- China plans to invest over 2 trillion yuan in data centres over the next five years
- The initiative aims to build digital infrastructure to compete with US AI dominance
- State firms like China Mobile and China Telecom will operate most data centres
As Beijing seeks to compete with the United States in the escalating AI race, China plans to invest over 2 trillion yuan ($295.43 billion) over the next five years in building data centres nationwide.
According to the Bloomberg News report, which cited persons with knowledge of the situation, the National Development and Reform Commission is one of the major government organisations creating a plan to establish a nationwide network of interconnected computer hubs.
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China's 2 trillion yuan ($295.43 billion) program is a fundamental national effort to build the digital infrastructure needed to challenge US dominance and train sophisticated AI models. Given that Beijing's access to high-end AI hardware is restricted by US export regulations, the initiative fills a vital requirement for domestic processing power.
China's new five-year strategy roadmap outlined its goals to dominate emerging technologies like quantum computing and humanoid robots, as well as aggressively implement AI throughout the second-largest economy in the world.
The majority of the data centres will be run and connected by state companies like China Mobile and China Telecom, according to the Bloomberg News story.
To meet the high demands of artificial intelligence, large server farms are being moved to regions with plenty of renewable energy supplies, as per a report by Asia Financial.
According to the article, the plan is to use local suppliers, such as Huawei Technologies, for at least 80% of technology, including AI chips, thereby pushing out Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices. However, the data-centre architecture is still in the early stages of discussion, and specifics may alter.
This occurs at a time when US Big Tech corporations are anticipated to spend over $700 billion on their AI buildout plans this year.
China Mobile, China Telecom, or the National Development and Reform Commission did not immediately answer requests for comment from Reuters.
The Chinese government set guidelines last year, according to Reuters, mandating that new data centre projects that have received any state funding utilise only AI processors manufactured in China.
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