Overcoming the Barriers to Quantum Adoption Despite the promise of quantum computing, widespread deployment faces multiple hurdles: High Capital Costs: Quantum computing infrastructure requires substantial investment, with uncertain return-on-investment models. The partnership will explore cost-sharing strategies to mitigate risk. Undefined Revenue Models: Business frameworks for quantum services, including pricing structures and access models, remain in development. Hardware Limitations: Current quantum processors still struggle with error rates and scalability, requiring advancements in error correction and hybrid computing approaches. Software Maturity: Effective algorithms for leveraging quantum computing’s advantages remain an active area of research, particularly in real-world AI and optimization problems. SoftBank’s strategy includes leveraging its extensive telecom infrastructure and AI expertise to create real-world testing environments for quantum applications. By integrating quantum into existing data center operations, SoftBank aims to position itself at the forefront of the quantum-AI revolution. A Broader Play in Advanced Computing SoftBank’s quantum initiative follows a series of high-profile moves into the next generation of computing infrastructure. The company has been investing heavily in AI data centers, aligning with its “Beyond Carrier” strategy that expands its focus beyond telecommunications. Recent efforts include the development of large-scale AI models tailored to Japan and the enhancement of radio access networks (AI-RAN) through AI-driven optimizations. Internationally, SoftBank has explored data center expansion opportunities beyond Japan, as part of its efforts to support AI, cloud computing, and now quantum applications. The company’s long-term vision suggests that quantum data centers could eventually play a role in supporting AI-driven workloads at scale, offering performance benefits that classical supercomputers cannot achieve. The Road Ahead SoftBank and Quantinuum’s collaboration signals growing momentum for quantum computing in enterprise settings. While quantum remains a long-term bet, integrating QPUs into data center infrastructure represents a forward-looking approach that could redefine high-performance computing in the years to come. With

Global data center developer and operator STACK Infrastructure is providing a growing range of digital infrastructure solutions for hyperscalers, cloud service providers, and enterprise clients. Like almost all of the cutting-edge developers in the industry, Stack is maintaining the focus on scalability, reliability, and sustainability while delivering a full range of solutions, including build-to-suit, colocation, and powered shell facilities, with continued development in key global markets. Headquartered in the United States, the company has expanded its presence across North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific, catering to the increasing demand for high-performance computing, artificial intelligence (AI), and cloud-based workloads. The company is known for its commitment to sustainable growth, leveraging green financing initiatives, energy-efficient designs, and renewable power sources to minimize its environmental impact. Through rapid expansion in technology hubs like Silicon Valley, Northern Virginia, Malaysia, and Loudoun County, the company continues to develop industry benchmarks for innovation and infrastructure resilience. With a customer-centric approach and a robust development pipeline, STACK Infrastructure is shaping the future of digital connectivity and data management in an era of accelerating digital transformation. Significant Developments Across 23 Major Data Center Markets Early in 2024, Stack broke ground on the expansion of their existing 100 MW campus in San Jose, servicing the power constrained Silicon Valley. Stack worked with the city of San Jose to add a 60 MW expansion to their SVY01 data center. While possibly the highest profile of Stack’s developments, due to its location, at that point in time the company had announced significant developments across 23 major data center markets, including:       Stack’s 48 MW Santa Clara data center, featuring immediately available shell space powered by an onsite substation with rare, contracted capacity. Stack’s 56 MW Toronto campus, spanning 19 acres, includes an existing 8 MW data center and 48 MW expansion capacity,

Meta’s Project Waterworth: Building the Global Backbone for AI-Powered Digital Infrastructure Also very recently, Meta unveiled its most ambitious subsea cable initiative yet: Project Waterworth. Aimed at revolutionizing global digital connectivity, the project will span over 50,000 kilometers—surpassing the Earth’s circumference—and connect five major continents. When completed, it will be the world’s longest subsea cable system, featuring the highest-capacity technology available today. A Strategic Expansion to Key Global Markets As announced on Feb. 14, Project Waterworth is designed to enhance connectivity across critical regions, including the United States, India, Brazil, and South Africa. These regions are increasingly pivotal to global digital growth, and the new subsea infrastructure will fuel economic cooperation, promote digital inclusion, and unlock opportunities for technological advancement. In India, for instance, where rapid digital infrastructure growth is already underway, the project will accelerate progress and support the country’s ambitions for an expanded digital economy. This enhanced connectivity will foster regional integration and bolster the foundation for next-generation applications, including AI-driven services. Strengthening Global Digital Highways Subsea cables are the unsung heroes of global digital infrastructure, facilitating over 95% of intercontinental data traffic. With a multi-billion-dollar investment, Meta aims to open three new oceanic corridors that will deliver the high-speed, high-capacity bandwidth needed to fuel innovations like artificial intelligence. Meta’s experience in subsea infrastructure is extensive. Over the past decade, the company has collaborated with various partners to develop more than 20 subsea cables, including systems boasting up to 24 fiber pairs—far exceeding the typical 8 to 16 fiber pairs found in most new deployments. This technological edge ensures scalability and reliability, essential for handling the world’s ever-increasing data demands. Engineering Innovations for Resilience and Capacity Project Waterworth isn’t just about scale—it’s about resilience and cutting-edge engineering. The system will be the longest 24-fiber-pair subsea cable ever built, enhancing

In a new report, the Royal Academy of Engineering called upon the government to ensure tech companies accurately report how much energy and water their data centers are using and reducing the use of drinking water for cooling. Without such action, warns one of the report’s authors, Professor Tom Rodden, “we face a real risk that our development, deployment and use of AI could do irreparable damage to the environment.” The situation is a little different for the US as the country has large bodies of water offering a  water supply that the UK just does not have. It’s not an accident that there are many data centers around the Chicago area: they’ve also got the Great Lakes to draw upon. Likewise, the Columbia and Klamath Rivers have become magnets for data centers for both water supply and hydroelectric power. Other than the Thames River, the UK doesn’t have these massive bodies of water. Still, the problem is not unique to the UK, says Alan Howard, senior analyst with Omdia. He notes that Microsoft took heat last year because it was draining the water supply of a small Arizona town of Goodyear with a new AI-oriented data center.  The city of Chandler, Arizona passed an ordinance in 2015 that restricted new water-intensive businesses from setting up shop which slowed data center development.   “I believe some data center operators just bowed out,” said Howard.

Stanish said that, in 2023, she wrote a paper that predicted “by 2028, more than 70% of multinational enterprises will alter their data center strategies due to limited energy supplies and data center moratoriums, up from only about 5% in 2023. It has been interesting watching this trend evolve as expected, with Ireland being a major force in this conversation since the boycotts against data center growth started a few years ago.” Fair, equitable, and stable electricity allocation, she said, “means that the availability of electricity for digital services is not guaranteed in the future, and I expect these policies, data center moratoriums, and regional rejections will only continue and expand moving forward.” Stanish pointed out that this trend is not just occurring in Ireland. “Many studies show that, globally, enterprises’ digital technologies are consuming energy at a faster rate than overall growth in energy supply (though, to be clear, these studies mostly assume a static position on energy efficiency of current technologies, and don’t take into account potential for nuclear or hydrogen to assuage some of these supply issues).” If taken at face value, she said, this means that a lack of resources could cause widespread electricity shortages in data centers over the next several years. To mitigate this, Stanish said, “so far, data center moratoriums and related constraints (including reduced tax incentives) have been enacted in the US (specifically Virginia and Georgia), Denmark, Singapore, and other countries, in response to concerns about the excessive energy consumption of IT, particularly regarding compute-intense AI workloads and concerns regarding an IT energy monopoly in certain regions. As a result, governments (federal, state, county, etc.) are working to ensure that consumption does not outpace capacity.” Changes needed In its report, the CRU stated, “a safe and secure supply of energy is essential

President Trump announced a$500 billion private sector investment in the nation’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) infrastructure last month. The investment will come from The Stargate Project, a joint venture between OpenAI, SoftBank, Oracle and MGX, which intends to build 20 new AI data centers in the U.S in the next four to five years. The Stargate Project committed$100 billion for immediate deployment and construction has already begun on its first data center in Texas. At approximately a half a million square feet each, the partners say these new facilities will cement America’s leadership in AI, create jobs and stimulate economic growth. Stargate is not the only game in town, either. Microsoft is expected to invest$80 billion in AI data center development in 2025, with Google, AWS and Meta also spending big. While all this investment in AI infrastructure is certainly exciting, experts say there’s one lingering question that’s yet to be answered and it’s a big one: How are we going to power all these AI data centers? This will be one of the many questions tackled duringMicrogrid Knowledge’s annual conference, which will be held in Texas April 15-17 at the Sheraton Dallas. “Powering Data Centers: Collaborative Microgrid Solutions for a Growing Market” will be one of the key sessions on April 16. Industry experts will gather to discuss how private entities, developers and utilities can work together to deploy microgrids and distributed energy technologies that address the data center industry’s power needs. The panel will share solutions, technologies and strategies that will favorably position data centers in the energy queue. In advance of this session, we sat down with two microgrid experts to learn more about the challenges facing the data center industry and how microgrids can address the sector’s growing energy needs. We spoke with Michael Stadler, co-founder and