Application
- World's first wind-powered underwater data center starts operation in Shanghai — Shanghai International Information Technology Exchange Center
- China launches pioneering underwater intelligent computing cluster in Hainan — The State Council Information Office of China
More on this in Dutch media
- NU.nl — „china datacenters”
- De Telegraaf — „china datacenters”
- de Volkskrant — „china datacenters”