The Inevitable Collision: GenAI, Data Sovereignty, Power and Space

There's increasing evidence that the growing sophistication of GenAI models and the data they need is on a collision course with data sovereignty regulations. I expect this clash to spark an explosion in the number and geographic spread of digital infrastructure. And let's be real, we're already struggling to keep up building the power and space we need for today’s use cases, and GenAI is just getting started.

Here's where Accenture comes in.?

Five ways we can help you get those megawatts online and generating revenue (and delightful end-user experiences) faster…

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#1: Power It

By 2030, data centers in the US are projected to consume 8% of the nation's electricity. The digital infrastructure industry is at risk of buckling under generation and transmission constraints. The Accenture Utilities industry practice, led by experts like James Mazurek , Aaron Saint , and Michael Higgins can help you navigate these challenges with their expertise in:

• Energy supply planning and procurement
• Power delivery infrastructure planning
• Energy efficiency and demand reduction interventions
• Regulatory strategy for rate design
• Stakeholder management

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#2: Build It

AI-fueled growth and increasingly complex data sovereignty regulations are driving a surge in the geographic diversity of data centers. Our Infrastructure & Capital Projects practice, with leaders such as myself, Bryan Carruthers , Whitney Villalobos (MBA, PMP, CDCDP, CDCP, CFM, STSC) , Sean N. Bondar , and George Rhymestine (for direct sourcing) can act as your Owner’s Rep, helping you deliver projects up to 15% ahead of schedule and 10% under budget. Our services include:

• Portfolio strategy
• Program Management Office (PMO)
• Project management / construction management
• Program/project controls
• Estimating/QS
• Planning & Scheduling
• Direct materials (industrials) procurement
• Digitizing the end-to-end process and infusing GenAI for decision making

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#3: Track It

A typical digital infrastructure builder has over 100 active projects at any given time. Every delay can mean millions in lost revenue, yet there are few good solutions for tracking these programs at this scale. Enter Anunay Prasad and our Capital Projects Control Tower, an AI-powered platform designed to enable decision support by identifying early warnings and cross-functional impacts. This platform helps our clients:

• Summarize portfolio, program, and project health and highlights
• Create insights on process blockages for Pre-feed, Feed, procurement, supply chain, construction, and handover
• Track and trend financial and contract performance
• Enable digital project management, digital surveys, and 4D/5D progress visualization
• Provide predictive and prescriptive insights with KPIs such as schedule, cost, scope, risk, safety … and more

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#4: Manage It

Digital infrastructures are among the most complex industrial and technical facilities on the planet, generating gigabytes of operational data. Tremendous insights are locked away in these data streams. Our Digital Building Lifecycle capabilities, led by Amir Hamaoui, PE , Leigh Valudes, CMQ-OE, PMP, LEED AP , and John Turner can help you:

• Efficiently utilize Digital Twins to visualize IoT data with BIM to boost operations
• Leverage AI to analyze sensor data, predict risks, and minimize critical infrastructure downtime
• Automate sustainability and compliance tracking to meet regulatory and public relations goals
• Integrate real-time analytics and surveillance to drive operational efficiency

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#5: Secure It

Data centers contain thousands of pieces of industrial equipment, most of which are network-connected and running firmware and software - and subject to vulnerabilities. Every piece of equipment represents a potential attack vector. Our Cybersecurity practice, with experts like Paul Brownlee , can help you mitigate these risks through:

• Security and network architecture design and review
• Data center equipment security design assistance and network integration planning
• Role-based cybersecurity training programs for employees and contractors during design and commissioning
• Firmware and software upgrades & security scanning
• Device testing and penetration testing capabilities

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These are just five ways we are deeply integrated into the digital infrastructure landscape. There are many more. With our acquisitions such as Anser Advisory in the US and other firms around the globe, including Comtech Group, BOSLAN, and Partners in Performance, we have significantly expanded our capabilities and embedded them into our core business.?

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Steve Roberts

#DataCenters #Infrastructure #Accenture

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