$100 Oil Sparks Concern About AI-Driven Energy Crunch
The global oil price has hit $100 per barrel for the second time this week, and market watchers are bracing for extended turbulence. The conflict in the Middle East has spilled beyond the Strait of Hormuz, with Yemeni Houthis attacking tankers in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
The war has caused a sharp reduction in Kazakh oil production due to Ukrainian drone attacks on the Caspian Pipeline Consortium network. This development has disturbed as much as a quarter of the world's oil and a significant portion of the world's gas supply.
Big Tech, which has been investing heavily in artificial intelligence, is particularly vulnerable to energy commodity shortages. The industry is already short on energy supplies due to its planned AI data center growth, and any disturbance of energy commodity supply would only exacerbate the situation further.