GCEIP 500 Company profile
Microsoft
Microsoft says it operates more than 500 data centres in 34 countries. The physical cloud behind its software and AI services is now a major part of the company’s footprint.
The company
What it does
Microsoft sells Windows, Microsoft 365, Azure cloud services, business software, gaming products and AI tools. Its operations combine software and subscriptions with a growing physical network of data centres, servers and connectivity.
Across markets
Microsoft’s 2025 annual report describes data centres across the Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe and the Middle East, and says new capacity depends on permitted land, energy, networking equipment and servers. Its current data-centre site lists more than 500 facilities in 34 countries and over 40 gigawatts of renewable-energy contracts across 26 countries. Those are company-reported footprint and contracted-power figures; they do not state the electricity consumed by each facility or how much renewable power is matched to current use. The IEA’s 2025 analysis projects global electricity generation for data centres to exceed 1,000 TWh in 2030, putting power access and emissions among the practical constraints on cloud expansion.
The company’s footprint and context are linked to the public sources below.
GCEIP view
What the record tells us
Microsoft’s recognition file contains TIME editorial placements in 2022 and 2023 plus a Fortune reputation-list result in 2025. The company’s cloud footprint helps explain its reach: its infrastructure underpins services used by organisations across many sectors. That footprint also brings local questions about grid capacity, water, land and community impacts. Company-wide counts cannot answer those questions without site-level evidence.
Published recognition
Selected results
See published awards and company-list results 4 sources
- Fortune World's Most Admired Companies All-Stars · 2025View source
Computer Software
Overall All-Stars rank #2; published industry: Computer Software
- TIME100 Most Influential Companies · 2023View source
Titans
Software, cloud and AI
- TIME100 Most Influential Companies · 2022View source
Titans
Gaming and software
- WCRC World's Most Powerful 100 Brands · 2026View source
Ranked market-facing brand; parent-company identity to reconcile
WCRC global brand-power rank #7