Pan African Data Centres and Cloud Solutions Africa hosted a webinar. This article is part two of a six-part series.
The industry stands poised to unlock new opportunities and navigate the evolving digital landscape with confidence. Macrovector | Freepik.com
In a bid to explore the burgeoning role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in shaping the future of data centres, the Pan African Data Centres and Cloud Solutions Africa jointly organised a webinar titled ‘AI – The driving force of future data centres’. The virtual event delved into the remarkable advancements in data centre density and the pressing need for energy efficiency and sophisticated cooling solutions.
The webinar, hosted by Amy Hopkinson, conference producer of the Pan African Data Centres 2024 event, featured a distinguished panel of industry experts:
- Vanessa Moffat, EMEA Channel Partner manager at EkkoSense
- Samuel Chukwukereuba, Data Centre manager, Project Implementations at Digital Realty
- Niraj Shah, Sales and Business Development director at IX Africa
- Keith Sullivan, director of Strategic Innovation at AFL
Challenges and opportunities
Continuing the insightful discussion on the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in data centres, the panellists delved into the specific challenges and opportunities within the African context. The conversation highlighted the pivotal role of AI in enhancing data centre efficiency, while also addressing concerns surrounding energy consumption and sustainability.
Keith Sullivan underscored the diverse deployment scenarios for AI within data centres, ranging from colocation spaces to purpose-built facilities. While acknowledging the prevalence of AI deployments in North America and Europe, Sullivan noted the emerging trend of AI adoption in African data centres. He emphasised the critical importance of power availability in supporting AI clusters, with power requirements ranging up to six or seven megawatts for large-scale deployments.
Turning to Samuel Chukwukereuba, the discussion focused on the potential impact of AI adoption on data centre efficiency in Africa. Chukwukereuba highlighted the significance of AI-driven management systems in optimising data centre operations, including predictive maintenance and energy management. He emphasised the role of AI in enhancing energy efficiency through real-time data analysis and demand prediction, thereby reducing operational costs and environmental impact.
Chukwukereuba addressed common criticisms surrounding the energy costs associated with AI, emphasising that the long-term benefits of AI-driven optimisation justify the initial energy investment. He stressed the importance of viewing AI as a strategic tool for achieving sustainability goals and enhancing overall operational efficiency in African data centres.
Despite the promising prospects offered by AI integration, the panellists acknowledged the need to overcome challenges related to infrastructure, workload distribution and efficient cooling solutions. They emphasised the transformative potential of AI and machine learning in addressing these issues, enabling data centres to optimise resource allocation and enhance overall performance.
In conclusion, the panellists affirmed their belief in the transformative power of AI to drive efficiency and sustainability in African data centres. Through collaborative efforts and strategic investments in AI-driven technologies, the industry stands poised to unlock new opportunities and navigate the evolving digital landscape with confidence.
