Equinix to build new $22m data centre in Lagos, Nigeria

Digital infrastructure company Equinix today announced its intention to open its latest high performance data centre in Lagos, Nigeria. The $22 million (£16.7 million) investment in LG3 marks the first phase of an ambitious investment plan of around $100 million (£75.9 million) aimed at transforming Africa’s digital landscape over the next two years. Set to open in Q1 2026, the site will deliver new infrastructure to Nigeria, empowering local businesses to scale while aiming to draw international companies to the country in this strategically positioned hub for global connectivity. The addition of the new LG3 data centre in Nigeria also brings the incorporation of Network-as-a-Service platform Equinix Fabric into the metro, enabling businesses to connect their physical and virtual infrastructure to other Equinix locations all around the world. Bridging Africa’s digital divide Wole Abu, Managing Director for West Africa at Equinix, comments, “LG3 marks a significant milestone in Equinix’s long-term commitment to bridging Africa’s digital divide. “As Lagos emerges at the crossroads of talent, innovation, and global connectivity, this facility is accelerating access to technologies like cloud, AI, and the next wave of startups." Olawale Owoeye, Managing Director at Cedarview, adds, "Equinix’s Lagos data centre will provide us with the robust and resilient platform our customers demand to expand our digital footprint. "The unparalleled reliability and access to a global ecosystem empower us to deliver high performance solutions to our customers, and the new LG3 data centre in Lagos is [a] key step in ensuring we remain at the forefront of businesses connecting Africa." Nigeria is the second-largest economy in Sub-Saharan Africa. Lagos, in particular, is at the epicentre of Africa’s digital transformation, recognised as the only African city in the Global Top 100 Startup Ecosystems. Expansion opportunities Commenting on the opportunity for Equinix in Africa, Aslıhan Güreşcier, Vice President, EMEA Growth & Emerging Markets at Equinix, says, “Africa’s digital transformation is accelerating, driven by a young population, rising internet access, and increasing demand for secure data infrastructure. "With the opening of our newest data centre in Lagos, Equinix is proud to invest in this dynamic region, supporting our customers’ growth with world-class data centres that power everything from banking and education to emergency services and commerce.” Since entering the African market in 2022, Equinix has expanded its presence in key African markets including, Nigeria, Ghana, and Ivory Coast (Côte d’Ivoire). Last year, the company also opened its first data centre in Johannesburg, South Africa. With a footprint spanning over 270 data centres worldwide, Equinix says it is continuing to bring its global expertise and infrastructure to the region, including harnessing Nigeria’s strategic position as an international hub for global subsea cable connections, linking Africa with Europe, Asia, and beyond. For more from Equinix, click here.

ABB, VoltaGrid to strengthen power stability for AI expansion

ABB, a multinational corporation specialising in industrial automation and electrification products, has secured three new orders from VoltaGrid, a Texas-based microgrid power generation company, to provide grid stabilisation technology supporting data centres across the United States. The projects will supply stable and reliable electricity to facilities currently under construction for AI infrastructure. The contracts were booked during the first three quarters of 2025; financial details were not disclosed. Strengthening grid resilience for AI-driven demand To meet the growing power needs of data centres, ABB will deliver a package of 27 synchronous condensers with flywheels and prefabricated eHouse units. These include power control, automation, and excitation systems integrated into the synchronous condenser panels. The units deliver instantaneous inertia, support short-circuit faults, and regulate network voltage by supplying or absorbing reactive power, helping maintain grid stability as electricity demand increases. VoltaGrid will provide its natural-gas-fuelled power systems, designed for rapid deployment and to meet the specific power requirements of hyperscale data centres. Project delivery will begin in December 2025, with the first systems expected to be operational by April 2026. Nathan Ough, CEO of VoltaGrid, claims, “ABB’s synchronous condensers are vital for meeting the energy demands of next-generation technologies like AI data centres, thanks to their proven ability to ensure grid stability and enhance overall power system resilience. "Partnering with ABB allows us to accelerate project execution and meet the growing performance demands of AI operations.” Supporting the evolving data centre power ecosystem According to recent estimates, data centres accounted for around 1.5% of global electricity consumption in 2024, with the United States responsible for 45% of that total. By 2030, US data centre power use is projected to represent almost half of the country’s total growth in electricity demand. Analysts predict that, by the same year, the US will consume more electricity for data processing than for manufacturing energy-intensive materials such as aluminium, steel, cement, and chemicals. As global demand for AI and cloud computing accelerates, ABB says it continues to provide electrification, automation, and digital technologies to "ensure secure and efficient energy systems for data centre operators." Per Erik Holsten, President of ABB’s Energy Industries division, says, “ABB is proud to partner with VoltaGrid and support the evolving energy ecosystem in the US. "Data centres have become critical national infrastructure and maintaining grid stability has moved from being optional to essential. Reliable, efficient power generation is key to enabling their continued growth.” Kristina Carlquist, Head of the Synchronous Condenser Product Line at ABB’s Motion High Power division, adds, “Although synchronous condensers resemble large motors or generators, their real strength lies in grid support. "As data centres expand, these machines are becoming increasingly important for providing inertia and short-circuit strength. For VoltaGrid, they will help ensure stable and resilient microgrid operation.” For more from ABB, click here.

CEL Critical Power opens $40m US manufacturing facility

CEL Critical Power, an Ireland-based manufacturer of switchgear and power equipment for the global data centre industry, has opened its first large-scale manufacturing facility in Williamsburg, Virginia, USA. The new 400,000-square-foot (37,161-square-metre) plant, operational since June, represents a $40 million (£30.3 million) investment and a major step in CEL Critical Power’s international expansion. The facility increases the company’s manufacturing footprint in the United States - the world’s largest and fastest-growing market for AI and cloud infrastructure - while strengthening its ability to serve key data centre clients. Strengthening US presence and creating skilled jobs The Virginia expansion is intended to generate more than 250 skilled roles within the next year, rising to 500 by 2030 across engineering, manufacturing, quality assurance, logistics, and site services. The facility forms part of CEL Critical Power’s strategy to reach $500 million (£379.5 million) in annual revenue by 2030, supported by its existing operations in Ireland. Together, its global production capacity now exceeds 500,000 square feet (46,451 square metres). A key component of the project is CEL Critical Power’s collaboration with the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP) and its registration with the US Department of Defense 'SkillBridge' programme. Through partnerships with Naval Station Norfolk and regional alliances, the initiative offers active-duty service members and military veterans opportunities to transition into civilian technical careers. Manufacturing data centre power CEL Critical Power designs and manufactures power distribution units (PDUs), remote power panels (RPPs), and switchgear systems for data centre environments. The company says its engineering approach emphasises reliability, efficiency, and short production cycles, developed through close collaboration with customers from concept through to deployment. Niall McFadden, Group CEO of CEL Critical Power, comments, “The opening of our first US manufacturing facility marks an important step in CEL Critical Power’s growth strategy. "We have listened closely to our customers and recognise their need for trusted partners who can scale alongside them in the United States. This $40 million investment reflects our long-term commitment to supporting those customers in a rapidly expanding market. “Thanks to the support of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership, and our collaboration with the Department of Defense SkillBridge programme and Naval Station Norfolk, we plan to create up to 500 skilled jobs in Virginia by 2030." Alan McCartney, Chief Sales Officer at CEL Critical Power, adds, “As a manufacturer of custom power systems for the global data centre industry, we are expanding our capacity to meet growing demand from customers investing in AI and cloud infrastructure. “Our design-for-manufacture approach allows us to address specific technical and scheduling requirements and to deliver custom-built systems at scale. Our products are designed to support the next generation of AI workloads and the emerging Neo-Cloud sector.” Graham Carr, Vice President of Sales, North America, CEL Critical Power, says, “CEL Critical Power is proud to invest in Virginia, working with VEDP, the DoD SkillBridge programme, and Naval Station Norfolk to create meaningful career pathways for veterans while supporting the state’s growing technology sector. "Virginia offers a strong supply chain, excellent infrastructure, and a deep pool of technical talent.”

Oxford technology supplied to quantum-AI data centre

Oxford Instruments NanoScience, a UK provider of cryogenic systems for quantum computing and materials research, has supplied one of its advanced Cryofree dilution refrigerators, the ProteoxLX, to Oxford Quantum Circuits’ (OQC) newly launched Quantum-AI data centre in New York. As the first facility designed to co-locate quantum computing and classical AI infrastructure at scale, the centre will use the ProteoxLX’s cryogenic capabilities to support OQC’s next-generation quantum processors, helping to advance the development of quantum-enabled AI applications. Supporting quantum and AI integration The announcement follows the opening of OQC’s New York-based Quantum-AI data centre, powered by NVIDIA CPU and GPU Superchips. The facility represents a major step towards practical, scalable quantum computing. Within OQC’s logical-era quantum computer, OQC GENESIS, the ProteoxLX provides the ultra-low temperature environment needed to operate its 16 logical qubits, enabling over 1,000 quantum operations. This capability aims to drive innovation across finance, security, and data-intensive sectors ranging from faster financial modelling and optimisation to quantum-assisted machine learning. Oxford Instruments NanoScience says the collaboration highlights its expanding role in the global quantum computing landscape. OQC’s data centre installations across Europe, North America, and Asia contribute to a distributed quantum infrastructure, accelerating the application of superconducting qubit technologies for industries such as pharmaceuticals. Matthew Martin, Managing Director at Oxford Instruments NanoScience, comments, “We’re proud to support OQC in building the infrastructure that will define the next generation of computing, and it is a privilege to collaborate with our longstanding partner on this project. “Our ProteoxLX is designed to allow users to scale, enabling them to maximise qubit counts with a large sample space and capacity for coaxial lines, so we’re excited to see how OQC will harness this platform to accelerate breakthroughs in real-world application performance.” Simon Phillips, CTO at OQC, adds, “Oxford Instruments NanoScience’s contribution supports the centre’s goal of creating a hybrid quantum-classical computing capability, without modifying the data centre environment or generating the need for additional cooling.” About ProteoxLX Designed for quantum computing applications, the ProteoxLX forms part of Oxford Instruments NanoScience’s latest dilution refrigerator range, all built on a modular framework for cross-compatibility and adaptable cryogenic setups. It offers a large sample space, extensive coaxial wiring capacity, low-vibration operation, and integrated signal conditioning for longer qubit coherence times. The system delivers over 25 µW of cooling power at 20 mK, a base temperature below 7 mK, and several watts of cooling capacity at 4 K via twin pulse tubes. Two fully customisable secondary inserts enable optimised cold-electronics layouts and high-capacity I/O lines, interchangeable across the Proteox family.

Mission Critical Group acquires Leman Engineering

Mission Critical Group (MCG), a critical power infrastructure company, has announced the acquisition of Leman Engineering and Consulting (LEC), a US manufacturer of switchgear, control systems, and power distribution equipment. The acquisition aims to strengthen MCG’s US Midwest manufacturing presence, expand its engineering capabilities, and establish LEC as MCG’s R&D hub for power generation engineering. The company says this hub focuses on switchgear innovation for onsite generation, prime power, generator paralleling, behind-the-meter systems, and microgrids. An electric collaboration With experience in prime power distribution design, precision manufacturing, and engineering, MCG hopes LEC will strengthen its unified power and energy infrastructure platform, delivering high-performance electrical systems across data centre, healthcare, industrial, oil and gas, and other critical markets. Its capabilities in UL 891 switchboards, UL 1558 switchgear, and medium-voltage equipment should expand MCG’s technical depth and manufacturing reach. The establishment of MCG’s R&D hub is also intended to align with strategic university partnerships specialising in power engineering and advance innovation and workforce development across the electrical manufacturing sector. “We’re proud to join MCG and contribute to its continued growth and innovation,” comments Randy Leman, President of Leman Engineering and Consulting. Randy will now serve as Vice President of Engineering and Product Management for Electrical Equipment at MCG. The Indiana team will continue operating under existing leadership, maintaining its local presence and customer focus. The addition of LEC marks MCG’s second acquisition in 2025 and sixth in the past 24 months. With more than one million square feet (93,000 square metres) of US manufacturing space, MCG says it continues to expand its capacity to design, build, deliver, and service resilient power infrastructure US-wide. For more from Mission Critical Group, click here.

Vertiv expands immersion liquid cooling portfolio

Vertiv, a global provider of critical digital infrastructure, has introduced the Vertiv CoolCenter Immersion cooling system, expanding its liquid cooling portfolio to support AI and high-performance computing (HPC) environments. The system is available now in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA). Immersion cooling submerges entire servers in a dielectric liquid, providing efficient and uniform heat removal across all components. This is particularly effective for systems where power densities and thermal loads exceed the limits of traditional air-cooling methods. Vertiv has designed its CoolCenter Immersion product as a "complete liquid-cooling architecture", aiming to enable reliable heat removal for dense compute ranging from 25 kW to 240 kW per system. Sam Bainborough, EMEA Vice President of Thermal Business at Vertiv, explains, “Immersion cooling is playing an increasingly important role as AI and HPC deployments push thermal limits far beyond what conventional systems can handle. “With the Vertiv CoolCenter Immersion, we’re applying decades of liquid-cooling expertise to deliver fully engineered systems that handle extreme heat densities safely and efficiently, giving operators a practical path to scale AI infrastructure without compromising reliability or serviceability.” Product features The Vertiv CoolCenter Immersion is available in multiple configurations, including self-contained and multi-tank options, with cooling capacities from 25 kW to 240 kW. Each system includes an internal or external liquid tank, coolant distribution unit (CDU), temperature sensors, variable-speed pumps, and fluid piping, all intended to deliver precise temperature control and consistent thermal performance. Vertiv says that dual power supplies and redundant pumps provide high cooling availability, while integrated monitoring sensors, a nine-inch touchscreen, and building management system (BMS) connectivity simplify operation and system visibility. The system’s design also enables heat reuse opportunities, supporting more efficient thermal management strategies across facilities and aligning with broader energy-efficiency objectives. For more from Vertiv, click here.

Zoom to open new UK data centre

Zoom has announced a major step in its UK growth strategy with plans of opening a UK data centre in 2026, designed to align with the country’s data residency requirements and unlock additional opportunities across regulated industries such as Public Sector, Healthcare, and Financial Services, ultimately offering increased choice for customers. Louise Newbury-Smith, Head of UK & Ireland, Zoom, comments, “Launching a UK data centre is a significant milestone in Zoom’s journey to provide secure, compliant, and high performance services for all of our customers. By investing in local infrastructure, we are ensuring that organisations across the UK, from financial services to government, can confidently embrace the future of AI first collaboration.” Zoom has evolved from a video communications platform into a comprehensive AI first collaboration suite. Today, UK organisations use Zoom Workplace for meetings, chat, telephony, workspace reservations, and productivity automation. By hosting services locally, the new UK data centre will help local customers to benefit from both productivity gains and enhanced data residency offerings. The facility is expected to go live in the first half of 2026 and support a wide range of services including Meetings, Webinars, Rooms, Team Chat, Phone, Notes, Docs and Zoom AI Companion. UK only meeting zones and telephony gateways with local dial in numbers will be available at launch, with additional services such as Zoom Contact Centre and PCI compliance integration phased in shortly after. UK: A Pillar of Growth and Innovation for Zoom The UK is one of Zoom’s most dynamic and forward-thinking regions, the company says, consistently ranking as a top market in EMEA. Over the past three years, UK-based organisations, from FTSE 100 companies to public sector bodies, have driven the adoption of hybrid work and next-generation collaboration tools. Steve Rafferty, Head of EMEA & APAC, Zoom, notes, “Our customers and partners have been clear: local infrastructure, compliance and greater choice over where their data is stored are critical to unlocking digital transformation in regulated industries. This investment demonstrates Zoom’s long term commitment to the UK market, and we are excited to see how it will empower organisations to innovate, collaborate, and thrive.” In June 2024, Zoom underscored its long-term commitment to the UK by opening the Experience Centre as part of the London office location. This state-of-the-art facility was launched as a hub for innovation, executive briefings, and hands-on demonstrations of Zoom’s evolving collaboration platform. Since its opening, the London Experience Centre has welcomed over 5,500 guests across customers, partners, and industry leaders, serving as a showcase for how critical the UK market is to Zoom’s broader EMEA strategy. The centre also exemplifies Zoom’s approach: co-creating solutions with and for customers, prospects and partners, supporting digital transformation, and nurturing a vibrant local technology ecosystem. The new data centre is set to play a pivotal role in Zoom's long-term growth strategy across both the UK and the wider EMEA region. This strategic investment complements Zoom's existing infrastructure in Saudi Arabia, Germany, and the Netherlands, which collectively serve European, Middle Eastern, and African markets. Through ongoing infrastructure investments, new partnerships, and market-specific innovations tailored to regional-specific needs, Zoom further strengthens presence and deepens roots throughout the region.

HUMAIN, AirTrunk to build DCs in Saudi Arabia

AI company HUMAIN and hyperscale data centre operator AirTrunk have agreed a strategic partnership to develop data centres in Saudi Arabia, including an initial project valued at around $3 billion (£2.2 billion) for a new campus in the country. HUMAIN is headquartered in Saudi Arabia and focuses on artificial intelligence capability development, while AirTrunk operates hyperscale data centre platforms across Asia Pacific. HUMAIN is owned by the Public Investment Fund, and AirTrunk is backed by Blackstone and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. The companies say the partnership is intended to support Saudi Arabia’s ambitions to expand its digital infrastructure and position itself as a regional technology hub. According to the organisations, the joint initiative aims to combine local AI and infrastructure expertise with international hyperscale data centre deployment experience. Industry comments Tareq Amin, Chief Executive Officer of HUMAIN, says, “Together with AirTrunk and Blackstone, HUMAIN is strengthening the technological infrastructure that underpins the Kingdom’s digital economy. "This partnership marks a pivotal moment in creating scalable, secure, and sustainable data centre capacity to support the rapid growth of AI and cloud computing. This initiative not only accelerates Saudi Arabia’s technological advancement, but also establishes a platform for long-term economic diversification and global competitiveness.” Robin Khuda, founder and Chief Executive Officer of AirTrunk, says, “Our strategic partnership with HUMAIN, a key player in the region, will support Saudi Arabia to realise its vision of being a data- and AI-driven economy. "We’re bringing together the whole digital ecosystem, combining HUMAIN’s end-to-end AI capabilities, from infrastructure to models, with AirTrunk’s hyperscale data centre capabilities. This announcement strengthens the AirTrunk data centre platform as we deliver world-class digital infrastructure for the cloud and AI across the Asia Pacific and now the Middle East, which is one of the fastest growing regions in the world.” Stephen A Schwarzman, Chair, Chief Executive Officer, and co-founder of Blackstone, says, “We are thrilled to help power this next era of innovation in the Middle East and enable AirTrunk’s expansion in this important region. "The AI revolution continues to be one of Blackstone’s highest conviction themes, and we bring scale and expertise across the ecosystem as the largest provider of data centres globally and a significant investor in related services and infrastructure." Long-term development and investment focus The partnership is expected to cover the design, construction, financing, and operation of large-scale facilities in Saudi Arabia. HUMAIN says it will lead national efforts to deliver AI-ready infrastructure, while AirTrunk and Blackstone will focus on development and investment. Areas of collaboration include attracting cloud service providers and enterprise customers to the sites. A talent development focus is also planned, with training and capability-building programmes intended to support local workforce growth in the sector. According to the companies, the partnership aligns with the Kingdom’s plans to build a digital economy, expand local skills, and accelerate AI infrastructure deployment. For more from AirTrunk, click here.

Colt DCS to expand West London hyperscale campus

Colt Data Centre Services (Colt DCS), a global provider of AI, hyperscale, and large enterprise data centres, has announced that it has received committee approval (Resolution to Grant) from Hillingdon Council to expand its Hayes Digital Park campus in West London with three new hyperscale data centres and an Innovation Hub. The £2.5 billion investment will strengthen the UK’s digital infrastructure, support the government’s modern industrial strategy, and help drive the nation’s growing AI economy. The three new hyperscale data centres - London 6, 7, and 8 - will be powered using 100% renewable energy through a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA). Power contracts for this development have been secured with National Grid and a high voltage supply is due to be delivered by October 2027. The expansion will add an additional 97MW to the available IT power at the Hayes Digital Park, taking the total capacity to 160MW. Construction is expected to start in mid-2026, with the first data centre (London 6) scheduled to go live in early 2029. Once operational, the new facilities will create over 500 permanent jobs, training more than 50 technical apprentices over a 10-year build programme. In addition to the data centres, Colt DCS will develop an Innovation Hub in partnership with Brunel University, designed to serve as a community space and incubator for digital start-ups. The hub will promote economic synergy by co-locating light-industrial and digital innovation businesses, creating opportunities for collaboration, research, and skills development within an affordable workspace. Students from Brunel University will be encouraged to use the hub to develop entrepreneurial projects and technology-led ventures to support the digital economy. AECOM has been appointed to develop the design proposals for the Innovation Hub. The facility aims to act as a base for innovation and community engagement, with flexible space for future industrial use, in line with planning policy for Strategic Industrial Land. It will also provide social value by hosting local events themed around culture, food, film, music, and literature. The new development will also deliver a district heating network, using waste heat from the data centres to support local businesses, communities, and residential buildings. Under the planning permission, back-up generators will only be permitted to operate for a maximum of 15 hours per year, with the data centres powered directly from the national grid. “This announcement marks another important milestone for the UK’s digital economy,” says Xavier Matagne, Chief Real Estate Officer at Colt DCS. “Data centres are a cornerstone of digital transformation. With this expansion, we can help power innovation, support the AI revolution, and contribute to the energy transition.” Xavier continues, “Our new campus in Hayes, including the Innovation Hub in partnership with Brunel University, will drive community value, from reusing heat for district heating to creating jobs, skills, and long-term investment. As one of the few operators capable of delivering new capacity in this area of London over the next decade, we’re proud to be helping power the UK’s future economy in a sustainable and inclusive way.” Cllr Steve Tuckwell, Hillingdon Council's Cabinet Member for Planning, Housing and Growth, notes, "Hillingdon is open for business, and we're working closely with our business community, new and existing investors and partners to drive innovation and development in the right places. "The innovation hub is an exciting new development that will help to foster economic growth. It will help to equip residents and smaller local businesses with the right skills, affordable workspaces, and opportunities to thrive. "Hayes is playing a leading role in shaping London's digital economy and infrastructure and it's vital local people have more opportunities to experience the benefits." For more from Colt DCS, click here.

America’s AI revolution needs the right infrastructure

In this article, Ivo Ivanov, CEO of DE-CIX, argues his case for why America’s AI revolution won’t happen without the right kind of infrastructure: Boom or bust Artificial intelligence might well be the defining technology of our time, but its future rests on something much less tangible hiding beneath the surface: latency. Every AI service, whether training models across distributed GPU-as-a-Service communities or running inference close to end users, depends on how fast, how securely, and how cost-effectively data can move. Network latency is simply the delay in the speed of traffic transmission caused by the distance the data needs to travel: the lower latency is (i.e. the faster the transmission), the better the performance of everything from autonomous vehicles to the applications we carry in our pockets. There’s always been a trend of technology applications outpacing network capabilities, but we’re feeling it more acutely now due to the sheer pace of AI growth. Depending on where you were in 2012, the average latency for the top 20 applications could be up to or more than 200 milliseconds. Today, there’s virtually no application in the top 100 that would function effectively with that kind of latency. That’s why internet exchanges (IXs) have begun to dominate the conversation. An IX is like an airport for data. Just as an airport coordinates the safe landing and departure of dozens of airlines, allowing them to exchange passengers and cargo seamlessly, an IX brings together networks, clouds, and content platforms to seamlessly exchange traffic. The result is faster connections, lower latency, greater efficiency, and a smoother journey for every digital service that depends on it. Deploying these IXs creates what is known as “data gravity”, a magnetic pull that draws in networks, content, and investment. Once this gravity takes hold, ecosystems begin to grow on their own, localising data and services, reducing latency, and fuelling economic growth. I recently spoke about this at a first-of-its-kind regional AI connectivity summit, The future of AI connectivity in Kansas & beyond, hosted at the Wichita State University (WSU) in Kansas, USA. It was the perfect location - given that WSU is the planned site of a new carrier-neutral IX - and the start of a much bigger plan to roll out IXs across university campuses nationwide. Discussions at the summit reflected a growing recognition that America’s AI economy cannot depend solely on coastal hubs or isolated mega-data centres. If AI is to deliver value across all parts of the economy, from aerospace and healthcare to finance and education, it needs a distributed, resilient, and secure interconnection layer reaching deep into the heartland. What is beginning in Wichita is part of a much bigger picture: building the kind of digital infrastructure that will allow AI to flourish. Networking changed the game, but AI is changing the rules For all its potential, AI’s crowning achievement so far might be the wakeup call it’s given us. It has magnified every weakness in today’s networks. Training up models requires immense compute power. Finding the data centre space for this can be a challenge, but new data transport protocols are meaning that AI processing could, in the future, be spread across multiple data centre facilities. Meanwhile, inference - and especially multi-AI agentive inference - demands ultra-low latency, as AI services interact with systems, people, and businesses in real time. But for both of these scenarios, the efficiency and speed of the network is key. If the network cannot keep pace (if data needs to travel too far), these applications become too slow to be useful. That’s why the next breakthrough in AI won’t be in bigger or better models, but in the infrastructure that connects them all. By bringing networks, clouds, and enterprises together on a neutral platform, an IX makes it possible to aggregate GPU resources across locations, create agile GPU-as-a-Service communities, and deliver real-time inference with the best performance and highest level of security. AI changes the geography of networking too. Instead of relying only on mega-hubs in key locations, we need interconnection spokes that reach into every region where people live, work, and innovate. Otherwise, businesses in the middle of the country face the “tromboning effect”, where their data detours hundreds of miles to another city to be exchanged and processed before returning a result - adding latency, raising costs, and weakening performance. We need to make these distances shorter, reduce path complexity, and allow data to move freely and securely between every player in the network chain. That’s how AI is rewriting the rulebook; latency, underpinned by distance and geography, matters more than ever. Building ecosystems and 'data gravity' When we establish an IX, we’re doing more than just connecting networks; we’re forging the embers of a future-proof ecosystem. I’ve seen this happen countless times. The moment a neutral (meaning data centre and carrier neutral) exchange is in place, it becomes a magnet that draws in networks, content providers, data centres, and investors. The pull of “data gravity” transforms a market from being dependent on distant hubs into a self-sustaining digital environment. What may look like a small step - a handful of networks exchanging traffic locally - very quickly becomes an accelerant for rapid growth. Dubai is one of the clearest examples. When we opened our first international platform there in 2012, 90% of the content used in the region was hosted outside of the Middle East, with latency above 200 milliseconds. A decade later, 90% of that content is localised within the region and latency has dropped to just three milliseconds. This was a direct result of the gravity created by the exchange, pulling more and more stakeholders into the ecosystem. For AI, that localisation isn’t just beneficial; it’s also essential. Training and inference both depend on data being closer to where it is needed. Without the gravity of an IX, content and compute remain scattered and far away, and performance suffers. With it, however, entire regions can unlock the kind of digital transformation that AI demands. The American challenge There was a time when connectivity infrastructure was dominated by a handful of incumbents, but that time has long since passed. Building AI-ready infrastructure isn’t something that one organisation or sector can do alone. Everywhere that has succeeded in building an AI-ready network environment has done so through partnerships - between data centre, network, and IX operators, alongside policy makers, technology providers, universities, and - of course - the business community itself. When those pieces of the puzzle are assembled together, the result is a healthy ecosystem that benefits everyone. This collaborative model, like the one envisaged at the IX in WSU, is exactly what the US needs if it is to realise the full potential of AI. Too much of America’s digital economy still depends on coastal hubs, while the centre of the country is underserved. That means businesses in aerospace, healthcare, finance, and education - many of which are based deep in the US heartland - must rely on services delivered from other states and regions, and that isn’t sustainable when it comes to AI. To solve this, we need a distributed layer of interconnection that extends across the entire nation. Only then can we create a truly digital America where every city has access to the same secure, high-performance infrastructure required to power its AI-driven future. For more from DE-CIX, click here.