Egypt Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly signed five key Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with Chinese firms and institutions to enhance Egypt-China telecommunications and information technology cooperation. These agreements, made during the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Beijing, mark a significant development in Egypt’s tech and infrastructure sectors.
The first MoU with FiberHome Telecommunication Technologies involves setting up a fibre optic cable factory in Egypt, producing one million fibre kilometres annually and creating 200 jobs. It will also include a research and development centre and a training facility for network engineers.
The second MoU, with ITIDA, Tsinghua Unigroup, and Telecom Egypt, focuses on building a data centre and cloud services operation supported by a $300 million investment fund. This partnership will also establish a research centre for semiconductor design and develop AI applications, including an Arabic language model.
Huawei Egypt’s MoU will establish a development centre for local industry solutions, software, and cloud computing, aiming to train 1,500 developers by 2025 and support startups with cloud resources. The fourth MoU with ZTE will localise network equipment production and establish training labs for 5G and GPON technologies, providing training for 1,200 participants.
The final MoU with Hengtong Group will create a second fibre optic cable factory in the Suez Canal Economic Zone with a $15 million investment, producing 3 million kilometres of cables annually and including a training academy in collaboration with the National Telecommunications Institute. These agreements highlight Egypt’s commitment to advancing its technological infrastructure and deepening its partnership with China.
The US National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has launched an inquiry to address the challenges surrounding US data centres’ growth, resilience, and security. This initiative is crucial in light of the increasing demand for computing power driven by advancements in AI and other emerging technologies. Currently, the US has over 5,000 data centres, with demand projected to grow by approximately 9% annually through 2030, highlighting their role as foundational elements of a secure technology ecosystem.
To effectively tackle these challenges, the NTIA has issued a Request for Comment (RFC) to solicit stakeholders’ input on various data centre growth issues. Key focus areas include supply chain resilience, access to trusted equipment, energy demands, and the need for a specialised workforce. The RFC also explores the implications of data centre modernisation on society and the necessary data security practices for facilities hosting AI models. Insights from this inquiry will help develop comprehensive policy recommendations supporting sustainable and resilient data centre growth.
The inquiry is being conducted in coordination with the Department of Energy (DOE), highlighting the importance of addressing energy challenges associated with data centres. The collaboration aims to ensure the US can meet the energy demands of expanding data centre infrastructure while promoting clean energy solutions. The feedback received from the RFC will inform a report that outlines actionable recommendations for the US government, ultimately fostering a robust data centre ecosystem capable of supporting future technological advancements.
Energix Renewable has entered into a long-term partnership with Alphabet’s Google to supply electricity and Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) generated from its solar project to the tech giant. Energix will initially supply 1.5 gigawatt-peak of solar project development till 2030, with a possibility of further extension.
Google will be offering Energix tax equity. As a part of the US government’s Inflation Reduction Act, corporate entities are allowed to acquire credits for supporting the development of clean energy projects like solar and wind facilities. The move also ties into Google’s long-term vision of being carbon neutral by 2030.
Why is it important?
AI’s accelerated development pushes power demand to sustain highly energy-intensive data centres. This increase in electricity needs is poised to drive up energy demand on an exceptional scale, and given the huge strides in AI development, it’s likely that computing speed will ramp up faster than improvements in electricity efficiency. Against such a backdrop, this move by Google reveals how big tech players are ramping up their efforts to ensure a seamless electricity supply by entering agreements with energy providers.
Singapore-headquartered AI cloud provider Sustainable Metal Cloud (SMC) is set to expand globally, driven by fast-growing demand for its energy-saving technology. CEO and co-founder Tim Rosenfield announced plans to extend operations to EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa) and North America in response to client demand. Currently, SMC operates “sustainable AI factories” in Australia and Singapore, with new launches planned in India and Thailand.
Partnering with AI chip giant Nvidia, SMC uses over 1,200 of Nvidia’s high-end H100 AI chips in Singapore to run open-source models like Meta’s Llama 2. Unlike most data centres that rely on air cooling technology, SMC employs immersion cooling, submerging Dell servers fitted with Nvidia GPUs in a synthetic oil called polyalphaolefin. The following method reduces energy consumption by up to 50% compared to traditional air cooling.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) anticipates a tenfold increase in AI demand compared to 2023, with global data centre electricity consumption expected to exceed 1,000 terawatt-hours by 2026. Sustainable Metal Cloud is currently raising $400 million in equity and $550 million in debt to support its expansion, according to sources. That move aligns with the increasing environmental concerns impacting Singapore’s data centre growth and highlights the importance of sustainable technology in meeting future energy demands.
Microsoft has announced a partnership with Lumen Technologies to expand its capacity for AI workloads using LT’s network equipment. The tech giant, which has faced challenges due to data center infrastructure shortages, aims to meet the growing demand for AI services at its data centers.
In April, Microsoft revealed that the shortage of necessary infrastructure was limiting its ability to fully leverage the boom in AI technology. The company, which has invested heavily in OpenAI and its ChatGPT technology, continues to pour billions into cloud infrastructure to stay ahead of competitors like Google and Amazon.
As part of the deal, Lumen Technologies will switch to Microsoft’s Azure cloud services to reduce costs. The transition is expected to improve Lumen’s cash flow by over $20 million in the next year, aiding the company’s efforts to restructure its debt and achieve financial stability.
Why does this matter?
The collaboration comes as Microsoft also makes strides in AI development with projects like Vall-E-2, which achieves human-like speech, and its commitment to expanding AI in education in Hong Kong. These initiatives highlight Microsoft’s ongoing efforts to maintain its leadership in the rapidly evolving AI landscape.
Microsoft is partnering with UAE-based AI firm G42 to invest $1 billion in a new data centre in Kenya to expand cloud-computing services in East Africa. The data centre, built by G42 and its partners, will use geothermal energy and provide access to Microsoft’s Azure through a new cloud region specifically for East Africa.
This initiative is part of a broader effort by major tech companies like Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet to meet the growing demand for cloud and generative AI services. G42, which recently received a $1.5 billion investment from Microsoft, is also developing an open-source AI model in Swahili and English.
During President William Ruto’s visit to the United States, a letter of intent for the project will be signed on Friday between Microsoft, G42, and Kenya’s Ministry of Information, Communications, and the Digital Economy. The data centre is expected to be operational within two years after the final agreements are signed.
Frankfurt is a major European data hub, with more than 60 data centres covering 64 hectares.
One of the main reasons for this high concentration of data centres is the proximity of the main internet exchange hub in Frankfurt, which processes most European internet traffic.
However, the fast expansion of data hubs triggered a reaction of local authorities. In Frankfurt’s new urbanistic plan, they would like to restrict space for data centres.
This new plan triggered a reaction from the German Datacenter Association arguing that restricting the growth of data centres could endanger digitalisation processes in Germany, among other possible undesirable effects.
