The AI Construction Surge Creates a Parallel Economy of Food Trucks, Modular Housing and Parking Lots

WebProNews cites Columbia Business School economist Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh in its look at how the AI data center boom is creating demand well beyond the server halls. Van Nieuwerburgh calculates that annual AI-related construction investment could exceed 3% of US GDP between 2025 and 2032, a larger share than historical spending on railroads, the electric grid, or highways. That scale is creating a side economy for the thousands of construction workers who spend years on each site. National Jobsite Catering serves about 1,500 meals a day at each of its 12 data center sites and has grown its revenue tenfold in four years. WhereiPark leases temporary parking lots near builds.