Data centers — facilities that house massive computers used for things like data storage and artificial intelligence processing — are popping up everywhere. To find out, we requested tours of several data centers in Hays, Travis and Williamson counties. The first data center in the country was built by the U.S. Army in 1946 for military defense projects. Data centers have also been built to support complex science, but for years, a primary function of data centers has been to store information — everything from bank transactions to medical records to memes shared on social media. Kamerlander said he’s concerned about how much water data centers use and whether they’ll create long-term jobs, but it’s undeniable that the region is a desirable place for data center developers.