FEATURE
The sustainability blind spot
Despite rising energy and cooling demands driven by AI workloads, sustainability considerations remain secondary for most organisations when evaluating infrastructure options. Although 27 % of organisations say ESG goals will actively shape or be central to their future plans, 64 % of organisations across Asia continue to prioritise performance or cost, even as power density, thermal efficiency and long term total cost of ownership become increasingly critical factors in scaling AI responsibly.
A disconnect between what organisations want and what they need
The study also highlights a persistent disconnect between how organisations evaluate infrastructure partners and the capabilities they actually need to scale AI. Across Asia, organisations continue to
A significant 71 % remain in the‘ Builder’ stage of maturity.
prioritise baseline requirements like security and reliability, despite identifying operational expertise, scalability and cost efficiency as their most significant challenges.
Singapore: Ahead of the region, but facing a new constraint
These challenges are visible across the region, but they manifest differently in more mature markets. Singapore stands out against the regional baseline with a significantly larger share of organisations having progressed beyond earlystage pilots. While only 17 % of organisations across Asia are considered future ready, 40 % of Singapore organisations have reached the Integrator stage, reflecting stronger early execution and deployment capability.
However, the study also finds that the final step to leadership remains the most difficult. Only www. intelligentcio. com
INTELLIGENT CIO APAC
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