The rapid global expansion of data centres needed for the artificial intelligence industry could generate an estimated $134 billion in cumulative insurance premiums between 2026 and 2030, creating one of the biggest growth opportunities for reinsurers and insurance-linked securities markets, according to Aon.

In its full Reinsurance Market Dynamics: January 2026 Renewal Report, Aon points to data centres as a capital-intensive sector whose insurance needs are scaling faster than the traditional insurance market can absorb alone. They will require major support from reinsurance and third-party capital providers.

Driven by the rise of AI, cloud computing and data storage, global investment in data centres is expected to reach $5 trillion to $10 trillion by 2030, with more than 2,100 facilities presently under construction or planned. Large multi-building campuses can require insurance limits of $10 billion or more, far exceeding what a single insurer can typically provide.

Aon said this is pushing insurers to rely more heavily on reinsurance, insurance-linked securities and alternative capital structures, particularly for excess layers and lender-driven insurance towers.

The brokerage noted that financing arrangements are shaping insurance demand more and more, with third-party lenders and investors often requiring overlapping coverage during construction and operational phases. Speed is also critical, as developers race to bring capacity online to meet computing demand, raising the risk that non-traditional risk solutions could emerge if insurance markets fail to respond quickly.

For reinsurers, Aon said, data centres provide opportunities to deploy higher gross capacity through quota share and excess-of-loss structures. The report also points to a growing role for long-term and alternative capital, including insurance-linked securities, asset managers and sovereign wealth funds.

The focus on data centres comes against a backdrop of record global reinsurance capital, which reached $760 billion by the end of September 2025, helping to push the January renewals deeper into a buyers’ market.