Connect | APAC // Leadership Discussion: Delivering the AI factory - Solving the power, speed, and people bottleneck

  • —
  • Negara Room | Karangasem Ballroom | Lower Level
  • Data Center Cooling
  • Mission Critical Power
  • Data Center Construction
  • Invite-only Session

Speakers

Professor PS Lee

Head of Mechanical Engineering, National University of Singapore (NUS)

David Dzienciol

Chief Customer and Commercial Officer, NEXTDC

Jon Curry

Vice President Operations - APAC, Digital Realty

The breakneck pace of AI infrastructure is forcing a fundamental overhaul of cooling, power delivery, and construction. Delivering 10–30MW blocks in six-month cycles requires C-suite leaders to overcome the brutal friction of speed: navigating a vacuum of cooling standards and tightening sustainability mandates, all while simultaneously battling acute talent gaps and 18-month equipment lead times.

  • Choosing between rapid retrofits or massive AI giga-factories
  • Using on-site generation, including natural gas, hydrogen fuel cells, solar and storage to bypass the grid and go live years earlier
  • Protecting campus infrastructure from extreme AI-driven load spikes
  • Defining ownership of liquid cooling risks between operators and OEMs
  • Adopting operational labour models from the nuclear and marine sectors
  • Standardizing blocks to bypass 18-month equipment lead times
  • Securing permits through water-neutral and heat-reuse strategies