11/06/2026
Back from an incredible few days at Datacloud in Cannes ☀️
The scale of growth, innovation and demand across the data centre industry is huge and AI is clearly accelerating it, not replacing existing cloud demand.
Some of the biggest themes and takeaways for me:
• Aligning power, infrastructure and people is now critical
• AI inference workloads are accelerating rapidly across Europe
• Flexibility in design is becoming essential as technology evolves faster than ever
• Liquid cooling, direct-to-chip cooling and thermal management are reshaping operational models and customer/provider demarcation lines
• Capex, insurance and energy pressures are becoming major challenges at hyperscale and GW scale
• True collaboration across the entire ecosystem; operators, suppliers, utilities, communities and regulators is now absolutely essential
There were also some brilliant discussions around innovation:
• Waste heat reuse supporting local communities
• Microgrids and smarter interconnection agreements
• Nuclear and alternative energy solutions entering the conversation
• AI itself driving future operational optimisation and infrastructure management
One thing was clear throughout the week - the pace of change is extraordinary, and the industry needs to continue balancing innovation, resilience, sustainability and community engagement together.
Alongside the conference, it was fantastic to attend some amazing panels and guest speaker sessions, catching up with our clients, the Bird & Bird yacht, Mercury’s amazing dinner, PDC lunch, MOY Villa She Connects, DCAC Soirée, NTT, to name but a few, connect with the FWD community and even squeeze in some padel with the wonderful Konstrukt team 🎾
The conversations and relationships built at events like this are always where the real value happens. Met some incredible people who have already become friends!
