With artificial intelligence (AI) becoming commonplace, there is no question over its usefulness. AI is automating tasks, expediting customer service experiences, strengthening security measures and more. However, many questions remain over how the rising technology will affect data centers.
The topic of AI and data centers was front and center during a recent panel as part of the Data Center Summit, an online event produced by Endeavor Business Media’s Cabling Installation & Maintenance, Data Center Frontier, Security Info Watch, and Lightwave. Our own chief commercial officer, Patton Lochridge, was a featured speaker on the panel, AI’s Growing Influence on Data Centers. Lochridge and fellow panelists discussed how AI is impacting everything from new builds to future site selection for data centers. Keep reading for an overview of the discussion or watch the full panel here (it is free to register for the Data Center Summit).
Preparing the Data Center Industry for AI
AI requires more compute power and overall capacity at a data center, meaning facilities need to operate at maximum efficiency. This is causing more data center operators to locate in areas outside core data center markets where there is more available land and power. From a dark fiber perspective, Lochridge says this causes operators to think about fiber differently and far earlier than before.
“It used to be you had a metro area, a piece of land with power and a fiber tool. Now, they [operators] are thinking more about planning well in advance based on homogeneous fiber needs and whether you can get it there in time, and whether it’s readily available,” commented Lochridge.
AI is also changing the way operators consider the diversity and scalability needs of dark fiber. Operators want to quickly accommodate the higher capacity needs of AI-based applications, meaning they need a fiber network that can scale with their growing needs. Existing legacy networks often have challenges scaling due to networks being at capacity, which creates opportunities for new dark fiber providers to meet needs.
In addition, data center operators are looking for more dark fiber entrance points into facilities. Lochridge explained that two entrances into a data center is no longer enough. To enable more connectivity to other centers of compute and cloud environments, operators now expect as many as four different entrances points to meet the growing needs of their customers.
The panel also discussed how AI is affecting established markets, like the San Francisco Bay Area, and how it’s creating new opportunities for emerging markets. Check out the full panel here. To learn more about where the Bandwidth IG team is headed next, visit our events page.