Executive Summary
- Has the data centre industry has been weaponised for social and political arguments?
- If our everyday life depends on the data centre infrastructure, where is the disconnect and how do we fix it?
- How can the sector take the conversation to the public, and make a more proactive effort to to be better understood?
I was listening to a podcast recently with two people I have a huge amount of respect for, and the conversation turned to data centres and AI.
The interviewee said that AI has ruined his love of unlikely animal friendships. Now, when he sees a video of a giraffe and a hedgehog together, he can’t enjoy it. He can’t believe it. He’s lost the connection to something he enjoyed, however trivial.
I wasn’t listening ‘for work’, and the podcast had nothing to do with our sector, per se. But the ‘everyday’ of what the industry touches, couldn’t help but catch my attention.
It’s true that our industry has suddenly found itself in the spotlight. AI has brought data centres into conversations about energy, water, land use and planning. Topics that, until fairly recently, barely registered with the wider public are now making headlines and fuelling political debate.
But while everyone seems to have an opinion about data centres, how many people really understand what they do, why we need them and just how much of everyday life depends on them?
I’ve been thinking about this a lot, particularly after speaking with someone for an upcoming interview (watch this space) who described the data centre industry as increasingly “weaponised” in political and social arguments.
It’s a strong word, but we can’t argue with it. Data centres can become convenient symbols in much bigger debates, with arguments about power, the environment and development taking place without a proper understanding of the infrastructure itself or the role it plays in modern life.
That’s not to say the concerns aren’t legitimate. Communities should be able to ask difficult questions about developments taking place on their doorstep. Energy and water consumption matter. So do local planning decisions and the impact on the places where people live.
In another upcoming interview – recorded at Vertiv Week; one senior industry voice makes a point that really resonated with me. Data centre companies have traditionally been very good at talking to other engineers, but much less effective at communicating with people outside that world. We need to get better at telling our story, not just to customers and partners, but to the wider public.
For an industry built around enabling connectivity, we can sometimes be surprisingly disconnected from the people who depend on it.
Many don’t see the data centre behind online banking, hospital systems, navigation apps or the services that keep businesses running. We see the result, not the infrastructure.
That’s why I was pleased to publish the launch of Data Centres Explained; a resource designed to help people learn about the sector and ask questions, that will build a bank of information for others to use.
It’s a genuinely positive step. We need more accessible information, more openness and more opportunities for people to engage with the industry.
But I do have one question: are we still putting too much of the responsibility on the public?
We’re inviting people to come and ask us questions, but what if they don’t know what to ask? We can’t expect people to seek out information about something they don’t yet understand. The responsibility has to work both ways, is it proactive enough?
The unlikeliest friendship of all might just be between the data centre industry and the public. But like any good friendship, it takes time, effort and a willingness to listen. And it certainly won’t happen if we’re only prepared to talk to ourselves.
