THE DATA CENTRE INTERVIEW
UK demand for AI infrastructure continues rising According to Spencer, UK demand is strong and he expects it to keep growing.
“ There are some 60 to 70 million people in the UK, alongside a vast number of businesses and government departments and all of them are adopting AI,” he says.
“ For a US technology firm looking to provide AI services, the UK is a compelling place to invest in the infrastructure that delivers AI inferencing.
“ Microsoft, for example, regards the UK as one of its largest single markets outside the US. As consumers and enterprises embed AI into their day-today activity, we will see deployments of this kind happen more and more.”
However, Spencer admits there are some obstacles for the industry to overcome.
“ The constraints are real, though,” he says.“ Power availability and grid connections remain the traditional pressure points and increasingly the harder challenge is the development process itself, which is becoming more demanding to navigate.
“ Much of this represents AI adoption rather than AI creation and that distinction matters for how much longterm value the UK ultimately retains.”
Setting the scene for continued expansion The Harlow campus is set to grow to five buildings but this is only one part of Kao Data’ s expansion plans, shares Spencer.
28 August 2026