Capacity Middle East 2026

Iraq is a market with massive potential for digital infrastructure investment, not only as a transit route but also as a growing consumer of digital services. We are seeing significant government support for new AI data centres, the national backbone network, and a comprehensive strategy to drive FTTH, along with growing private sector investment. 

• How is the state-owned backbone network supporting increased fibre deployment? 
• How are international companies evaluating investment within Iraq? 
• What will it take to see significant data centre deployments within Iraq? 

Iraq possesses a unique geographic advantage for connecting Europe and the Middle East. With direct fibre routes between Turkey and the GCC, Iraq is situated to provide much-needed land-based diversity of connectivity between Europe and the Middle East.  

• How are operators seeking an alternative to the Red Sea, evaluating connectivity through Iraq? 
• What new routes can we expect to see being deployed through Iraq? 
• How are hyperscalers managing their risk when connecting between Europe and the Middle East? 

Peering offers reduced latency and lower IP transit costs, essential for driving improved connectivity within Iraq. With the launch of Iraq’s first neutral IXP, IRAQ-IXP, last year, it has surged to be the region’s third-largest IXP by connected networks, showing the demand for peering services in Iraq. 

• How critical is peering for the development of the Northern route between Europe and the Middle East? 
• What role can peering play in supporting the rapidly expanding ISP sector within Iraq?  
• When are we likely to see the launch of additional IXPs in Iraq?  

This keynote panel brings together the region’s most influential digital infrastructure and connectivity executives to explore the most pressing topics. With an ongoing boom in digital infrastructure, driven by AI and investment, connectivity providers have an unprecedented opportunity. How are leading operators seizing this moment, and what risks do we need to be aware of? 

• How are executives evaluating the opportunities for investment across digital infrastructure? And which regions offer the greatest opportunities? 
• How is service evolution enhancing customer experience and unlocking new revenues? 
• What are the key challenges to unlocking continued growth, and how can we overcome them? 

The demands of AI on digital infrastructure are immense, and as we move towards inference, these demands will only increase. From vast hyperscale data centres to high-capacity fibre connectivity and ubiquitous connectivity access to deliver the benefits of AI for all, the entire digital infrastructure ecosystem must invest and collaborate.  

• What scale of infrastructure is required to meet compute demands in key markets? And is the industry ready?
• What are hyperscalers and leading AI providers looking for from connectivity and digital infrastructure operators? 
• How clear is the investment case for AI infrastructure investment? Or do we need to better demonstrate the potential ROI? 

Stargate UAE is the first international deployment of the AI infrastructure Stargate program, with the first 200MW of 1GW due to come online in 2026. While Stargate UAE will continue to enable domestic AI consumption it also has the potential to provide connectivity to almost half the world’s population, located within 2,000 miles. 

• What are the demand drivers behind such a large data centre deployment? 
• The role of nuclear power in providing sustainable, reliable power to the site 
• How are we ensuring adequate connectivity to enable Stargate UAE to serve users beyond the UAE? 

Connectivity underpins many of the region’s ambitious plans to transform economies into digital powerhouses. To enable new digital sectors of economic growth, like fintech and IoT, wireless connectivity providers must ensure ubiquitous, high-speed, and low-latency connectivity.

• How are use-cases like IoT and robotics changing the requirements of network architecture?
• How are operators balancing their investments in wireless technologies, like 5G, and in fibre?
• What role will the neutral host model play in enabling the cost-effective deployment of wireless connectivity?

With AI workloads evolving, the pressures on data centre operators are increasing. Understanding both the demands of future workloads and the chips running them is essential for data centre operators to remain competitive.  

• What does the increased efficiency of Grace Hopper and Grace Blackwell chips vs the H100 mean for data centre requirements? 
• How partnerships between colocation providers and chip manufacturers are helping address privacy and security concerns for AI 
• How are partnerships are giving customers greater flexibility to adopt private and hybrid AI? 

Across the Middle East, the majority of tower sites are owned by mobile operators. However, in recent years, we have seen the growth of the tower co model, including the TAWAL/STC carve out and the Omantel/Helio towers transaction.  

• What are the advantages and disadvantages to MNOs of divesting their tower assets? 

• What is driving the adoption of the tower co model in the region? 

• What additional carve-outs and M&A can we expect in the coming year? 

With a spate of recent announcements of new data centre hubs and rapid expansion of existing sites, such as Damman or Sharjah, providing diverse high-capacity connectivity is essential to unlocking the value of these sites.  

• How are the connectivity requirements of hyperscalers and other data centre tenants evolving? 

• Do permitting and survey requirements for new subsea projects risk creating delays in connecting emerging data hubs? And how can we overcome these challenges? 

• As the scale of data centres and their power densities expands is current fibre technology adequate to meet capacity demands? 

Even as the AI boom continues full throttle, questions are emerging about who controls the data and potential conflicts with national security, economic goals, and local values. Sovereign AI, trained on local data, offers a solution to these growing concerns.

• How can developing sovereign AI address concerns and meet data sovereignty regulations?
• Is it feasible for each nation to develop the infrastructure and generate the required investment to deploy sovereign AI?
• What can we learn from current projects, such as Saudi Arabia’s HumAIn and the country’s digital embassies approach?

While the main emphasis for digital infrastructure operators has been on meeting the demand for AI, it also provides the tools to digitise and transform customer experience within connectivity providers rapidly. 

• How can AI and automation streamline internal operations to increase agility and margins? 
• How are operators using AI to increase revenue through improved customer experience and retention? 
• What skills do teams need to capitalise on the potential of AI? 

While many nations in the GCC have very high rates of internet penetration, with Kuwait leading at 97%, there are other areas of the Middle East that lag significantly behind. Addressing the digital divide is crucial for driving economic growth and promoting digital inclusion.  

• What technology solutions are best placed in higher-risk regions and rural areas? 

• What support is available to address the high build cost and lower ROI of digital infrastructure deployments in less populated areas? 

• How can upcoming LEO constellations support or disrupt existing connectivity solutions? 

With leading data centre operators in the Middle East eyeing international expansion into Europe, Africa and the US, they will require new sources of capital to make these plans a reality.  

• Will traditional sources of capital, from sovereign wealth funds and national investment banks, finance expansions beyond their home nations?  
• What role can global investment banks and private equity firms play in supporting international expansion plans? 
• Do operators positioned within broader portfolios have an advantage when expanding, such as those within groups including power generation companies? 

Across the region, we are seeing huge investment into digital infrastructure, driven by ambitious government-led initiatives to diversify oil-dominated economies. Even as sovereign wealth funds continue to drive investment, we are seeing an increase in international investment in the region, including KKR and Gulf Data Hub, as well as I Squared and PIF’s joint investment fund. 

• Which verticals are most attractive to investors? 
• How is international investment impacting digital infrastructure deployment? 
• How do returns in the region compare to those available elsewhere in digital infrastructure, like the US? 

Cooling for data centres is vital globally, but in the Middle East, with its high ambient temperatures, the demand for efficient cooling systems is critical.  

• What solutions are data centre operators pursing to cool sites? Is liquid cooling the only viable solution for future facilities?  
• How are design teams prioritising cooling in new and existing sites? 
• Will it be possible to achieve equal PUEs in the Middle East as we see in cooler environments?  

Already home to some of the highest concentrations of subsea cables, several new systems have been announced or will be RFS in the next year. These new systems include intercontinental systems, such as SEA-ME-WE 6, connecting Europe and Asia. Additionally, we are seeing a growing number of intra-regional cables, reflecting the increasing traffic within the region, such as the FIG OEG systems.  

• How are operators mitigating the risk of cable cuts in congested waters?  
• What is driving the growth of intra-regional cables?  
• Do recent announcements meet the demand for subsea connectivity or will we more cables announced? And what impact will growing data sovereignty requirements and the sovereign AI movement mean for international connectivity 

As HPC and AI workloads drive ever greater power density, designers are having to accommodate these densities. As hyperscale sites push past 100kw per rack, and some are discussing 200kw plus sites these design pressures are increasing. 

• What is driving the push for vertical expansion? And will we see uptake in the Middle East? 

• Will direct liquid cooling become standard across hyperscale sites? 

• What does increasing rack density mean for retrofits? 

The Red Sea has been home to several prominent cable cuts in recent years. The massive economic impact of cable cuts makes protecting this critical infrastructure vital.  

• How can international cooperation between governments and groups like the ICPC help protect cables? 
• How is monitoring and sensing reducing risk for subsea operators?  
• With limited ships for repairs and the ongoing threat to ships in the Red Sea how can we repair systems quickly and safely? 

Despite the global push back against the costs of sustainability, leading hyperscalers and data centre operators have maintained their net-zero goals. In the Middle East, with higher PUEs and ambient temperatures meeting sustainability goals is a greater challenge.  

• The role of sustainable power, especially solar and nuclear in reducing data centre emissions 

• How adoption of advanced cooling can help drive sustainability and reduce costs for operators 

• How the implementation of AI and ML technologies in cooling and energy management can help drive efficiency and sustainability 

We are seeing a growth in conversational marketing and business messaging across the Middle East. While WhatsApp remains dominant, the majority of companies using multichannel messaging include SMS as one of their channels, showing SMS remains a critical tool.  

• How is RCS adoption enhancing messaging and challenging the dominance of OTT services? 

• How will agentic AI disrupt traditional business messaging? 

• How are messaging aggregators adapting to these emerging trends? 

We are witnessing the rapid adoption of fixed wireless access (FWA) as 5G technology enhances performance, with 20% of broadband connections in Saudi Arabia now utilising FWA. While fibre continues to outperform FWA, its lower deployment cost and ability to serve under-connected populations give FWA some distinct advantages. 

• What is driving consumer adoption of FWA in urban areas? 

• How is new technology driving improved performance for FWA? 

• How are tower companies evaluating the revenue opportunity posed by growing wireless subscriptions? 

Fraud has been a persistent issue for operators, requiring international cooperation to combat. In the Middle East, we are seeing fraud evolve, including an increase in Wangiri and Interconnect Bypass. This ongoing evolution, coupled with the growing threat of AI means it is imperative for us to adopt new solutions in the fight against fraud.  

• How is the fraud landscape shifting in key markets across the Middle East? 

• What pioneering solutions are available to mitigate the threat of fraud? 

• How is AI accelerating the threat and how can AI driven solutions counter this threat? 

While many have proclaimed the death of voice for years, it remains a significant share of operator revenues. With new use cases driven by AI emerging, including customer service agents and voice recognition, voice will continue to be a crucial channel of communication and revenue for operators. 

• How are managed services improving customer experience and unlocking new revenue for operators? 

• How can operators capitalise on increasing traffic from AI use cases? 

• What impact will VOIP restrictions have on the adoption of emerging use cases? 

Reducing operational costs is essential to increasing margins and generating ROI for investors in mobile towers. By leveraging efficient energy systems, implementing automation, and fostering a culture of innovation, we can ensure the next generation of wireless and mobile infrastructure is efficient and valuable.

• How is more efficient equipment and AI-driven power optimisation increasing margins for tower operators?
• What role can renewable energy sources and battery storage play vs traditional diesel generators?
• How are automation and big data enabling more efficient network management?

As adoption of the multi-tenant independent tower model accelerates, tower operators need to ensure their sites can meet the evolving demands of MNOs. As infrastructure demands evolve, so do the requirements for monitoring and site digitisation.  

• How can tower operators ensure existing sites and new builds are compatible with future demands? 

• How is design evolving with light towers and modular design changing the industry? 

• What impact are digital twins and automation having onsite maintenance? 

To deliver on the ambitious smart city projects of the region, operators from across verticals, including data centres, towers, and telecom, must collaborate to lay the digital infrastructure underpinning these projects. 

• What are the digital infrastructure requirements of key projects, like NEOM? 

• How do operators need to collaborate to address these needs to create a seamless connectivity environment? 

• What revenue opportunities are available from smart city applications to digital infrastructure operators? 

Inaugurated at ITW 2025, the Product Innovation Forum serves to challenge CSPs way of thinking on how their product suites need to evolve. How can evolving customer requirements, technology advances and fresh ideas unlock new revenue opportunities? 

Our carefully selected roster of innovators - from start-ups to established players - will deliver short presentations and then be questioned by our expert panel and you the audience on how these could translate into new or enhanced revenue streams.  

Fun, lively and interactive - join us for this half-day session and leave inspired!