Will Enterprise Data Centers Become ‘The Edge’ for AI?”

On-premises enterprise data centers have been in decline since the creation of co-lo’s and the cloud, but a new age is emerging with the advent of AI. While most AI is served by the mega data centers mushrooming in “data corridors”, some applications require the low latency response times that edge computing was designed to provide. The industry readily builds large numbers of small processing centers at the edge to serve things like 5G cell service. But constructing AI data centers close to every high demand user is financially impractical and subject to local restrictions due to their enormous demands on power and water. Tune into this session presented by industry thought leader Bob McFarlane to learn how reviving enterprise data centers as edge facilities may be the answer to acquiring virtually instant response times. Despite significantly greater power and cooling demands, they are unlikely to reach the levels that concern local citizens, enabling them to be renovated or built where necessary without pushback. Companies with significant AI demands may need to start planning and budgeting for high capacity, high reliability infrastructures with costs and staffing beyond anything they have previously experienced. Learning Objectives: - Understand the key elements of Edge Computing, and how they relate to AI applications. - Learn the limitations AI services providers confront in constructing edge facilities. - Learn to identify AI applications that require the fast response times of the “edge”. - Prepare for the challenges your organization may face in utilizing AI in critical applications.