Data centers turn to old jet engines as wait for power grows

Some AI data centers are turning to converted jet engines to produce their own electricity while they wait years for grid connections and new turbines, according to a New York Times report cited by TechCrunch. The engines are rebuilt from retired aircraft to burn natural gas and are viewed as a faster but less permanent option. The trend highlights how far power supply has fallen behind the AI buildout.

Speed drives the switch

For companies stuck in long queues, the main draw is how quickly converted jet engines can be up and running. Rystad Energy analyst Audun Martinsen told the Times, "It's all about getting power as fast as possible." With jet-powered units, "they can have a data center running in 24 months," he said. Hooking up 100 megawatts to the grid in Northern Virginia takes about seven years, according to the International Energy Agency. Most power capacity is expected to come on by 2031, an executive at Mitsubishi Power told Bloomberg last week.

Delays are already affecting customers

Some delays are already costing data center operators business. Last month, Microsoft pulled out as the anchor customer for Nscale's data center in Loughton, England, after the local utility said it could not deliver enough power until the early-to-mid 2030s. Elon Musk's xAI has installed eight converted jet-engine turbines in Mississippi to help power its Colossus 2 data center in Memphis, the Times reported, citing state permits and satellite imagery. The units come from ProEnergy, which rebuilds a GE engine commonly found on Boeing jets. In 2025, OpenAI followed Musk's lead with gas turbines at its first Stargate site in Abilene, Texas. Crusoe, a Denver-based startup that builds AI data centers, is constructing that Abilene campus and ordered 13 of ProEnergy's converted units in April.

Trade-offs and policy pressure

In September, Crusoe walked away from a $1.25 billion deal to buy 29 natural gas turbines from Boom Supersonic, a startup developing a supersonic passenger jet that has also begun selling a version of that jet's engine as a power plant for data centers. A Crusoe spokesperson told TechCrunch at the time that the company still plans to use turbines. Currently the Trump administration is encouraging data centers to generate their own electricity. Converted jet engines come with trade-offs: they are less efficient and pollute more than turbines designed for conventional gas plants, and it takes more of them to make the same amount of power. That may ultimately make converted jet engines a short-term play, with some experts saying efficiency and environmental concerns may grow in importance in a year or two.

Sources: TechCrunch